Module B1: In Search of the Unknown

The fighter lord Rogahn and the mage Zelligar pooled their resources in ancient times and carved themselves a fortress into the very living rock of a mountain. This complex originally housed Rogahn's barbarian warriors and Zelligar's experiments, but in time it has fallen to ruin. The adventurers must explore its devious tricks, traps, and the horrid denizens that have moved in over the years to gain its treasures.

This is the first D&D module ever produced! Written in 1979, it is labeled as a special instructional module! Basically, the DM gets a massive dungeon, some descriptive & situational material, background history & legends, listings of possible monsters & treasures, some ideas and THATS IT!

Module B2: The Keep on the Borderlands

The characters' wandering have drawn them to the Keep on the Borderlands, which maintains order on the edge of the civilized lands. Using it as a base, the party will explore the humanoid-ridden Caves of Chaos, and either profit by its treasures or become yet another group of its victims.

This classic 32-page D&D Module is for character levels 1-3 and was written by Tom Moldvay and Jean Wells in 1981. Contained within are maps of the palace and its dungeons, background information, and a special preliminary adventure.

Module B4: The Lost City 
by Tom Moldvay 
For Character Levels 1-3
1982 TSR Hobbies, Inc 

Lost in the desert! The only hope for survival lies in a ruined city rising out of the sands. Food, water, and wealth await heroic adventurers inside an ancient pyramid ruled by a strange race of masked beings.

This is an "epic" beginner-module, featuring 100 rooms in a haunted step pyramid.

The Fall of Cynidicea 

Centuries ago, Cynidicea was the capital of a rich and fertile kingdom. Its people reclaimed much land from the desert, especially during the reign of King Alexander—the last and greatest king of Cynidicea. Upon King Alexander’s death, a huge pyramid was raised in his honor. This pyramid was the largest and most important building in the city. 

The fall of Cynidicea began on the day that workers, digging under the great pyramid, chanced upon the lair of a strange monster called Zargon. Zargon was roughly humanoid in shape, though larger than most humans. In place of arms and legs it had twelve tentacles. Its head was that of a giant lizard, with a large black horn in the middle of its forehead. 

Zargon killed most of the workers, then began hunting prey at night through the streets of Cynidicea. The city guard was not able to kill the monster. At last, the city rulers began sending criminals from the jails into the pyramid for Zargon to feed on. 

In time, a strange cult arose that worshipped the monster as a god. The cult viewed the monster’s victims as religious sacrifices. The worship of the ancient gods of Cynidicea—Gorm, Usamigaras, and Madarua—was forsaken in favor of the worship of the monster Zargon. Finally, most of the citizens of Cynidicea worshipped it. 

The worshippers of Zargon began to look for strange pleasures. They sought oblivion in rare wines and bizarre drugs. Workers no longer repaired the irrigation ditches. Rich land turned into desert. The army lost its discipline. People outside the city rebelled, or moved away as chaos spread outward from Cynidicea. 

Later, barbarian warriors stormed over the walls and destroyed the city. The only people of Cynidicea who survived its destruction were those who had fled underground to the vast catacombs* under the city. There, led by Priests of Zargon, the Cynidiceans tried to rebuild the city. 

The surviving people based their new life around a huge underground lake fed by channels cut through solid rock. Built in the reign of King Alexander, the lake had been the original city’s water supply. On its shores, the people grew mushrooms and other edible fungi. They built houses using stones from the ruins above. The new underground city was much smaller than the ancient capital, but it was safer because it was hidden beneath the desert sands. Above, drifting sands covered the original city, and Cynidicea was lost in the vastness of the desert

”The end of the road. A lonely fort stands on the banks of a mighty river. It is here the hardy bands of adventurers gather to plan their conquests of The Hill, the hulking mass that looms over this tiny settlement.

The Hill is filled with monsters, they say, an evil witch makes here home there. Still, no visitor to The Hill has ever returned to prove the rumors true or false. The thrill of discovery is too great to pass up, and only the river stands in the way. The adventurer’s boat is waiting!”

This , classic, 28-pages D&D module was written by long time great Douglas Niles and is for character levels 1-3.

This module was written by Douglas Niles and appeared in 1983. The adventure begins in Guido's Fort (unfortunate name there). Across a mile-wide river lies a large bulk called "The Hill" which is rumored to hold monsters and ancient treasures. The PCs go to explore this area.

The adventure consists of three parts. The first part is the outdoor sections of the hill, holding a variety of creatures, from ogres to neanderthals, and a pair of nice old "ladies". There is some interaction between the creatures, so it isn't all hack and slash. The use of terrain is interesting because of the steam vents in the area from magma below.

The second part is a ruined monastery, run by hobgoblins and ogres. The goblinoids are assembling an army to raid across the river. After defeating the hobgoblin king, the party almost surely falls through a trap door into the lower levels of the dungeon.

This third part of the dungeon is probably the weakest. The characters are trapped in the lowest two levels of the dungeon and must battle their way through a young red dragon to escape to the surface. It's hard to tell how the monsters survive on this level, especially with ghouls and a gelatinous cube janitor. Of course, the way to the dragon is barred by kobolds who make use of the geologic fault line that runs through the middle of the dungeon.

Strangely enough, provision is made at the end of the adventure if the PCs have a subdued dragon tagging along with them.

Conclusions

This adventure is decent. There are enough new elements like the steam vents, kindly "ladies", and one-way ticket to the lowest levels to make the adventure somewhat memorable. On the other hand, there isn't much chance for interaction or role-playing once the characters get into the monastery, so it degenerates into a desperate hack and slash as the characters struggle to escape.

Module B6: The Veiled Society

by David Cook for TSR in 1984.

"The widow insists there are demons in her house. She hears them at night in her root cellar, and now they call out to her. But she is old and nervous and her mind often plays tricks on her. *** Two men, their heads fully sheathed in large, black hoods, dig quickly in the darkness of the cellar. The hole grows deeper as their shovels bite into the earth. "This will teach those meddlers their place," laughs the tall, hefty figure. "But it's too bad this was an accident," the shorter, slim figure says haltingly. "But don't you see the advantage?" snapped the tall man. "They will fear us now. They will fear for their lives." Grunting, they heave a sailcloth bundle into the hole. As it falls, a woman's hand dangles lifelessly from the folds. Who is this woman? Why will her death trigger riots and unrest in the city of Specularum? And the assassins: Are they Torenescu, Radu, or Vorloi? Or, curse of curses, the Veiled Society? *** This special game adventure provides a section of paper buildings and figures to cut out and use, giving you three dimensions to your game play!!

Intrigue and plots in a great city is the subtext of this adventure written by David Cook in 1984 and clocking in at 16 pages. It also contains mockups of buildings and cardboard cutouts for the PCs and important NPCs, to be used as crude miniatures and sets.

(As a side note, the map of Specularum presented in this product is notably different from the map as shown in all later products.)

Three families are struggling for power in Specularum: the Radu family (merchant family that controls the waterfront and walls), the Torenescu family (wealthy fading faction that controls the noble district), and the Vorloi (an upstart faction controlled by a merchant prince).

This module uses a flowchart of encounters, recently hailed as a new innovation in the third edition DMG. Every encounter has a layout of buildings to represent the current scene the PCs are in. In addition, every encounter has a short dialog snippet from the arch-conspirators of this adventure - the Veiled Society.

This adventure traces the actions of the Veiled Society (controlled by the Radu faction) to discredit the other factions and seize control of the city. The good part of the adventure is that it is designed so that the PCs can take different sides and help or hinder the plot as it goes forward. They can also switch sides in the middle. The adventure even attempts to split up the PCs, so that they can join different factions.

The module is a bit thin, so there are only seven real encounters, many of them fairly short. The characters find hidden tunnels under houses and discover murderers disposing of a body. The body is of a young woman of the Vorloi who spurned a Torenescu. The mood of the city grows tense as many blame the Torenescu for her murder. Riots break out and guardsmen are called to intervene. The characters can escape the riot and chase a rabblerouser or lead the riot. After the riot, the characters are approached to work for the Torenescu or the Veiled Society. The Torenescu faction PCs are assigned to guard a noble, while the Veiled Society PCs are assigned to ambush and kill him. After the ambush, the characters can start putting clues together and deduce the culprits. If they aren't getting it, they may be able to trace survivors of an ambush to their lair. At the lair, they must contend with the Veiled Society members and discover proof of their involvement.

Conclusions

The module hangs together pretty well, and there is enough here to run the adventure, though just barely. There is no real additional information about the city, but that also means this adventure can be easily dropped into a city of your choosing. If the PCs are not that directed, the DM will have to create a fair amount of additional material. On the other hand, this plot and encounters make more sense than Speaker in Dreams, and this is a better adventure, though a lot shorter. This city adventure is probably best run with another city adventure or setting information to provide additional flavor and encounters.

Module B7: Rahasia

"Gray Mountain lies deep in the lush elven forest. The temple there was a haven of meditation and learning - until taken over by an evil cleric named Rahib. Far under the mountain, he paces before the temple's great altar. A brown-robed servant rushes in and falls to his knees, trembling at the sight of the Rahib's black panther. "Rahib, adventurers came to the village as the sun rose - the strangers now protect Rahasia." A scowl crosses the Rahib's face. "I must have Rahasia! Attack again tonight." As the servant scurries away, a deep growl rises from the giant cat. Gripping the panther's leash, the Rahib paces again, speaking out loud. "We must dispose of these strangers quickly; the secret beneath the temple will not wait much longer."

This , 32-pages TSR module was originally released in RPGA tournament format and is quite difficult to find complete. Written by Tracy and Laura Hickman (of Dragonlance Fame) and printed in 1984, the module comes with a beautifully illustrated tri-fold map screen. A Basic level module for character levels 1-3

Rahasia was written by Tracy and Laura Hickman and appeared in 1984.

Rahasia is the name of a beautiful elven maiden. She lives in a small village near a temple, maintained by the Siswa, a group of teachers and students. A man known only as "the Rahib" has ensorcelled the Siswa and seeks to free three witches by allowing them to possess beautiful elven maidens. Rahasia is the only one left to be kidnapped and taken to the temple. The PCs must rescue the other two maidens, defeat the witches and the Rahib, and free the Siswa.

The first thing you notice about this module are the production values. The art is substantially better than earlier B-series modules. There is a fair amount of art, including three full-page pieces, and they are all good. Jeff Easley and Tim Truman provided their usual skills. In addition, the small side pieces and the wine bottles look very good on the page.

The other thing that quickly becomes apparent is that this is set in a different cultural milieu than standard D&D. Everything has an arabic flair, from the text to the names to the art. It's a nice surprise, and reinforces the sense of mysticism and magic in the module. There's a sense that the PCs have entered a different world with secrets and magic they do not understand. It works well for the module.

A nice twist to this adventure is that almost everyone the PCs will encounter is actually a good guy, charmed by the Rahib. Thus the characters have to take care not to kill the Siswa, and this is reinforced by the XP rewards: they gain XP for subduing and lose it for killing the Siswa.

The temple complex is very large, and makes frequent use of magical portals, that will redirect the characters all over the place. This is another nice way to unsettle the PCs and make them rely more on their wits. In addition, there are real advantages in the adventure to thinking before fighting. Some of the monsters (like the Bone Golem and the Siswa) will likely not attack characters if they wear Siswa robes.

In addition, the adventure is cleverly set up so that the PCs can enter the temple complex in a number of ways. If they are captured by the Siswa, they appear in prison cells and may try to escape. They can get in through the front door, or teleport directly to the third level by using the portal in the Roadside Shrine.

One interesting facet of the adventure is the use of wine to produce visions. In addition, the labels on the wine contain a secret code that will help the characters through a labyrinth. Now, this code isn't really necessary to complete the module, but it is nice to have it there for the observant players. It's also an original gimmick.

The main antagonists are a group of three witches currently attempting to possess three elven maidens. Only through the PCs' efforts can they be destroyed and the elven maidens freed. Interestingly, if all three witches are active at once, they all become stronger. This was a nice idea, and could probably be implemented in a much more interesting way in 3e.

Conclusions

This adventure had much higher production values and writing quality than earlier adventures. The plot is also more complicated, with characters first having to defeat the Rahib and then the witches, all the while navigating ancient puzzles and attempting to protect the Siswa and the possessed elven maidens. I recommend getting this one, and most of the elements would be easy to convert to third edition if desired.

Module B8 : Journey to the Rock

To a wizard, knowledge is power, and the wizard Lirdrium Arkayz wants to know the mysterious secret of The Rock. Many have tried to discover it-but The Rock keeps its secret well. The wizard offers a rich reward to anyone bold enough to solve this dark mystery.

But the road to The Rock leads to danger and hidden peril-dangers that have claimed the lives of many brave adventurers. Rashness and folly will lead to quick death, but riches await the clever and the brave. Have you the wits, courage and skill to survive the Journey to The Rock!?!

This 32-pages D&D module was written by Michael Malone in 1984 and is for character levels 1-3. Another of the more rare, late B-series modules, “Journey to the Rock” sounds simplistic to the PCs at first, but soon gives them more than they can handle!

Journey to the Rock was written by Michael Malone and came out in 1984. It started out as a tournament module and it really shows.

The PCs are hired to journey to a rock outcropping (called the Rock) and return its secret to their employer. Along the way, the path splits into three, and the characters must choose one of the three paths. Each path has a series of encounters the characters must pass through to succeed. Eventually they reach the rock, battle the crone of chaos there, and recover the secret after passing a couple of tests.

The main problem with this adventure is that the PCs will only take one of the three paths. That means all the work and effort put into developing the other two is basically worthless. In addition, moving these encounters is not that easy. Some of them rely on the presence of an enormous city, others on certain terrain features, and some of them are similar to others along different paths.

This is essentially an adventure by the numbers. The PCs have a clear goal. They head toward it, surmounting whatever obstacles are placed in their path. Once they succeed, that's it. In addition, there really isn't any subtlety in this adventure. The crone of chaos disguises herself, but everything is completely programmed. She attacks with three attacks in a row, and eventually is revealed, and then presumably is dispatched by the PCs.

The tournament nature of the module, where the whole point is to complete it with the fewest mistakes and in the shortest time, makes is fairly dull. The design of the module is completely based on it being easy to judge who has done best in going through the module. It seeks to make winners, when it's pretty hard to do that for a generic role-playing experience.

This module has another fault: too many new monsters. More than half of the monsters encountered are new monsters, and most of them are pretty lame. High up there has to be the crone of chaos, who is supposed to use deception to cause suffering. Of course, her powers are animal control and fairly blatant magical daggers. There is a mismatch, and the name has no justification. Other creatures are yet more humanoid creatures with new powers, like rockmen and blink-dog like chameleon men, who seem to have been created solely to exact tolls on passerby. One nice monster is the winged warrior, a type of living crystal statue that attacks with its razor wings.

Another problem is the wasted space in the module. There are four full-page illustrations (none of them particularly good) along with four pages of maps and handouts. These maps are copies of the DM maps with the numbers and special golden magical portal missing. The handouts are a full-page two paragraph fairly pointless letter and some sample characters. There just isn't much adventure here.

The boxed text and background material is also fairly pointless. There is supposed to be this magical city Tuma (with no doors or windows) that reappears only at certain times. Ghostly horsemen roam it and its inhabitants are in another dimension. The man who hired the PCs is trying to get an amulet to free his people, but he cannot recover it himself because of his evil enemies's spells. So he hires a bunch of low-level yahoos (the PCs) to do what no one before could do. Once he has the talisman, he can restore the city and rescue his people.

Like B3, this module has delusions of grandeur. There is nothing in the text or the way the module plays out to ignite the imagination of the PCs, but the module refers to this cosmic events while entrusting the fate of the universe to second-level PCs. It doesn't make sense.

Conclusions

Don't get this module. There really isn't much here worth using, and what is useful would have to be extensively reworked.

THRESHOLD! The northmost town in the Duchy -- and your last stop before your adventures begin. Threshold, the gateway to mysterious castles, lost temples, deadly caves and caverns. You have heard the stories and legends, now you wish to see for yourself.
This product provides a complete campaign adventure that will take beginning characters from 1st all the way to 3rd level and possibly beyond, drawn from the first nine modules of the B-series adventures.

In Search of Adventure

This is a super-module collecting the adventures B1 through B9 and linking them together through short interludes. Small changes to some adventures were made and parts of them sometimes left out. It came out in 1987, is 160 pages, and was put together by Jeff Grubb.

The adventures are printed all in the same font, but the order and writing is basically intact. The new monster statistics are at the end of the module, as are the maps on perforated sheets. The overall design works remarkably well.

It was designed to be used with GAZ1 The Grand Duchy of Karameikos, which detailed the campaign area. Fortunately, they put enough information in this product that it stands alone well.

The adventures linked

The action starts in Threshold, but the PCs eventually travel all over the Duchy. There are three main tracks.

The first has the players cleaning out Caldwell's castle and the dungeons below (B9). Their fame spreads in Threshold and they are hired to retrieve something from the Rock (B8). After returning from the Rock, they may detour to the Caverns of Quasqueton (B1) before being captured by the forces of the Black Eagle Barony. They must escape the fort (B9) and warn Luln of an impending attack. The mistress of Luln repels the attack and sends a report to Specularum with the PCs. There they must expose the Veiled Society (B6).

The second arc has the players investigating the theft of a holy artifact by a lapsed cleric, Elwyn (B9). She had contacts with an evil temple farther north, so the PCs travel there to destroy it and its humanoid supporters in the Caves of Chaos (B2). The PCs receive a message from an Immortal and must save Haven, where they are instantly transported (B3). After Haven emerges from its spell, the PCs ride down-river and probably stay at Guido's Fort (B5). After they resume their journey, they eventually reach Specularum and are embroiled in the affairs of the Veiled Society (B6).

The third arc has the players traveling north to deliver a package to an elven maiden and give a message to a trader's partner in Selenica. Once in the elven village, they must save Rahasia from a terrible fate (B7). After reaching Selenica, they discover the partner has embarked on a trading expedition into the desert and follow him there. There they fall prey to a sandstorm and must take refuge in a Lost City (B4). They meet the contact in the desert by chance and he takes them to Specularum, where they meet the Veiled Society (B6).

What was changed?

I'll outline below what changes were made. The original adventures I have already discussed in previous reviews, so I'd encourage readers to refer back to those.

B1 - they just include the maps. This adventure can be played as a little side-trek, but the DM has to do all the work.

B2 - they only include the Caves of Chaos, and the objective is rechanneled into destroying an evil cult that Elwyn (of B9 fame) was working with.

B3 - The beginning is reworked, and the interlude justifies the adventure much more.

B4 - Only the five upper levels of the pyramid are described and maps provided.

B5 - Only the monastery and the lower levels are given.

B6 - A new map of Specularum is given which fits the ones in all other Karameikos products. Other than that the adventure is almost exactly the same.

B7 - The adventure is presented completely.

B8 - Only the middle of the three routes is given. The rest is the same.

B9 - In general, the adventure is presented as listed, except the princess kidnapping adventure (the worst of the five) is left out. Interestingly, they change the name of the being in Elwyn's Sanctuary from Namyats to Chardastes.

Conclusions

In general, this was a heroic and largely successful attempt to tie together the modules. Some of the interludes and changes make the modules better than when they were originally published. The main faults of the project come from not changing the published modules enough. With this product, you can actually create a pretty decent campaign. With GAZ1 and its source material, you can expand all the interludes, add more role-playing, and make it a good campaign. I would recommend this product if you are interested in starting a campaign in Karameikos and need some ideas for adventures. After these modules, you can nicely segue back into B10, one of the best D&D modules ever written.

Bsolo Ghost of Lion Castle

He was the mightiest wizard we'd ever known, and that Lion Castle was his home. He's but a ghost now, haunting those halls & waiting for an heir!

This is a basic level module written in 1984. "Ghost of Lion Castle" is a solo adventure, but that 1 player gets to make all of the choices & gets all of the rewards. An entire castle and courtyard await your exploration. The adventure includes a completely new solo combat system as well! The material is here for a full-length module if a DM gets creative.