Product Description

This adventure module is 4E compatible!
Some explorers perish in pit traps while others found fiefdoms. What sets them apart? Master dungeons: heroes are chiseled from the challenges they face, and those who conquer master dungeons rise to be kings. Lost artifacts that raise continents from the sea, an empire's treasures buried to avoid capture, nascent godlings amassing divine energies: choose these challenges over the goblin cavern if you want to prove yourself worthy of glory and empire!
Eons past the fabled sorcerer-kings of Parhok perished in a rain of eldritch fire. But legends hold that one tribe survived the apocalypse, fleeing with their slaves to a hidden city, where the greatest enchanters of all time could sleep away the centuries, and awaken in a future age as rulers of a ruined land.
Now once more the forbidden spells of the Parhok threaten the good folk of the Known Realms. A kingdom lies ensorcelled, a royal family ensnared by the forgotten dweomers of a long-dead race. When the best attempts of seers and diviners have failed, it falls to the heroes to save the kingdom.
Have the sorcerer-kings risen to reclaim their bejeweled thrones? Or has a more sinister power bent their ancient magics to its sinister will? Only the most courageous and cunning of heroes will emerge victorious from Dragora's Dungeon.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #896396 in Books
• Published on: 2008-09-24
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 32 pages

Customer Reviews

A Pioneer Venture into 4e D&D

In this adventure, a curse settles on the PCs' realm, and it is left to them to discover its source and do away with it. Their investigation leads them ever deeper into Dragora's Dungeon where they unearth long-forgotten secrets and rediscover the remnants of a post-cataclysmic civilization of powerful magic users.

As with many of Goodman Games' works, this product draws players and GMs in with the use of imaginative, new ideas presented in the form of unique creatures and magic items. Further, inventive situations and new twists on common D&D themes are created to engage and challenge players. Creative traps and clever use of iconic D&D monsters in encounters are sure to make this a memorable adventure.

Throughout the adventure, tough combat and trap encounters abound. This being one of the pioneer ventures into the fourth edition of Dungeons & Dragons, perhaps that is indicative of more to come with the system. (Place your own value judgment on that.) Still, the adventure is reasonably balanced in that there are opportunities for the PC party to rest and regroup. Moreover, writers Stroh and "Blackdirge" Rudel make the effort to inject opportunities for diplomacy. As with many of the details of the adventure, guidelines for GMing such encounters are left vague. As such, the GM will have to do a fair amount of prep work to make NPC interactions convincing and to avoid making their motivations seem superficial (likely no problem for the veteran GM). Skill challenges, with the exception of Athletics, are less plentiful, but not inconsequential.

Strengths of the Product:

The adventure is built on a great deal of imaginative thought. Its main antagonists are interesting and Stroh's development of these NPCs and their ambitions and motives provide intriguing possibilities for future game play. Some effort on the GM's part to portray these characters can be quite rewarding, and no doubt can provide players with interesting challenges and even some surprises (i.e. a good GM will really play up the relationship between the two main antagonists). Plan to make them into reoccurring characters!

New items, creatures, and other ideas are bountiful in this product! A GM will find plenty to add to his or her game world by making use of these things, information in the appendix, and the many paths for future development offered by the adventure's conclusion.

Aesthetics and layout of the piece are high quality. Interior maps, tables, art, and other such elements are eye-pleasing, well-made, and add to the scope and depth of the product. Maps are detailed and well-keyed, so referencing them is easy. Illustrations add to an understanding of the environments and characters represented within the product. Stat blocks are accurate and well-placed within the product to make them easy to reference in the course of game play. Cover art? Whoa!

Weaknesses of the Product:

The hook of the adventure is a bit rudimentary, though effective. With the imagination put into the rest of the product, it is a little surprising that the adventure's introductory encounter is so "canned."

The plot is driven forward on a number of occasions as paths backward are blocked (both figuratively and literally). Likewise, some of the propulsion of events is more basic than you might expect from such a good overall piece of work (e.g. find they key to move on to the next area).

Editing issues and typographical errors do not detract from the work, nor do they go unnoticed. After thorough reading, see if you can determine if one of the new creatures is a "signifer" or a "signifier."

As a matter of personal taste, the new NPC race introduced in this adventure are a bit unlikely. These ape men creatures don't fit what this reader sees as adhering to the fantasy mold. (No comment on the ongoing debate over 4e D&D's effect on the evolution of what does and does not fit the fantasy mold.) Because they are so prevalent, they will, if you do not subscribe to their particular "flavor," detract a bit from the overall experience.

"Sandbox" style adventure
The Master Dungeon label is quite apt. This is not a module for an inexperienced or rusty (as in my case) DM. It does start out as a fairly straightforward dungeon crawl, though even the beginning can be expanded upon greatly if desired. Alot is left "open" for the DM even in the introductory phase.

Once the players reach the lost city, much is left up to the DM. Areas are sparsely detailed with the exception of the final encounter, and there is much opportunity to expand adventures within the city. Since it is impossible to tell what the players will do, be prepared to "wing it" if they start to explore the city outside of the somewhat detailed areas.

In a way, this module reminds me of the old classic "Dwellers of the Forbidden City". It has a similar feel and also is similar in that it can require quite a bit of preparation on the DM's part.

Overall it is a good adventure with and interesting storyline, but is not recommended for the novice DM. My other minor complaints concern the maps, which are quite difficult to draw on a battlemap. Some fold out encounter maps would have been greatly appreciated, and I would have paid more if they were available.