I picked this up at a used book store a couple years back, just excited to find anything from Goodman Games, as I was snapping up any Dungeon Crawl Classics material I could find.  If I’m reading it right, it was a Free RPG Day giveaway from 2015.  It’s for D&D 5e, which I’ve long established isn’t a game for me.  But one can often convert scenarios relatively easily to other systems, so I figured I’d check it out.  I’ve finally gotten around to reading it, and while it seems like it could be a good deal of fun, it’s not really for me.

The overall setting is a jungle realm, with very Mesoamerican vibes.  I could imagine it taking place somewhere near the classic D&D scenario The Hidden Shrine of Tamoachan, or something similar.  The premise is pretty simple.  The PCs are going out into the jungle to find a dragon’s lair.  As is often true of these modules, there’s a somewhat involved background, much of which the PCs are not super likely to discover.  Also common in modules, the dangers to be faced almost feel like they were randomly selected, then shoehorned into things.  Investigating a dragon’s lair and you might run into a medusa, ogre twins, an efreeti, and a dwarven ghost?  OK.  That said, I like that you have the potential to find allies in your fight.

I don’t know 5e’s mechanics well enough to know if this is a challenging scenario for the intended four to six 12th level characters.  It seems like it would be, but 5e characters seem to turn into superheroes as time goes on.  One thing I like, however, is the conundrum the scenario places the characters in if they succeed.  There’s a possibility they owe a favor to a powerful (and evil) being.  They may need to set off on an adventure to return a sacred artifact to a distant faction.  And they end up with an absolutely ridiculous amount of treasure, with no obvious way to carry it away.  The lair and the treasure both might attract other creatures.  Do they try to defend it?  Try to find some way to get it out?  Take a few choice bits and leave the rest for the scavengers?  What if some band of evil roughians arrived and used the leftover treasure to bankroll their villainy?  It’s not quite a “morally gray” area, but it is a result that’s going to warrant making some tough choices.  

As expected from Goodman Games, it’s got some nice art.  Though it’s more 90s style black & white illustrations than the 70s style many of their DCC modules have.  The maps are less characterful than most DCC maps, but they also look a bit more functional.  

While overall, this scenario isn’t for me, it seems like it could be a lot of fun for the right group.  I’m glad I’ve read it, so I know I can pass it along to someone who will get more use out of it.  

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