Customer Reviews

Night Below: An Underdark Campaign (AD&D Fantasy Roleplaying, 1125)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is one of the best of the colossal TSR boxed sets - this one will take your PCs from levels 1 to 10, with over 200 hours of play time! Beginning in the dark and savage borderland wilds of the world above, the neophyte heroes will soon find themselves embroiled in a sinister, world-endangering demonic intrigue - by the end of the campaign, they'll be battling the darkest forces of the world (and beyond!) in the depths of the Underdark - an ideal way to prepare them for another epic, for example GDQ1-7 Queen of the Spiders! An entire campaign in one box - this HUGE set includes three 64-page books (!), a set of 16 PC handouts, 8 double-sided reference cards, 8 pages of new monsters, and 6 enormous poster maps. A true epic, Night Below receives my highest recommendation.

The reason this story works is because the authors made it different in these ways:

(1) They put in actual methods to negotiate. So, rather than just bash everything, PCs can talk their way out or even make alliances. Additionally, not all the creatures of the Underdark are out to kill you so it allows more chances to talk things out. ;

(2) There's a great deal of context and History; especially in book one in the area of Haranshire (a backwaters shire); good to great character descriptions.;

(3) superb overland map you can share with your players (just don't show the back); include a few battle maps for key sections of the long adventure);

(4) Lots of overland adventures; some not just fighting but puzzle related or negotiation related; additionally, you get to deal with the locals;

(5) Great details of natural hazards in the Underdark;

(6) A variety of different monsters in the Underdark;

(7) fairly good linkage;

(8) big finale at the end; and

(9) PCs have the opportunity to actually have allies!

I think past reviewers are correct in that book two isn't as linked. This was done mainly to let the PCs go up in levels so that they would be ready for the later big fights.

Not a problem for me. I increased the size of the map and added more features and also changed the nefarious end as I felt it was too cliche'.

Overall, this is superlative boxed set. As it isn't terribly pervasive, it can fit in to almost any campaign. For a DM who has little put together, you could do a whole campaign this way but the PCs have to enjoy tromping down in the Undearkr. In my campaign, this started at about 50% of the possible adventures but as more and more happened, it's about 15-20% now. That's sort of b/c now that they're higher level they've gotten involved in big time politics. :)

...

This is a long campaign, starting in and around Haranshire and culminating in an epic battle against a completely new and never before seen archnemisis. Perhaps the best thing about the campaign is that the drow are not a part of it. What is intrical to the campaign is diplomacy, rational thought and more than a little all out hack and slash. Something for everybody and enough gaps to have something different happen along the way - that way PCs never feel railroaded into saving their own (and a great # of other people's) behind. Perhaps one of the best CAMPAIGNS ever put out.

Still, it would be unfair to warn you that while the first book gives plenty of ideas for sidestepping the campaign, little is done to fill in the underdeveloped underdark. Be prepared to provide some filler.

Night Below is an excelent campaign, taking a party from 1st to 10th level or beyond by the end of its third book. The setting is well established from the beginning, giving the PCs a place to base their adventures and a megaplot that really lasts for the whole of the module. The end is worth the effort, a grand finale that will leave both DMs and players satisfied. Presentation is lavish, there are lots of eye-catching handouts and three tactical maps (I wish there were more). The only problem I see is the lack of unity in the second book - it is mostly a series of unconnected dungeon crawls, clearly intended to fill in the gaps and give the PCs much needed experience. As the module itself suggests using other adventures to provide experience for the players, they could either skip those unrelated episodes altogether or work harder to make the descent into the deeper underground a more coherent part of the plot. But that is easily corrected, so maybe I'm being too picky:-)

This is a riveting campaign that takes your characters from several simple quests to a long, drawn-out guerilla war deep in the UnderDark. The campaign is balanced, well-thought out, and for the most part, well detailed. My players have enjoyed the risks and challenges presented to them, and have stated themselves that this game reminds them of the great super-modules of days gone by! The sheer amount of work gone into the hand-outs, the maps, and the art is fantastic.

I will remember this boxed-set for a long time to come.

If you can get your hands on this boxed set, DO SO WITH MUCH HASTE!

The Night Below is by far my favorite campaign setting/adventure i have ever played throgh or DM'ed. It is really detailed and fleshed out, and yet leaves plenty of room to either incorporate your own ideas or to incorporate this into your own campaign. The ability to develop a player group from level one to potentially level 15 with no drop off in the action of the role playing opportunities in brilliant. To me, this represents the perfect boxed set for any DM.
The basic premise of the campaign is that spellcasters are disappearing and your group is hired initially to find the missing apprentice of the local legendary wizard, who is now to old to adventure himself. The PC group also has to defend themselves from a kidnapping attempt on one of their own spellcasters. This leads to a lengthy adventure that eventually lands them in the Underdark, where their investigation takes them deeper and deeper until they eventually come upon the source of the kidnappings, an aboleth city. There, they must try to infiltrate the city while trying to free as many people as they can (well, they dont have to free anybody actually, but will probably want to), while also trying to solve the mystery of why the spellcasters are being kidnapped by the aboleth, and stop them before theri plans come to fruition. Along the way, there is plenty of opportunity for side quests and campaigns, lots of potential allies and henchmen, including a few surprise sources of help, plenty of danger, and lots of treasure.
This really has it all, and you will definitley enjoy it if you can buy one. Buy used, complete sets though. A new one will easily cost $50 or $60 more.

Enjoy!

If you get Night Below, you won't need any other campaigns for a nice while. This set is very lengthy and very interesting, providing your players with hours of AD&D gaming that you ought to enjoy. The campaign is arranged to bring 1st level characters to 10th level. That doesn't give your PCs many varied experiences before they're ultimately powerful, but it provides lots of fun for the gaming group. The only other disadvantage besides the 1st-10th level thing, though, is the fact that you spend a lot of time in the Underdark (maybe make a drow character so he can feel a bit more comfortable in his surroundings), meaning that your PCs will come out of there very pale...and very powerful. It's still a pretty good buy, though.

I'm about halfway through DM-ing this game for some graduate students who've mostly never played before, and we're having a grand time. However, this middle section isn't as rich as the first third in detail and tangential intrigue, but the framework remains good. I've supplemented the campaign with side adventures (remember White Plume Mountain? They've done that, and in a few more levels they'll be invited to search the Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth) and am working to introduce appropriate NPC's. Still, it's a grand campaign which helps the side adventures become part of a larger plotline.

This boxed set is split into three books, of which the first one is the best. The second is the worst, and the third is slightly better than the second. The final encounter in this adventure is a cheap cop-out of which very little is gained. Appropriate for levels 1+ (to about 15th level, maybe 20 if you're a good party).

Being a DM from the early 80's, I can see alot of potential in this set. This is one of the few modules/campaign sets that I think will be great!! PERSONALLY, I have NOT DMed this yet, but from the readings of this set I can TELL it will work out GREAT!!! IF your a DM that can pull things from your behind and make things up somewhat quick, NO PROBLEM!!!! I would definately suggest this as a good BUY!!!!