The premise of Marsh of the Wild Things reads something like a deliberate experiment in monster ecology. The author mixes an exceptionally intelligent behir, a superstitious tribe of troglodytes, some ghasts, shocker lizards, and a band of merrow. The resulting blend is an interesting exploration adventure filled with a wide variety of creatures, all living within the confines of a single swampy setting.

One of the constant challenges of adventure design is the trick of building a cohesive and usable plot while still giving the PCs some measure of control. Wild Things does well in this regard. There is very little railroading involved. Basically, the PCs must cross a dangerous area in order to rescue a group of innocent villagers. Along the way, the party encounters many of the marsh's monstrous denizens. What the PCs do with those encounters is ultimately up to them. Once the basic quest is complete and the villagers are rescued, the players then have the option of delving deeper into the adventure or moving on to other things. Overall, as long as you're playing with an adventure-minded group of heroes, you can give them the reigns and let them journey through Wild Things as they see fit.

There are a few design and layout touches that enhance the adventure's usability at the table. There are a handy sidebars that help clarify rules where necessary. In addition, each section ends with a GM checklist which lists useful reminders for keeping things on task. All adventures require some prep work, and these short lists are a big help in that regard. Its also nice to have the monster and NPC stats gathered together in the appendix. I'm a big fan of handouts and visual aids, and Wild Things does contain an old standby: a note to hand the players when their characters discover an NPC's journal. Things like this are always a welcome addition for me, although I would have like to see a few more handouts and the like.

Another thing that struck me as positive was the author's clever use of groups of monsters whose abilities go well with each other. There is at least one case where a villain's special attack really helps stack the deck against the heroes. Marsh of the Wild Things is a fairly standard d20 fantasy adventure, but its also a pretty good one. The designers weren't trying to think outside the box so much as work within the definitions of the genre to create a fun and challenging module. In that regard, I believe they achieved what they set out to do.<br><br><b>LIKED</b>: Marsh of the Wild Things is a good adventure. The plot is simple but well structured. The somewhat open nature of the adventure environment give players a feeling of freedom while keeping the flow of play within the GM's grasp. There is an eclectic selection of monsters with just enough backstory on their recent interactions and motivations to help the GM build a sense of verisimilitude. A clever synergy between some of the monsters, along with a few surprise tactics (which I won't spoil here), should keep things interesting for players expecting a series of easy encounters.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Some of the character dialog reads a little clunky to me. I prefer things paraphrased, since few people speak in real life the way that characters speak in fantasy games / novels. Also, the maps leave something to be desired. They're functional, but not very pretty.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br><BR>[THIS REVIEW WAS EDITED]<BR>

An RPG Resource review:

This is a well constructed and well written adventure, which is designed to be placed in any fantasy world where there is marshland near the sea in a fairly remote area. There is a lot going on, all tied back to underlying history, giving the impression that the events that your characters will interact with would have happened anyway whether or not they were there, excellent 'alternate reality' rather than an adventure which kicks off just when the characters are in the right place!

Basically, the characters happen across the village of Flintpoint and have an opportunity to stop for a drink or a meal or even the night as appropriate. Once they have met some of the locals, a druid who acts as self-appointed guardian of the area turns up and asks that they help clear out some strange 'blue-skinned goblins' which have been bothering the wildlife, annoyed the druid by killing a bear she'd befriended and may even pose a threat to the village. It's a relatively straightforward task, but as they return to the village they hear a massive explosion and... (buy or play in the adventure if you want to know the rest, I'm not going to spoil it for you!).

Assuming your heroes do the decent thing and try to sort out what's happened, they face a journey across a very large marsh with the opportunity for several skirmishes with the denizens thereof, before they arrive at a site with scope for a big combat and some further underground exploration and adventure should they so wish.

There is a lot packed in to what is both a well-written and a well organised adventure. Sidebars with useful information, lists for the DM to ensure that important plot points are not missed, essential statistics and difficulty check information to hand just where you need them... everything to make the adventure easy to run when you are at the table. Naturally, to get the most out of it, a thorough read beforehand is to everybody's advantage, but the whole thing is laid out for use.

Overall, it is an exciting adventure with plenty of action, and some scope for role-playing, which should keep its target group of 4 8th-level characters on their toes if they are to succeed. It is in the classic 'good heroes beat up monsters and glean the rewards' mould, but with genuine depth to the setting, the people and the creatures therein to make it a true slice of alternate reality in which your characters can exist, interact and make a difference.

Marsh of the Wild Things is the first d20 adventure product from 12 to Midnight. This adventure is 46 pages long, and suitable for characters of 8th level. The adventure blends horror and high fantasy together and is setting generic, meaning that you can place this adventure in your setting of choice without any major modification. Marsh of the Wild Things sees the player characters exploring the wild marshes near the village of Flintpoint, and finding that it's a lot more dangerous and wild than they would've expected.

The product is very well-presented and looks professional. One of the first things you notice about it is that it's quite DM friendly, and would probably be quite suitable to newer DMs wanting to try their hand at running games. Each section of the adventure, for example, provides some useful reminders of the aim of each section, and advice on what the DM needs to remember for that particular section. It could probably have been expanded a bit to make it even more useful, but it was a neat little addition to the overall product.

Layout, editing, writing and art (Kim Feigenbaum's work was excellent on the interior art) were all very good, combining together to make a high standard of product. The bookmarks and contents page are probably some of the most detailed I've seen in a product. My only complaint was the maps and handouts - the grid lines on the maps are so thick that they often obscure what's behind it, while the writing in the handouts is such a scrawl that you have to strain to read it properly.

The product provides extensive details on the plot and background to the adventure, including scaling information, DMs background, plot synopsis, and a number of useful plot hooks. A few additional features are also included, such as advice on how to set the scene for the adventure and play notes - advice on using the adventure within a setting. The introduction provides a DM will loads of useful information and a good overview of the adventure. The plot synopsis in particular gives an overview of how the adventure is likely to play out. Not many contingencies are covered or really allowed for in the adventure, but players are given free reign and choice with regard to what they wish to do or not do.

The adventure starts in the village of Flintpoint. After a quick side quest at the behest of the village druid, things quickly go pear-shaped and the adventurers are drawn into the swamps where they face off against a tribe of troglodytes led by a creature with some rather unusual and powerful allies. The adventure takes place both within Flintpoint itself, but also in the cavern complexes that house the troglodytes and their formidable leader. There's good opportunity for roleplaying, although probably the larger portion of the adventure is devoted to combat encounters and the occasional trap. These provide a good challenge to the PCs, with plenty of combat variety and some enjoyable monster selections that should keep the PCs on their toes.

This is by no means a long adventure. There can't be more than two dozen or so encounters throughout the adventure, so it shouldn't take long to play through, although at this level some of the combat encounters can start taking a while. The encounter and descriptive text are both good and extensive, providing plenty of detail of notable features, and in particular on creature tactics and motivations. The latter makes the adventure far more dynamic, as the creatures interact with each other and those around them. Creature stats are provided in the appendix, along with personality, tactics and even common sayings for a particular NPC.

The adventure is by and large entertaining. Challenging and fun encounters, opportunity for roleplaying, interesting locations and encounter locations, and dynamic creatures with real motives and behaviours. It covers useful ground for newer DMs, but is meaty enough that more experienced DMs can easily do something good with the adventure. In the old end perhaps, it is a simple site-based adventure with the characters trawling through a cavern in search of their enemies. A good one, but still a simple adventure. I think, though, that by setting the mood of the adventure properly, this will be an entertaining evening of gaming consisting of what can be action-filled and grim fantasy.<br><br> <b>LIKED</b>: Marsh of the Wild Things is a good and entertaining adventure. It's very DM friendly, providing a professional and easy to follow layout, with some challenging encounters. Good variety in encounters, and interesting locations.<br><br><b>DISLIKED</b>: Maps and handouts could be improved on, particularly with the font for the handouts and the heavy grid for the maps.<br><br><b>QUALITY</b>: Very Good<br><br><b>VALUE</b>: Satisfied<br>