Tome of the Dragon is the latest adventure in Citizen Games’ Hero’s Journey line of adventures. Designed for characters of 8th –10th level, this 46-page module retails for $9.95. The premise of the adventure involves the party being hired to retrieve an ancient magical tome known as the Librum Draconis, or Tome of the Dragon. One of the catches, however, is that they must get to it before cult members from a secret organization find it. In addition to a race against time, the party also must deal with the evil effects of the artifact itself and the actions it takes to avoid being found.
The adventure itself is fairly short and is your basic dungeon crawl. A second short adventure (called Knuckle Down) for four 4th level rounds out the module. This is actually a pretty good premise. The party has to capture a juvenile dragon who’s been raiding a fishing boat for his meals. It seems he has a liking for the fish on the boat. The catch to this story is that he has to be captured alive and unharmed.
Tome of the Dragon gives you more than just two adventures. Queen Titania’s Faerie Court, a secret society is detailed just enough so you can drop it into any campaign. This society is primarily made up of fey whose mission is to utterly destroy the human race. A Knight of the Fey, a new prestige class, is a dedicated servant of the Faerie Court and a sworn enemy to humanity. This class’ strength is being one with the wilderness and using the forces of nature as a weapon. This is a really well designed and thought out class that is perfect for an arch-villain in a campaign.
The second society and follow-up prestige class share the same name, Shield Historians. The Shield Historians are scholars who have studied the past mistakes of civilizations. They secretly attempt to manipulate events to steer civilizations towards certain outcomes in an effort to keep the world’s cultures from self-annihilation. They are the antithesis of the Faerie Court and naturally, their sworn enemy. The Shield Historian prestige class is an agent of this organization who works to protect the human civilizations and foil the plans of Queen Titania’s Faerie Court. This is also an excellent NPC class that can be used as part of an adventure hook to draw the players into a web of intrigue.
Overall, Tome of the Dragon is a respectable pair of adventures. But what really makes it stand out is the two secret organizations and two prestige classes. They are structured to fit any fantasy campaign and have the makings to allow for the creation of unforgettable NPCs. If your looking for something that adds mystery, politics, intrigue, and a dash of danger, then pick up this book for the crunchy bits it gives you and use the adventure material as an added bonus.
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