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CCC-GSP02-02 Stygia Untamed
Publisher: Dungeon Masters Guild
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 02/15/2021 19:29:23

Punishing players for failing skill checks with spending inordinate amounts of downtime (e.g., fail a check, the WHOLE PARTY loses 5 downtime) is just a completely unreasonable thing in an AL module. That isn't the way that downtime is supposed to work--especially given the amount of downtime that a player can accrue over their lifetime.

Also, the whole "if you attack this random shark, you get a TPK" thing is definitely rude.



Rating:
[1 of 5 Stars!]
CCC-GSP02-02 Stygia Untamed
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DDAL08-18 Moving Day
Publisher: D&D Adventurers League
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 09/16/2019 05:15:04

This module, like many in Season 8, is saddled with the dishonor of featuring Artor Morlin: the bastard Vampire of Waterdeep. As in previous installments, he is awful to the party. This time around, rather than implying that he'll murder them as in previous outings, he instead goes much further by creating a "damage reflecting coffin" so that he is an ongoing impediment to the party while they are trying to do the task he asked of them. When I played this module, that coffin was the last straw and resulted in the party dusting him via Dawn + Forcecage after completeing all the objectives. Using a character who is both quest-giver and antagonist requires that character to have some redeeming feature. Artor, despite many opportunities, only manages to be somehow worse each time you see him--especially here where he reveals that rather than keeping Waterdeep free from vampires, he actually has dozens of vampire spawn serving him in the city.

From a technical standpoint, the module isn't much better. The combats are severely undertuned. The final combat--4 bone claws and a Death Knight--is a particular standout. Under no circumstances should that be considered an appropriately tuned Tier 4 encounter. A single 17th level Warlock with a +3 rod of the pact keeper (an evergreen unlock during Season 8) can solo the room by casting Psychic Scream. Neither a boneclaw nor a Death Knight can make the DC 22 Intelligence save necessary to become un-stunned (8 base + 5 charisma + 6 proficiency + 3 RotPK = 22). Without legendary resistances, the CR of a monster is irrelevant in Tier 4; they are simply speedbumps. When I ran this against a (by the numbers) average party, I ran the encounter on "very strong" and they still stomped it without difficulty.



Rating:
[1 of 5 Stars!]
DDAL08-18 Moving Day
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DDEX1-12 Raiders of the Twilight Marsh (5e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 09/16/2019 04:17:39

This module is generally pretty well structured: a ticking clock to keep the party on task; a series of choices that, while apearing to give agency, actually give none; a nice mix of social encounters interspersed with combat.

One big issue, though, is that the "cutscenes" can easily appear forced. This is especially true in the final encounter where "as a reaction" roughly 2 minutes of box-text appear (and thus end the encounter). I suggest forgoing all of this and effectively giving the boss infinite HP, but letting them do their cutscene whenever their next turn would otherwise occur after triggering it. It'll still feel "cutscene"-y (and a seasoned player will know that young dragons don't have 300 HP), but I think the only real alternative is to be tongue and cheak about it and explain how this is all happening "as a reaction".



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
DDEX1-12 Raiders of the Twilight Marsh (5e)
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DDEX1-06 The Scroll Thief (5e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 09/16/2019 03:53:47

This is probably the best module in the first season of Adventurers League. It opens with some exporation; follows with a combat that feels as though player agency is at work; then becomes a mini-dungeon crawl before emptying into the big final fight. Structurally, it is very solid and a module that I've run many times.

I'd provide caution in one main area, though. The final fight can turn deadly very very quickly if a DM makes use of the lair actions offered. Against a party that is "over on player count; under on APL" and thus is alledgely "average", the default lair actions are likely to down the party instantly. I wholehearted suggest pulling punches in this fight or even ignoring the lair actions entirely unless the party is all high-level or experienced.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
DDEX1-06 The Scroll Thief (5e)
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DDEX1-07 Drums in the Marsh (5e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 09/16/2019 03:46:51

So, this module's got a pretty glaring problem: the final encounter. It is supposed to be a huge three-way fight, but there is no way for the party to really know that this will happen. That makes the final scene very susceptible to analysis paralysis. Couple that with several dozen possible combatants and it can easily become a multi-hour slog rather than the "cinematic" combat the author intended.

Perhaps worst of all, though, is that the big "reward" at the end is essentially 3 does of "slightly worse than potions of greater healing" makes the whole module seem like a waste.



Rating:
[1 of 5 Stars!]
DDEX1-07 Drums in the Marsh (5e)
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DDEX1-08 Tales Trees Tell (5e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 09/16/2019 03:16:06

This is a very thematic module that is supposed to have a suspenseful, creepy vibe. The DM really needs to play up the unsettling nature of the time trip through the forest to sell it, though, or it'll just come off as silly. It is certainly one of the standouts of Season 1, though.

I do have one complaint, however. The module offers no advice on what should be done with a party consisting entirely of elves and/or half-elves. In theory, they should be violating none of the rules of the forest (and thus not really running into any of the troubles on offer), but such a party (not entirely unlikely--especially at a small table) is not even contemplated.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
DDEX1-08 Tales Trees Tell (5e)
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DDEX1-10 Tyranny in Phlan (5e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 08/22/2019 04:49:34

This module is simply too big for its time slot. It has roughly 50% more substantive combat encounters than it should--especially if you choose to also run its secret missions. Aggressive cutting--via calling encounters early and forcing players to make decisions--is absolutely required to keep it moving.

To speed things along, consider ignoring the "Crowd" feature and having the players start combat essentially at the door for the first combat. Similarly, consider dropping or reducing "fodder"-type enemies (veterans, hobgoblins, cult guard, &c) from later encounters to keep pace. You could also have Ellisande appear randomly, brutally kill a backline enemy, then run off just as quickly. Given her ultimate "mysterious, murderous waif" vibe, this could help build her up for future visits.



Rating:
[3 of 5 Stars!]
DDEX1-10 Tyranny in Phlan (5e)
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DDEX1-02 Secrets of Sokol Keep (5e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 08/22/2019 04:34:26

Before Season 8, I found that the lack of any particular reason to pursue the primary objective of this module made it a bit weak. With the Season 8 rule changes, though, it fairs a bit better as the "why would anyone take this job" issue is sidestepped (since you could apply it to any module).

The brawl in part 1 is largely pointless and should probably be skipped or cut-scened to make time for the much larger exploration/puzzle section in part 2 as it is the real stand-out in the module.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
DDEX1-02 Secrets of Sokol Keep (5e)
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DDEX1-04 Dues for the Dead (5e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 08/21/2019 06:00:50

This module is a nice, simple dungeon crawl that comes complete with a DM PC cleric that you can use to snark at your party. This is a great module to present to new players as it provides some interesting roleplaying encounters and evocative scenes, while still being linear enough to keep them on the rails, and also having a safety measure (the aforementioned NPC cleric) who can help them if they are in trouble.



Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]
DDEX1-04 Dues for the Dead (5e)
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DDEX1-03 Shadows of the Moonsea (5e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 08/21/2019 05:55:09

This is probably the worst module in the first season of AL. The reason for that is almost entirely due to the fact that there is basically no way for a party to figure out what is going on.

What's with the demons? The islander's motivations prevent them from ever disclosing any information

What's with the demon pirates? The only way to find out about them is going somewhere that there's no reason to go

Why are there two ships? Apparently there are two threats, but nobody will tell the PCs that.

The worst part, though, is that nobody will tell you anything even after the module is over. Regardless of what the players do, they will earn the ire of everyone on the little island who could provide any answers ensuring that none will come. It makes the whole thing exceedingly unsatisfying.



Rating:
[1 of 5 Stars!]
DDEX1-03 Shadows of the Moonsea (5e)
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DDEX2-09 Eye of the Tempest (5e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 08/21/2019 05:49:22

This module is tough to DM.

There first ~4 hours of the module are two completely independent tracks that you arguably need to prep seperately (and which therefore double that part's prep time).

The "exploration/sleuthing" section once the party gets to the monsastary is almost entirely going to be ad-lib'd. A section that requires lots of quick thought and improvisation is tough when, by that point, you've alread been running for around 4-5 hours.

Finally, the fight up the tower can very easily bog down due to the sheer number of things that can get sucked into the combat. Both times I ran it, the party managed to attract the attention of almost the entire tower at once which meant huge inititatives with dozens of creatures for me to deal with.

All of that said, though, the "mystery/sleuthing" section is lots of fun for players as it is extremely open-ended and is one of the least "on-rails" things anywhere in AL.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
DDEX2-09 Eye of the Tempest (5e)
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DDEX3-05 Bane of the Tradeways (5e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 08/21/2019 05:41:11

This module is a great way to introduce Hillsfar as it opens with a wonderfully evocative scene which serves to build a moral ambiguity that can well persist late into the module.

Unfortunately, that same ambiguity tends to lead toward dithering on the party of players and an inability to commit to action. When you couple the ambiguity with the "minigame" second encounter, the module becomes just far too big for its build runtime. I've run the module several times and played it at least twice. Not once did it complete in less than twice the target runtime of two hours.

If I ran it again, I'd probably reduce the "minigame" to having every enemy have just one or two "checkboxes" rather than tracking real hit points to try to speed it along (i.e., an enemy goes down when hit by two different attacks).



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
DDEX3-05 Bane of the Tradeways (5e)
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DDEX3-06 No Foolish Matter (5e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 08/21/2019 05:32:51

While flavorful, I tend to think that the "Creepy Circus" trope is a bit overdone. It's well enough executed, but the two-hour build time really makes it hard to play up the tension too much or to go too deep in roleplay to build the vibe that the module needs to maintain credibility.



Rating:
[3 of 5 Stars!]
DDEX3-06 No Foolish Matter (5e)
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DDEX2-04 Mayhem in the Earthspur Mines (5e)
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 08/21/2019 05:24:14

This is both one of my favorite modules to run and the only module in which I have ever had a party wipe.

I'd say the biggest concerns for this module are resource consumption (large numbers of small fights in the mines themselves) and the danger of the optional (but likely) bulette encounter. A melee-focused party will have a particularly tough time with the bulettes (that's where I wiped a party).

Additionally, the size of the mines section themselves can cause the module to exceed time fairly easily. Consider moving the "functional" guardians to wherever the party goes first in the mines (i.e., the map is out of date) so that the party makes full use of their ability to reduce the number of available encounters.



Rating:
[4 of 5 Stars!]
DDEX2-04 Mayhem in the Earthspur Mines (5e)
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DDAL08-09 Fangs and Frogs
Publisher: D&D Adventurers League
by G. B. [Verified Purchaser]
Date Added: 07/28/2019 02:59:48

This modules has two glaring problems:

  1. If the party has a sun blade, they win trivially This module has been run multiple times by DMs in my area, including by me. All but one time, the party brought a sunblade which resulted in the final fight being a Benny Hill-style encounter where the boss is fleeing at maximum speed from a dashing character with a sunblade. Worse, the only other combat encounter in the module contains enemies who are sensitive to sunlight and so it ends up trivializing both combat encounters in the module. Even without a sunblade; Dawn (cleric/wizard spell) + Wall of Force (wizard spell) makes short work for a tier-appropriate party with a couple of spellcasters.

  2. The whole place is empty Yes, there is a social encounter, but the party has to bumble through a series of "this is obviously a trap" rooms for the first half hour or so of the module. The main issue is that all of the traps are either "only an idiot would fall for this" (drink the rainbow water) or offer no real means of avoidance (bonus objective A's "look at this thing and make a save").

Additionally, I found the layout of the "keys" (eye gemstones) that lead players through the module to be unhelpful. I ended up moving them around to linearize the module slightly (i.e., force visits to both "empty" rooms and both "bonus objective" rooms before the social encounter room). This at least gave the players some sense that entering the rooms had a purpose.



Rating:
[2 of 5 Stars!]
DDAL08-09 Fangs and Frogs
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