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<blockquote data-quote="Joshua Randall" data-source="post: 3328710" data-attributes="member: 7737"><p>That's not a problem with <em>Sinister Secret</em>; that's a problem with the sequels.To respond to your last point first, I never said it was the best <em>first</em> module for players. I said it was the best <em>low level</em> module.</p><p></p><p>Saves, rot grubs, yellow mold, green slime, and other hazards were/are part of the game. Players have to learn how to deal with them. Will they sometimes learn the hard way; i.e., by losing characters? Sure. But that's no different than learning that hard way that monsters with reach are harder to fight than goblins and orcs (to use a 3.x example).</p><p></p><p>I'm cribbing from Rel in <a href="http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=89262" target="_blank">this thread</a>, but Ned teaches an important lesson too: don't trust everyone you meet. However, the really brilliant thing about <em>Sinister Secret</em> is how Oceanus (the captive aquatic elf on the Sea Ghost) teaches that opposite lesson: you should trust some people.</p><p></p><p>The players learn to use their judgment and intuition to decide who's trustworthy and who's not. (In 3.x they would learn to use opposed Sense Motive rolls.)</p><p></p><p>Even if you don't like the green slime, Ned, or whatever, <em>Sinister Secret</em> is a great example of adventure story structure. It sets the hook with the haunted house. Then the players peel back the curtain and discover the smugglers. Then they must decipher the coded signal system to lure the Sea Ghost. Then they must plan a tactical assault upon a numerically superior band of pirates. Then they discover the lizard men and the cache of weapons, which points to a (seemingly) much worse conspiracy than just a bunch of ruffians smuggling bolts of cloth.</p><p></p><p><strong>And</strong> it does all this in what, 32 pages? Some modern adventure writers, with their bloated introductions and long-winded exposition, could learn a thing or two about conciseness from <em>Sinister Secret</em>.</p><p></p><p>Ah well. <strong>I'm</strong> not being concise, so I'll stop.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Joshua Randall, post: 3328710, member: 7737"] That's not a problem with [i]Sinister Secret[/i]; that's a problem with the sequels.To respond to your last point first, I never said it was the best [i]first[/i] module for players. I said it was the best [i]low level[/i] module. Saves, rot grubs, yellow mold, green slime, and other hazards were/are part of the game. Players have to learn how to deal with them. Will they sometimes learn the hard way; i.e., by losing characters? Sure. But that's no different than learning that hard way that monsters with reach are harder to fight than goblins and orcs (to use a 3.x example). I'm cribbing from Rel in [URL=http://www.enworld.org/showthread.php?t=89262]this thread[/URL], but Ned teaches an important lesson too: don't trust everyone you meet. However, the really brilliant thing about [i]Sinister Secret[/i] is how Oceanus (the captive aquatic elf on the Sea Ghost) teaches that opposite lesson: you should trust some people. The players learn to use their judgment and intuition to decide who's trustworthy and who's not. (In 3.x they would learn to use opposed Sense Motive rolls.) Even if you don't like the green slime, Ned, or whatever, [i]Sinister Secret[/i] is a great example of adventure story structure. It sets the hook with the haunted house. Then the players peel back the curtain and discover the smugglers. Then they must decipher the coded signal system to lure the Sea Ghost. Then they must plan a tactical assault upon a numerically superior band of pirates. Then they discover the lizard men and the cache of weapons, which points to a (seemingly) much worse conspiracy than just a bunch of ruffians smuggling bolts of cloth. [b]And[/b] it does all this in what, 32 pages? Some modern adventure writers, with their bloated introductions and long-winded exposition, could learn a thing or two about conciseness from [i]Sinister Secret[/i]. Ah well. [b]I'm[/b] not being concise, so I'll stop. [/QUOTE]
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