I read this to have something prepped for my T1 players. I like premise of it. Taking a lost boy back to his family, with a twist. I made a lot more notes than normal. Here are some of the things that as a DM. I noticed.

I was deeply moved by the Adventure Primer .. quoting Gandhi in a D&D Adventure? Never seen it before. Good stuff. The background seems like it should focus on the boy, the father, and The Red War. It feels like they are glossed over. However, a good read over the material should give you a feel of all the NPC players in the adventure.

I had to draw lines to seperate paragraphs that I believe should be spaced apart. Makes it easier to read. Consider working with players to come up with adventure hooks on your own. The ones included aren't the most enticing.

CTA. The players have the opportunity to see Elian's notes if they ask. The Perception Check here seems pointless as does the mention of citrus smell that comes from the notes. I found nowhere in the adventure where this scenty paper has any bearing. If there is significance, it certainly is not present in the adventure. I think the papers and the citrus smell can be RP icebreakers for characters to bond with Elian, and I intend to give all of that out freely to players.

Episode 2. "Passive Perception of 15+ might get the feeling of being followed". Since this episode does have the players ambushed by two groups of people I think that the Passive Perception should be enough, but an opposed check Perception vs Stealth check could be something you consider to make this work. Read this encounter carefully. What you have here is a Players vs. Thugs vs. Soldiers. I don't know of any party that is going to give up the boy to either of them. If they are doing what they are supposed to, you may end up with a battle royale. Thugs and hobgoblins can be nasty, but the hobgoblins attack non-lethally. The Social Pillar of Play hints at non-combat scenarios, but does not provide check DCs. The Exploration Pillar seems to call an for an Insight Check ... or giving players that information. The only other glaring thing here is I noted the adventure called for a DC 20 Str Check to pull Elian away to be given to either opposing party here. That boy's stronger than alot of PC's! The adventure does not seem to progress unless the players do not give the boy up. Elian opens up and provides some info after the battle. If you do not get to this point, then it will take some ingenuity to determine how PC's acquire this information (to include handouts).

Episode 3a. I was a little bit confused; The CTA has players believing they need to take the boy to Kalen Forstrupp at the Beacon Tavern and Inn, but the PC's are at the Still Waters Inn and there to meet Phineas Forstrupp .. not sure where Kalen or this other tavern is at. Not a showstopper. It looks all NPCs here are commoners with the exception of Shady Thayan Expatriates, which are Thayan soldiers. The next scene seems a bit straight forward

Episode 3b. is pretty straightforward.

Episode 4 seems to work once you figure out what creatures are involved in the potential encounters. The Veteran's Men are described as "Two Thayan soldiers", which leaves me head scratching and wondering whether or not this is the same as Thayan Warriors or Soldiers (hobgoblins) in the Appendix or are they Veteran's Men (Beserkers)? . In this part a Veteran is referred to as a Gladiator in another paragraph. There is no Gladiator stat block, but there is a Veteran block. You'll need to straighten this out according to APL before you have a party walk into a battle that they will be stuck with. I think one Veteran and two berserkers will probably prevent most of the party from seeing the end of the adventure. Consider switching the berserkers with hobgoblin soldiers.

My rating is based on these notes plus the clear challenge this module has in its editing/formatting oversights. There is alot that could be mitigated with more clarity and attention to detail; however, an experienced DM or a DM that reads this module ahead of time can adjust to make the module plot flow to player enjoyment. The premise of this module is a great story that does capture a harsh reality of war (or The Red War, in this case). Consider picking it up!