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Sunday, September 8, 2013

What is Your Favorite Classic "Old School" Gaming Module / Adventure?



I was thinking about all of the great (and not so great) modules I picked up in my teens and early 20's - mid 80's to early 90's - and I find myself surprised that my favorite modules of the era are not from TSR. Heck, they aren't for (A)D&D at all.

Instead, they are for RuneQuest 2 - the Chaosium edition.

Pavis and Big Rubble, because in truth, they are just two parts that make up one exciting sandbox.

I ran this in both RQ3 and RQ2, using the Chaosium boxed sets that I picked up at a con held at Columbia University back in 86 or 87. The boxes had some shelf wear and crushing going on, but their contents were intact. It didn't hurt that I picked up a HC of the RQ2 rules from the same vendor.

I suspect if I had found Judges Guild's Wilderlands back in my early gaming days, my answer to the question would have been made a bit harder to come to - probably the same conclusion, just not so clear cut.

So, what's your favorite classic "old school" gaming module / adventure?

14 comments:

  1. Honestly, my mind immediately goes to the classic Twilight 2000 1st edition adventures - even the opening scenario from the boxed set - because they set up a situation, and then you and the players run through it. Things change, they are fluid, troops move, motivations change... Everything has to remain fluid. The saving grace (from the GM perspective) is most people with vehicles move in short bursts because they spend so much time distilling fuel instead of on the road, so large units don't move TOO much over days, but over weeks who knows what'll be happening.

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  2. Borderlands was lots of fun. Easy entry level and nice entrance to the more sandboxy Pavis.

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  3. Pavis and the Rubble is excellent, to be sure. GDQ is also really good. But I think that I'll go with Duneraiders, which is a sandbox (HA!) set on a desert world where the conflict between the native desert-dwelling people and an offworld mining concern is coming to a head (the same author, William H. Keith, Jr., did another desert adventure, Uragyad'n of the Seven Pillars, but I have never had a chance to read it).

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    1. I've read it. As might be expected from the title, it's basically T.E. Lawrence In Space.

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    2. That's what I understand. That is a high selling point to me, if it can live up to its aspirations.

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  4. Hmm, Tomb of Horrors cause it was my real first. But I really like Judges Guild, Dark Tower. The one I liked to run the best was A2 Secret of the Slavers Stockade. I got a lot of mileage out of that one.

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  5. Slave Pits of the Undercity. It was my first. Kind of a "cherry popper." Then again, I haven't really played many modules or published adventures. It seems like I always have DM's who do home brew worlds and adventures.

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  6. Griffin Island (I know that people love Griffin Mountain, so there's no need to tell me how much better it is :p).

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  7. The one I actually use most from the '80s to today is The Shrine of Kollchap from "What is Dungeons & Dragons?" Back in the '80s I think I most enjoyed running X2 Castle Amber for 1e AD&D. In 2000 I ran orange-cover B3 Palace of the Silver Princess converted for 3e D&D and that was very good. In general I like the BECMI modules better than the AD&D modules.

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  8. Irilian. The AD&D city campaign that ran in issues 41 - 46 of White Dwarf. In many ways a precursor to WFRP.

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  9. I'm a little boring -- Keep on the Borderlands. I played/ran that one so many times, I think I had it memorized. After that, Pharoh and the Lankhmar city book.

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  10. Oo. I loved Pavis & Big Rubble back in the day (big inspiration for Lesserton & Mor). I may have to go with GAZ01: GDK, though. I've gotten a lot of mileage out of the little setting.

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  11. I really like The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh, largely because of the reactions I have received when the players figure out what is really going on.

    But my favorite is Dwellers of the Forbidden City. It's such a well crafted location game that can stand alone or be part of a larger campaign.

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