So this is an orc based supplement?
Moreso than you might think, actually. In fact, there is an amazingly strong orc presence, considering it's a dwarven stronghold.
Although, actually, it doesn't seem all that, er, 'dwarfy.' In fact, the Seven-Pillared Hall in Thunderspire Labyrinth seems more dwarfy than this place, which is essentially a pretty standard walled down that just happens to be up on a mountain.
Having read through a bit more of the supplement last night, I've decided to christen it "The Book of Strange Choices," because from a design standpoint that seems to be what it is.
There are some adventure bits at the end, mostly sketchy adventure ideas for you to flesh out; but mostly the supplement is an in-depth study of the town. I like the general approach, and it's nice to see some movement away from "fight-fight-fight" and towards some more interesting interactions, but the actual town in question seems a bit forced.
The backstory is that it was originally essentially a dwarven necropolis, but after so many dwarven lords had been buried there they had to have guards staying there to guard the various tombs' treasures ... but then there was a massive raid by orcs and a huge battle that wiped out both the guards and the raiders, and finally a cease-fire brokered by followers of both Moradin and Gruumsh in which both factions would share the city peaceably, including the restless ghosts of the battle. So you've got dwarves, orcs, and ghosts all co-existing together with political struggles between the two temples and occasional hidden treasure vaults popping up and so on. You can practically hear the design memo language requiring that the setting have "lots of fantastic elements" and "chances for conflict around every corner."
There's a very nice poster map of the whole city, with a grid, except that the squares are a centimeter across and represent 20'. Not sure if it's intended for tactical use or what. Easily re-purposeable if you don't want to have it populated by dwarves, orcs, and ghosts.
There's a hex map of the region, ready for random encounters and all. Again, this is a strange choice ... what happened to 4E's general trend of dispensing with such things and having travel happen at the speed of plot? That old chestnut, the Dungeon of the Fire Opal, gets a nod here.
The battle maps, as I mentioned above, are basically two big square rooms. In point of fact, they're the upper and lower floors of the local tavern, complete with chandelier with rules for swinging on. Neat enough I suppose, but kinda superfluous with the release of "Harrowing Halls" on the exact same day (and the Paizo flip-mat that already covers the same ground). Still, if you want some brawling, you've come to the right place.
The last thing that struck me in my quick overview last night was a beastie in the back, a L14 elite brute if my memory serves correctly, that's described as probably being the most dangerous creature within the confines of Nentir Vale. Again, this struck me as a strange choice ... I haven't looked at all the other dungeons theoretically set in Nentir Vale, but aren't some of them considerably higher than 14th level? (Or do they go all interplanar?)
Overall, I found it a mixed bag. There's neat stuff in it that I'm sure I'll find a use for somewhere along the line, but it's certainly not what I was looking for when I picked up a "dwarf settlement" book and it left me scratching my head a lot.
-The Gneech
