[Dungeon] Which TSR Modules are "Classics"?

[Alchemist]

I want to second Saga of The Shadow Lord. That adventure had good atmosphere and a couple of great set ups (The black dragon temple, for one)

As well, I really liked UK7-Dark Clouds Gather. All was not what it seemed, flying baboons and a cool artifact you couldn't keep for long.

Of course, Isle of Dread was fun and got played to death around our tables. But Saga of The Shadow Lord was my absolute favourite.

 

[Joshua Randall]

In the meantime, I've got to go hang with my friends Stalman Klim, Drelzna, and X the Mystic.

If Dungeon mag. is running short of articles one of these months, they could publish a list of all the names for the pre-generated characters in the classic modules. That would rule.

 

[Ycore Rixle]

I6 Ravenloft is, to me, in a class by itself. The characters, setting, plot, and style are all atmospheric, exquisitely detailed, fresh, and exciting. Not to mention the glorious map of the castle and the fantastic tarot mechanic.

GDQ is next on my list because of its scope and depth of vision. The gates to the alternative material planes from the Demonweb are superb.

X2 Chateau D'Ambreville and WG6 come next on my list. Both avoid cliche while immersing the characters in an open-ended, nonlinear setting with vividly drawn antagonists. Little wonder that they both borrow from existing works (as does I6, although to a much lesser extent).

Finally, I'll give a nod to Nightmare Keep by Rick Swann. Nice setting, good challenge for high-level characters.

 

[Drengy]

Gotta go with the basics here, the modules EVERYONE who played D&D back in the day actually played:

B2 Keep on the Borderlands
T1 Village of Hommlet (I still love this module - gonna buy the ToEE computer game just for the Hommlet part)
G1-3 Against the Giants

Those are the three modules that everyone played (IMHO). Beyond that, I think the percentages start to go down.

And one other classic module I love:

L1 The Secret of Bone Hill

Mostly because it was that module that re-introduced me to D&D a couple years ago when I joined a game using a 3E conversion of that module. Lendore Isle 4-ever!

 

[trancejeremy]

X2 - Castle Amber

It took the work of an author (Clark Ashton Smith) who was fairly popular in his time, but somewhat obscure these (er, those) days, and meshed it with D&D (I also like how they meshed it with the Known World/Mystara setting later on).

It was a very very odd adventure. It was something of a dungeon crawl, at least the first part (only set in a Castle), but it was a very weird one.

I also liked the art. It was one of the first modules (and only) that illustrated the same party of characters as they went through it.

I also really liked the job TSR did on the follow-up module, 15 years later. Though it's tied in a lot more to the Mystara/Known World setting, and the audio cd was a bit silly. But they did a good job of revisiting the same ground, without rewriting history or mocking it (something the Kenzer and Dungeon/Polyhedron people could learn from, I think, given how they like to rewrite old modules/settings in order to mock fans...)

B4 - The Lost City

This is a very underated module, IMHO. Like the title implies, it details a lost city of a lost and dying race, which seems an awful lot like something out of Michael Moorcock.

It was very open ended - the hook was simply that the PCs were lost in a desert and found a lost underground city (I know, not the best of setups).

The goal of the adventure wasn't to sack the city, but explore it, and hopefully befriend (and unite) the inhabitants. But there were a variety of other things and goals.

What I also liked, was how the basic areas, where low-level parties could go, were described completely, but the down below areas, for when the party outgrew the levels of the adventure/series, were also described somewhat vaguely. Ultimately they could kill the false demon god of the place.

 

[Sulimo]

Most of the modules I'd consider classics have originally been mentioned, but I only saw L1 mentioned once. The L series covering Bone Hill/Lendore Isles I also consider a classic series.

L1 - The Secret of Bone Hill
L2 - The Assassin's Knot

Yeah. I loved 'em too. Especially L2. Another alltime fave of mine would be N1 - Against the Cult of the Reptile God.

 

[Sholari]

Here the top three picks IMHO with details as to why I like them.

X2 Castle Amber: The most compelling aspects of Castle Amber is it's tactilly-rich environment and it's sense of mystery. Characters are cast into an eerie, disorienting environment and must piece what is going on. There is a very palpable sense that there is something not entirely right with the inhabitants of the mansion and players must get to the bottom of an age-old betrayal. The visual imagery is excellent. There is the gentleman's boxing match with the host of floating eyes. You get these sense that someone is watching you but have no idea as to who. There is the David and Goliath battle with the 100 ft zombie. The archway of dripping blood. Whether it is an insane ogre who considers himself a fair maiden or the wild hunt in the indoor forest, each encounter is unique but integrates with the whole.

I3 Pharoah: This module could have easily just been a pyramid with a bunch of secret doors and monster encounters. What sets it apart from the generic is what makes this module great. Instead of simple combat encounters there is potential to use diplomacy with potential threats such as with the fanatical dervishes. Instead of a simple secret door players must figure out the real entrance to the tomb by piecing together details of ancient stories and testing their logic. Like Castle Amber this module has three dimensional flavor; the disorienting mists and unique design of Kordan's Master Maze think one step beyond players' typical solutions, the cursed priesthood that converted to undead convey corruption, and the tragedy behind the Pharoah's downfall makes it more than stealing some dead guy's treasure.

A4 In the Dungeons of the Slavelords: This is a great mid-level adventure because it strips characters of all their toys and typical powers at a time they have just gotten used to these things as a crutch. Given a small window to make their escape, how do they survive. How can players use ingenuity for food, light, weapons, etc.? Kobolds become something to be reckoned with again. Exits to the dungeon aren't immediately obvious. Whatsmore the whole place is a ticking time bomb as nearby volcano is close to explording. This creates excellent story tension. Like the previous favorties this place has a unique, three dimensional environment; the fungus-encrusted zombies guarding the mycanoids, the exoskeletal bridge leading to the giant ant nest, and nearly running out of breath to explore the underwater tunnel. Finally, the chaotic exodus at the docks and the come-from-behind victory at the end really seal the deal. When your opponents have left your ragtag group for dead, it is a lot of fun wreaking revenge on the unsuspecting enemy wielding a thigh bone, a loin-cloth stuffed with sand, and a rusted short sword. Now that is kicking $*%& in my opinion.

I think after the Dragonlance series, modules in general got a bad name and for good reason. Although the very first Dragonlance module was good they became gradually more and more railroading where characters were almost strung through a series of events regardless of what their actions were. Many modules after that followed a similar pattern or they were much more generic in nature. I think at least the better "classics" combined a good story, a vivid environment, and freedom for characters to follow their own motivations.

 

[Sanackranib]

OOH! a chance to jump in early!

B2 - Keep on the Borderlands - it was probably the first D&D experience for every D&D player for a 10-year time span. Every "cluster dungeon" that came after it paid homage to it.
.

Also add to the list the Palace of the Silver Princess, Kings Festival and Queens harvest. but the keep on the borderlands IS the Classic D&D module. I wouldnt mind going through that in 3.5 . . .

 

[MrFilthyIke]

I don't know if anyone has stated it, but The Ghost Tower of Inverness and a great mod and cool "choose your own adventure" style book.

 

[Sanackranib]

Ravenloft, the Slaver series and Aginst the Giants are all modules I have heard about but never actually gone through in the almost 24 years that I have been gaming! but I would have to consider them clasics none the less.