Iconic D&D Campaign Adventures

[howandwhy99]

There is a Darksun module that is iconic to the setting IIRC. It was the first one and altered everything in the boxed set so they had to release another box just a few years later. I don't remember the name.

Castle Greyhawk was never published - except for Castle Zagyg: Upper Works. I don't know how many people have really played that, but it's iconic.

I6 is the definitive take on Ravenloft, but it isn't quite the setting. It's still my favorite thing about it though.

Realms is going to have a time of it. It really would need to be done by region and include computer games and novels.

Temple of the Frog in Blackmoor Supplement II in '75 has gotta be the iconic adventure there, no?

 

[TarionzCousin]

There is a Darksun module that is iconic to the setting IIRC. It was the first one and altered everything in the boxed set so they had to release another box just a few years later. I don't remember the name.

Was it Freedom? It was the first module released for Dark Sun.

Enter the ancient and corrupt city of Tyr, whose tyrannical sorceror-king has ruled for a millennium. As you wander the city, from the wreck of the elven warrens to the sanguine splendor of the arena, you realize that the citizens of Tyr thirst less for water than they do for freedom.

Now, after a century of slave labor, sorceror king Kalak's great ziggurat nears completion. He has promised the city a grand celebration when the monument is done, complete with the most brutal arena spectacle in Tyr's long history. Rumors abound as to the nature of the spectacle: some believe it will bring with it the longed-for manumission of countless slaves; others fear the annihilation of Tyr and her people as a sacrifice to Kalak's hunger for power; and a secret few believe it will be a day of revolution - a day of freedom!

Designed for four to seven players of starting levels, the DM's Book and Player's Book inside this pack provide the DARK SUN game DMs with a campaign base in Tyr, and give PCs a brutal introduction to Athas.

 

[blargney the second]

I'm playing in an excellent Dark Sun game right now. If you want to geek out about the setting, I'm your huckleberry.
-blarg

 

[Leviatham]

I'm considering running an adventure in Dark Sun. As I've no experience of Dark Sun, I was going to post a request that people let me know which of the published adventures makes best use of the setting (and by definition is least similar to a generic D&D adventure).

I'd still welcome that information but it got me thinking about other settings and which are the most iconic adventures. This isn't edition specific but I could see how that might feature (e.g. is Ptolus the iconic 3E setting?).

A few ideas to get started with:

• Greyhawk - while it was never published properly, Castle Greyhawk, would probably be the best example but which one of those that were published? The Temple of Elemental Evil?
  
• Blackmoor - City of the Gods - science fiction meets fantasy?
  
• Ravenloft - even though it's not set in Ravenloft would I6: Ravenloft be the classic example?

Uhmm... I would humbly suggest doing one thing. Get the old modules in eBay (or similar) and take a look at them before you jump into any other adventure.

Although the modules (Freedom was the first and sets the ground nicely) aren't all that wonderful, the important thing is that they capture the differences between Dark Sun and the rest of the settings out there.

The one risk you run with taking adventures from other universes is that the monsters present there will probably not exist in Athas and they could look out of place.

However, any adventure featuring some ruins or a large dungeon could be adapted (now that I think about it, that could be pretty much any adventure! )

Also, don't forget Al-Quadim. You will probably find some desert based adventures there and they'll, at least, have more landscapes and descriptions sympathetic to Dark Sun.

Hope this helps!

Paco.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

However, any adventure featuring some ruins or a large dungeon could be adapted (now that I think about it, that could be pretty much any adventure! )

Also, don't forget Al-Quadim. You will probably find some desert based adventures there and they'll, at least, have more landscapes and descriptions sympathetic to Dark Sun.

B4, the Lost City, would likely work great for Dark Sun for both those reasons. (Although, yeah, the DM needs to go through ahead of time and make sure everything there matches with Athas.)

 

[Erekose]

B4, the Lost City, would likely work great for Dark Sun for both those reasons. (Although, yeah, the DM needs to go through ahead of time and make sure everything there matches with Athas.)

Sounds reasonable - played it about 25 years ago! I'll dig it out and take a look