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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Celebrim" data-source="post: 5025369" data-attributes="member: 4937">I agree with most of the opinions so far.  Yes, I3 is a brilliant dungeon and module and really shows off Hickman as probably the leading dungeon designer of all time, but there is a continual drop off in interest along the 'Desert of Desolation' adventure path.  Yes, D1-3 is brilliant in concept but rather lacking in execution.  C1 and S1 are fantastic for what they are, though because of what they are probably better suited for one offs than regular campaign play.  In fact, C1 may even be better in some ways (more RP oppurtunities for example) than its more famous rival.Here are a few more:B2: Keep on the Borderlands - Poor Concept, Poor Execution:  First of all, there isn't alot of concept here.  If I may suggest, the concept involved is essentially identical to that every 12 year old DM first attempts - take every monster from the monster level suitable for a low level adventure and throw them all together in close quarters.  B2 is essentially level 1 of most starting DM's mega dungeons, without the lower levels, and as far as the excecution goes of that goes, any randomly generated generated module filled with random encounters is likely to be more interesting to adventure in than B2.  However, we might call it at least mediocre execution in as much as the residents of each mini-dungeon area have different defenses, there are a few 'special' encounters of mediocre imagination, if it were not for the fact that collectively the execution even lets down what little concept is involved in the module - namely the conflict between order and chaos represented by the keep and the caves.  This fundamental concept is on very poor display and is essentially invisible to the players using the presented material.  Had the concept been expanded on, it probably would have suggested better execution as well.  From what've I've seen H1 got about halfway there.X1: Isle of Dread: Brilliant Concept, Lousy Execution: 'Isle of Dread' is one of the most varied and interesting modules around in terms of its concept.  It's going to absolutely have great combat, great RPing, and great atmosphere.  The idea behind final villain is an interesting one.  But it's execution is dismal.  The players are not provided enough motivation by the text.  The lost civilization is not provided enough context by the text.  The final destination is after such a great journey something of a let down both in scale and in imagination.   And the BBEG appears completely without context or buildup.  This is the classic example of an old school module that is killed by space constraints and which only really truly shines in the hands of a very skilled DM who is capable of doing the work doubling or tripling the content.CM3 Sabre River: Great Concept, Mediocre Execution: Shares with X1 the need for a great DM to really pull this off, but mostly lacks the problem of missing content.  Instead, the problem here is that the dungeon design is fairly uninspiring linear dungeon crawls with limited RP oppurtunities (except with the module's star) and little that can't be overcome by brute force at the suggested levels.  I would have loved to see what this module would have been like with Hickman working as a secondary author.UK1 Beyond the Crystal Cave: Great Concept, Mediocre Execution: This is one of the best scripted early modules in terms of plot.  To a large extent, by giving the players so much freedom it avoids the railroady feel that is inevitable in such a scripted concept/constrained environment.  However, the execution is somewhat lacking.  First of all, it has a maze at the heart of it and though small in play mazes are rarely an interesting obstacles to overcome and this one doesn't transcend that problem.  Secondly, the adventuring environment can become quite dull in a hurry precisely if the players are skilled and don't blunder around.  Probably a good module in the hands of a good DM that would be absolutely terrible in the hands of a lesser one.</blockquote>

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