An Endzeitgeist.com review

This module clocks in at 36 pages, 1 page front cover, 1 page editorial, 2 pages of advertisement, 1 page back cover, leaving us with 31 pages of content, so let’s take a look!

This review was requested by one of my patreon supporters, to be undertaken at my convenience.

All right, so this adventure is intended for 6 – 10 level 5+ characters, and it is a tough one; this module can be very punishing for groups accustomed to hack-and-slash, and player skill can be rather crucial in determining success or failure. As always, we have proper read-aloud text for the respective environments, and the module sports a couple of different hooks to get the PCs going. Nice: We get different rumors/things PCs may have heard about, depending on their classes, which makes sense at level 5, when the PCs are bound to have picked up quite a bit of lore. The pdf offers up a new patron, who comes with full invoke patron information, as well as a new first level spell, slaying strike, which represents a damage buff to the caster’s next strike against the designated quarry, including the chance to send that target into a coma or slay the caster – but failing to strike the target can have dire repercussions on the caster. The module also contains a basically artifact-level item, a mighty spear and shield, and an interesting set of throwing axes that grows in power the more are held – but they don’t return to the wielder, so with each throw, the attacks become a bit weaker until they’ve been picked up again. This last item in particular struck my fancy – it feels very DCC-ish and mechanically distinct to me.

As for the structure, if the page-count wasn’t ample clue, this review is based on the 2nd printing, which contains a bonus adventure penned by Terry Olson, the “Clash of the Sky People.” This bonus module has got nothing to do with the main module, and is intended for 4 – 8 level 3 PCs. It is deeply steeped in science-fantasy, whereas the main module draws primarily from real world fiction and myth. As for “Beyond the Black Gate” – it should be noted that the first part of the adventure could easily be divorced from the main meat of the module, and, indeed, might work better that way.

All right, this is far as I can go without diving into serious SPOILERS. Potential players should jump ahead to the conclusion. … .. . Only judges around? Great! So, we begin with a plot-contrivance, namely that the PCs are aboard a ship that is en route to the north, but the hooks do make that plausible and pretty easy to sell. Somewhat unforgiving, but plausible: You really don’t want to be wearing metal armor at the start of this adventure. You see, after a few Strength checks and the like, a ginormous wave will destroy the PC’s ship, and if you’re wearing metal armor, you pretty much begin the module only to die, no save. Sure, PCs may be saved by allies, but not in metal armor. I’m ambivalent about this. On one hand, it makes sense; on the other, at level 5+, a mighty deed or the like should be able to save a PC unlucky enough to be wearing a metal armor. I’m not penalizing the module for that mainly due to DCC’s emphasis on player over PC skill, and due to the fact that, at level 5, the player should really know to look for that stuff…but yeah. If you’ve been handling that differently, or have a wizard with a sea-related patron, this may need a bit of finagling. Also, due to the fact that this intended scarcity is responsible for the rather impressive difficulty of the module – RAW, there is a DC 13 luck check to gain a single piece of equipment that the PCs didn’t bring along when going above deck. Other than that, it’s back to basics, as they explore the sea-side caverns into which they’ve been flushed.

This first component of the module could, as noted before, stand on its own – the PCs have the means to scale the cliffs or explore the complex, finding rather grisly remnants of torture, and sooner or later face strange animals – familiars in fact, for they have happened upon a witch’s Black Sabbath. Minor nitpick: 13 witches (11+one+ the mistress – nice nod towards occultism) are involved, we get 5 different familiar stats and the note that not all familiars are combat relevant…and no indication of which familiar would be aligned with which witch. This is insofar annoying, as slaying the familiars would greatly weaken the witches. (And seriously, you’ll want them dead…)

The mistresses of black magic, under the command of “Baba Iaga” (GROAN - she is btw. a ridiculously weak adversary…) have taken some NPCs captive and task the PCs to venture through the eponymous black gate to the Thrice-Tenth Kingdom and undertake a quest: Find the Horned King, depose of him and take his antlered crown. The Horned King? Master of the Wild Hunt, and the witches. Or rather, erstwhile master. You see, the Horned King (who doubles as aforementioned new patron) is currently pretty impotent, lying in a stupor, his magics and powers subverted by the ice giant’s daughter. Okay, first of all: Nice nod towards Howard’s classic. Secondly: I like that the giants are smart, have three eyes, and that they ostensibly stole the third eye from Cyclops giants. I also like how the Thrice-Tenth kingdom is presented: No gods or patrons may be directly invoked, and cold magic is enhanced, while fire magic is penalized. It’s a small thing, but global rules like this do help rendering the environment feasible. Random encounters are presented, and upon arrival, the PCs may well meet a traitorous madman. There is one factor, though: If you already have the whole Wild Hunt and Baba Yaga-concept in your game, you’ll have to do some reskinning. Personally, I’d strongly suggest it, as both Baba and the Horned King are pretty pitiful as far as I’m concerned, but your mileage may vary there.

Here, the module becomes genuinely hard: Ginats are tough, have a high Act die, and if they had combat training, crit more often. (As an aside: The pdf does include rules for handling giant-sized weaponry). Also: They are not dumb. Careless PCs will easily bite off more than they can chew, and trying to hack and slash through this will not be an endeavor that’ll be easy to do. The module is clearly balanced around the notion that combat with more than one giant will be a highly risky endeavor. In a way, this reminded me of “Against the Giants” or Pyromaniac Press’ underappreciated “Seeking Silver”-adventure – just that this is, aesthetically, the DCC-iteration. Where “Seeking Silver” is vast in ambition and scope and feels like an epic “Infiltrate and Sabotage Isengard” –quest, including deposing off of key players, this one is more focused on trickery. Due to the sheer power of the amassed giants, PCs will fare much better when actually infiltrating the place and trying to bypass the opposition. Indeed, there is a secret corridor and a whole dungeon level below the citadel that have the dual purpose of allowing PCs, via more than one option, to get in and get out without being crushed by the potent opposition that the giants pose. This is an infiltration, pure and simple, and this notion is further emphasized due to the shipwreck that is bound to cost the PCs some important resources.

Now, as for the finale – it’s not exactly a showdown versus Azazel, and indeed, the Horned King may be taken down rather easily, should the PCs choose to do that. The giantess and her salamander-shaped allay make for a dangerous boss, as her kiss means instant death, as her dance transfixes PCs, but as a whole, this is surprisingly manageable. If the PCs don’t kill the king, he’ll bestow luck upon them, before leaving them to their tender fates as the remaining giants rush in – which is a pretty likely TPK. On the other hand, bringing the crown to Baba Iaga will net a reward, but also unveil that the captives are actually dead. Puzzling to me: Where is the option to become the new Horned King? The witches pretty much stated that they’d need a new sovereign; and killing their patron? That ought to cost them power, so where is the blowback for them, the instance where they become easier to vanquish for smart PCs?

In a way, the module tries to have its cake and eat it, too. It evokes classics of mythology, contextualizes them in a comparably weak manner, and then fails to let the PCs properly take advantage of the relative weakness of said entities, by locking them into a series of choices that doesn’t fully account for the vulnerability of said major NPCs. Particularly in a game like DCC, particularly with the “death of a patron”-angle that this represents, this rendered the climax and aftermath less than satisfying for me.

The bonus adventure, “Crash of the Sky People” is straightforward – the ship of the metal-winged humanoid sky pirates has fallen! The PCs get to best guardian robots, enter the ship, deal with the strange machines and tinker with subjective gravity…and participate in a sky-joust over the ownership of the wrecked vessel! And yes, we do get concise rules for sky-jousting with laser lances, on skycycles! There even is a 5-entry mighty deed-table to supplement this combat-based mini-game! (Oh, and yes, PCs that botch the module might inadvertently cause a massive nuclear explosion. There even is a nice and logical little puzzle included, one that also features a Flash Gordon reference! Yep, this made me smile! This bonus module may be brief and humble, it may not have anything to do with the main-adventure, but it certainly entertained me well! Did I mention that yes, bots have an off-switch that players may use? Did I mention that the PCs can get mechanical wings implanted? (Yeah, sure, the procedure could kill them – but no pain, no gain, right?)

Conclusion: Editing and formatting are very good on a formal and rules-language level. Layout adheres to Goodman games’ two-column b/w-standard, and the pdf sports quite a bunch of really nice b/w-artworks, with the boss fight of the main module and a stunning vista of the bonus adventure represented as one-page handouts. The cartography for both adventure is b/w and very good, but we do not get a proper player-friendly keyless version, which is particularly odd for the main module, where an NPC would make for an organic source of a more or less accurate map of the Thrice-Tenth Kingdom’s fortress. Much to my chagrin, the pdf version of the module lacks any bookmarks, which constitutes an unnecessary comfort-detriment.

Don’t get me wrong. This is not a bad module, not by a long shot. It is challenging, brutal and rewarding. It’s surprisingly non-linear in its environments, and it rewards player-skill over just rolling high. That being said, when compared to Harley Stroh’s previous contributions to the main-line of DCC-modules, it feels weaker. “Beyond the Black Gate” doesn’t reach the grandeur and nigh-perfection of “Jewels of the Carnifex”; it is too bogged down in quoting classic concepts from mythology and appendix N, things that most judges will have implemented themselves in their game, and are bound to have diverging takes on. I don’t object to those mind you – just their implementation. The mythology-backdrop that made “Doom of the Savage Kings” work so exceedingly well? That had been subtle and divorced from the big myth, being clearly a riff on Beowulf without actually stating as much. Here, the module flat-out tells you what the mythological figures are. And it kinda doesn’t earn them or do them much justice. It may even contradict established lore in your games. Granted, this may be a minor issue, but it is one that, for me, colored the whole experience of the adventure. Particularly since the module begins with the “easy come, easy go”-mentality we often see in Sword & Sorcery literature. It’s totally valid to cut PCs back to size, but first doing that, then throwing mythological beings at the PCs, creates this odd juxtaposition, where a level 5 group at the top of their game would have crushed those legends without being previously nerfed. Heck, that’s still very much within the realm of possibility here. This, as a whole, made the myth/Appendix N-aspect feel a bit like pandering to me; something the module seriously did not require.

None of the aspects, from the use of legendary figures, to the nerfing of PCs, would have been required by the module; the former is a cheap shot at getting an “Oh, damn!”-reaction out of the players, the latter an attempt to let judges eliminate problematic items to enforce an intended playstyle, when the like isn’t necessary. The skeleton of the module, its structure, wouldn’t have required this. Granted, this is better than using the “XYZ doesn’t work, because magic”-angle that many sucky OSR-modules use, but it still is a somewhat arbitrary incision into PC-capabilities that the players have earned with blood, sweat and tears. This is still a very good module – it’s just not as brilliant as the author’s previous offerings.

That being said, the bonus module penned by Terry Olson? It rocks. It is unpretentious, wholly cognizant of what it is, and gleefully embraces its aesthetics with a cheeky smile on its face. It is fun, fast-paced, and if you’re looking for a perfect fit for the Purple Planet boxed set (review forthcoming) or for a cool convention game, this delivers. Is it strange that it’s in this adventure’s booklet? Yep. It’d have made more sense in a more science-fantasy/sword & planet-centric book…but who cares? It’s a fun addition to the DCC-canon.

All in all, I consider this module to be a good offering worth owning; not the best DCC-module ever, but also one that is certainly worth having in your library. As such, my final verdict will clock in at 4.5 stars, rounded down.

Endzeitgeist out.

This is a tough adventure, suggested for about TEN level 5 characters, or half-a-dozen of level 6/7... and even then they are put on notice that a cautious approach of stealthy exploration will win out over those who think they can hack or spellcast their way through anything: however despite a thoughtful approach being best there are moments when nothing but brash courage will do.

The background lifts the lid on the problem. Basically, the Wild Hunt isn't riding out any more and a bunch of witches want the party to sort things out, replacing the Horned King if needs be, and setting the Hunt in motion once more. This will involve multidimensional travel to visit the current Horned King in his realm, the Thrice-Tenth Kingdom, and stealing the Horned Crown off of his very head! Various hooks are provided to get the party involved - enticing them with rumours of vast treasure or somehow manoeuvering them into the clutches of the Witches of Asur, from which the only escape is to undertake this quest.

As befits such a legendary quest, there is a huge number of rumours to be discovered - some even true - which you are encouraged to customise to your own campaign. The core element is that the Witches - and the portal through which the party will be sent - is in the far north of the world. Different classes and races have separate lists of rumours, so there's a good chance that a wide variety will be gathered.

The adventure falls into two parts. First the party has to locate the Witches of Asur, then they go through the portal - which, if you haven't guessed, is called the Black Gate - and the rest of the adventure covers their activities in the Thrice-Tenth Kingdom. It all begins with the party on a ship in a dreadfull storm - they may have taken passage to visit the Witches, or you may decide to spring it on them unawares when they are travelling by sea for a completely unrelated matter. Be that as it may, proceeding begin in a maelstrom of mountainous seas and a howling gale in which the ship founders leaving the party's only hope to scramble onto a rocky shore where they may either climb a 200 ft cliff or enter some very dodgy-looking caves (with the sea trying to drag them back in, of course). Either way, they'll end up in the same place: dark, dank, and plain nasty... and eventually they encounter the Witches who explain why they are here. Like it or not, they'll soon be on their way through the multiverse...

The Thrice-Tenth Kingdom is a bleak and wintry place, infested by giants who will outmatch the party in head-to-head encounters. Knee-deep in snow (if they are lucky) characters will have to contend with the local wildlife as they trudge to their destination. There's plenty to explore in the Horned King's castle, much to see before the throne room is reached and the King himself confronted.

Despite the magnificent build-up to the adventure, the end is somewhat weak. The options seem to be to murder the Horned King or take him as a Patron, for which all the necessary game mechanics are provided. Moreover, if he is slain it is assumed that the party will return the Horned Crown to the witches, who hand out a few rewards and that's that. (If your party has other ideas, the properties of the Horned Crown are listed in considerable detail, however...). You might want to build up the finale a bit to avoid an abrupt ending, but the main part of the adventure has a splendid epic feel. The party won't forget their visit to the Thrice-Tenth Kingdom for the rest of their days!

Harley Stroh's been writing some epic adventures, and DCC #72: Beyond the Black Gate is no exception. The players aren't just rescuing a god, it's The Horned King, based on the Master of the Hunt. And who entreats them? No less than Baba Iaga, though her hut is not in the adventure.

Yet players familiar with these figures know that they're not exactly on the side of good. And, indeed, Baba Iaga "summons" the characters by sinking their ship and forcing them to find shelter in her caves. Depending on the gamemaster's players, the gamemaster will either have a straightforward rescue, or several testy characters who may prefer to plan a way to betray their less-than-hospitable patrons. (Unfortunately, the adventure provides no troubleshooting in case they do.)

Baba Iaga's captured some of the sunken sailors, so a bit of no-or-little choice railroading later, the player characters are sent to the frozen Thrice Tenth Kingdom. There, the ice giants have captured the Horned King, who now sits in the throne of his citadel, glazily enthralled by the dancing ice giantess.

The citadel has been taken over by ice giants, and the encounters there are reminiscent of the well-known TSR "Against the Giants" adventure. Indeed, you can add further to this adventure by melding the adventure of the Black Gate with the details of Against the Giants.

The adventure is designed for six to ten 5th-level characters, but can be played by a smaller party of higher levels. Many of the encounters, from drowning at sea, to a snow avalanche, to falling off an icy bridge, are almost-instant deaths. However, player characters will have opportunities during the adventure to rescue other characters so players can play new ones. Also, the gamemaster can allow the NPC madman to be instead played by a player, or even add one of Baba Iaga's witches or a rescued sailor to the party.

The adventure adds The Horned King as a patron, for "heathen witches, barbarian shamans, and warriors that exalt the wild savage within". That should definitely appeal to some players! The Patron Taints are also pretty lively, from being overtaken by the call of the hunt, to demanding to be bested in combat by anyone in the party who claims authority. And, of course, since The Horned King is based on the mythological Wild Huntsman, the game master has plenty of resources on the internet to further develop this patron. (The adventure has no less than twenty rumors, primarily for the adventure, but also useful to flesh out The Horned King.) Unfortunately, only one unique spell, Slaying Strike, of three is included in the adventure -- write to Goodman Games to post the two others!

Despite the linearity of this adventure, this epic-swilling tale measures up to the memorable previous adventures by Goodman Games. Unpredictable or scheming players may force their way off the path of the plot, but adept game masters should find this quite entertaining.

If you've read my blog previously, you'll know how much I really enjoy Goodman Games' DCC line of adventures. The art is always awesome and the maps themselves are works of art. Have Harley Stroh write the adventure and it will probably be love at first sight.

Spoiler Alert! There will be spoilers in the review below! Fair Warning!

Case in point - Beyond the Black Gate. Harley pulls off the start of the adventure in a manner I usually avoid - with a shipwreck. This means, of course, you need to get your party on a boat going somewhere - somewhere they won't actually get to. Harley's writing skill pulls it off, or at least makes the whole situation exciting enough that I'll jump through hoops to get my party there.

There are some very nice roleplaying encounters (which is fairly rare in DCC RPG adventures) dispersed throughout the adventure. Each of these encounters have motivations and twists that will be a blast to run as a GM. The players may not appreciate all the twists as they happen, but they'll enjoy the ride none the less. Mendax - even if I never get a chance to run Beyond the Black Gate, this character will be making an appearance - somewhere, somehow.

The story behind the adventure and the ways it may play out are extremely well put together, and the climax isn't the end. PCs may win the day and die in the evening if they aren't careful, but such is the way of the DCC RPG.

As someone else mentioned - this is a potentially lethal adventure. That is a hallmark of the DCC RPG - I can't knock it for following it's nature.

Included is a new patron - The Horned King, along with accompanying Patron Taint and Patron spell. You get a lot for what you spend with this adventure.

End Spolier Alert!

As for the maps (one of my favorite things about the DCC RPG Adventures) you get three full page adventures. I'm going to throw out a suggestion ere, but with a lot of RPG playing / sessions being run online, a VTT / G+ Hangout Player's version of the maps without the room numbers would be nice. The shame of all the DCC Adventures is that only the GM gets to see them. Player's maps w/o the locations labeled would be an awesome addition to an adventure like this.

Originally published at: http://diehardgamefan.com/2012/09/14/tabletop-review-dungeon-crawl-classics-72-beyond-the-black-gate/

Man it sure seems like Goodman games puts out Dungeon Crawl Classics adventures at the same pace White Wolf released V:TM supplements in the mid to late 90s, eh? Here I am again with another DCC adventure, the fourth since late July (including the Free RPG release). That’s a pretty hectic schedule.

If you’re familiar with DCC adventures then you know they are low on plot and dialogue, but high on hack and slash dungeon crawling. It’s easy to say some of them have more roll-playing than role-playing, but there’s a definite audience for that. With Beyond the Black Gate, this is still true, but there’s a lot more of a story here than in most DCC adventures. In fact you’ll be going through two very different locations, dealing with three dungeons and a story that can unfold in many different ways – most of them horrific. The player characters start off in a bad situation and things quickly get even worse. Their sailing vessel is destroyed by a terrible storm and those that survive are enlisted by a cantankerous crone to enter another dimension known as the Thrice-Tenth Kingdom. There the PCs will have to battle their way through an apocalyptic Iceland, do battle with triclops-style ice giants and retrieve the horned crown of the Horned King for the hag. Unfortunately it’s even harder than it sounds, but players will be richly rewarded for completing this quest, whether they betray the witch and merely set the Horned King free from his otherworldly trap, or they slay him and take the crown as their own.

I really enjoyed Beyond the Black Gate, but there are three issues I have with it. The first is that like most DCC adventures, this is made for WAY too many characters. Beyond the Black Gate is designed for between six and ten 5th Level characters. How often do you get a game of that size going? That’s way too many characters. I know Dungeon Crawl Classics wants people to play multiple characters, but even if you have an group of four players (which seems to be the most common game size of any system), that’s still 2.5 character PER PLAYER. When this happens, the personality of characters as well as their individual quirks can be lost and the party becomes a collective of bland murdering machines. Again, some people like that and it’s a trope of the system, but I like memorable characters and situations. My advice is to run Beyond the Black Gate for less characters but at a higher level as it will be far more rewarding. There are some great roleplaying opportunities here – from deciding what to do with the Horned King to how to deal with a certain mad dwarven fool.

Another issue I had with this particular adventure is it’s almost too lethal. DCC adventures tend to be written from the perspective of “Let’s get a TPK (total party kill)!” However, Beyond the Black Gate has several instances where it you are making a saving throw versus instant death. Whether it’s being drowned by a storm or buried by an avalanche, there will be some players that die before the first combat of the adventure and that’s…a little harah in my book. There’s also the fact that the adventure tells the DM that players simply won’t be able to hack and slash their way through this adventure and they’ll have to think their way through or be murdered by an ice giant onslaught. However…MINDLESS DUNGEON CRAWL STYLE SLAUGHTER IS WHAT DUNGEON CRAWL CLASSICS IS PRIMARILY ABOUT AS A SYSTEM! Arrrrgh! You can’t sit there and say, “Each adventure is 100% good, solid dungeon crawl” in the opening of this very adventure when the statement doesn’t actually ring true. This is more a “sneak, run and strike from behind” adventure than the dungeon hack. I’m fine with that, but don’t promote the adventure as something it actually ISN’T. Finally, the adventure just ends at the climax; at least in terms of laying out what happens. You’re there with the Horned King, you make your choice as what to do with him and then a horde of giants hits the throne room. Then…nothing. The adventure gives no advice or information as to how to run this combat or any idea of how the PCs can get out of it…especially since the adventure was designed up to this point with enemies they can’t be through pure brute strength. This is really bad and I can’t believe this aspect of the adventure made it through the editing process, especially as Goodman himself is usually very particular about this sort of thing. A good DM can deal with this poorly written climax, but those with less experience are going to have a lot of trouble running this thing.

Now that’s not to say the whole adventure is bad. It’s not. Far from it, in fact. Beyond the Black Gate has a truly memorable setup, a very cool plot, some great antagonists for the party to deal with and some truly big decisions to make. The adventure also boasts some incredible artwork by the always awesome Doug Kovacs. Like all DCC adventures, Beyond the Black Gate boasts some of the best maps in the history of the business and definitely the best out of any currently published system. Hell, sometimes I just want to recommend the adventures just for the quality of the maps! It’s just the adventure not only falls apart at the climax but it highlights the two biggest problems with a lot of Dungeon Crawl Classics adventures…and then exacerbates them. With the help of a good editor, this could have been a lot better. As it stands, it’s merely an okay affair; something that only gets a thumb’s in the middle. As I’ve said though, an enterprising and experienced DM can rewrite this thing so that it works a lot better from the climax on through and someone like that could really make Beyond the Black Gate a highlight of a DCC campaign.