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Return to the Keep on the Borderlands is a remake of B2: The Keep on the Borderlands, an introductory adventure for original D&D and probably the most played role-playing module out there.

The original Keep on the Borderlands (KotB) was a straight dungeon crawl with essentially zero plot, atmosphere, or character development. None of the NPCs in the keep had names and most of the module was about the various tricks and ambushes the monsters in the Caves of Chaos would inflict on players venturing there. It was designed to provide PCs an opportunity to slaughter humanoids, outthink their puzzles and traps, and take home their loot. After the denizens of the Caves were exterminated, the players would presumably go on to bigger and tougher monsters.

The new Return to the Keep on the Borderlands is designed to serve as an update. It uses the same maps and locations and attempts to describe what has happened in the twenty years since the original adventure. The author has introduced a number of new elements. He has a timeline of events, so that people come and go at the keep and the caves while the characters adventure. All the NPCs at the keep are detailed and described, with subplots and connections spelled out. In addition, he has made some effort to remove a little of the ridiculousness of the multi-racial harmony of the caves. These are good efforts, but they do not fundamentally change this adventure from a kill/take money module to a plot or character-driven one.

The organization of this module is excellent. The contents page is very detailed and all the sections are clearly marked. I never had a problem finding what I was looking for. There is a color cover and small black and white illustrations inside. They all portray either adversaries in the module or the same set of PCs working their way through the adventure, which is a great idea. Unfortunately, the cover painting is only decent, and the interior art has people with huge heads and curiously shortened and withered forearms.

The module is broken up into four parts. The first part is a set of advice and rules recommendations for beginning players and DMs. This is a terrific idea, and this does its job well, offering optional rules (Death's Door, Free Retreat) that will help beginning character's survive. Unfortunately, it also recommends using the 1 GP = 1 XP rule. It explains this by saying that this will give PCs the idea that there are a number of ways to succeed. This is exactly wrong. Giving experience points for treasure teaches characters that it's all about the money. It encourages players to defile corpses, slay anything that moves in hopes of getting its money, and generally ridiculous actions.

The second part details the Keep and its inhabitants. This is the best part of the module. The inhabitants are named and described, their occupations listed, and the way they fit into the larger community given. Some attempt is made to describe the history and current economic and political situation in the keep, along with a small discussion of what is going to happen in the future. Two things stand out. There are at least three sub-plots described that take place as the PCs are coming and going around the Keep, framing the time and providing additional plot and events as time goes on. In addition, there are eight NPCs described (two from each main class) that are provided as support to the PC party, but each is designed to have a character flaw that prevents them from becoming the leader, so the DM does not dominate the group. This is a wonderful idea and should be used more often. The only real downside to this section is the Rumors section, which contains a particularly ridiculous one, #12. That one cautions the characters that the lower caves are easier, as numerous adventurers have told the rumor giver. This makes it sound like the Caves are some sort of thrills and chills wildlife park where adventurers go to kill some humanoids and collect booty, a frankly ridiculous setup.

The third part details the wilderness around the Keep and the Caves. There are a number of different encounters that provide the PCs with everything from reclusive humanoids to possible allies to comic relief to impossible encounters. That's the real problem with this section. The encounter with the bulette is an insta-PC-killer, unless they do exactly the right thing, which there is no way for them to know about before-hand. Also, the will-o-wisp encounter is fudged by an automatic protection from evil spell. It would be far better to have situations where PCs have a clear way to succeed or escape and can learn from their actions, instead of arbitrarily hampering creatures to give the PCs a fighting chance.

The fourth part of the module details the Caves of Chaos. They are still a motley collection of various creatures each living in its own apartment in the complex. The traps and tactics are well-thought out and useful, and the encounters are challenging without being too difficult, though players may have a real problem with the necromancer. There is an effort at a timeline and plot progression, since the Hidden Temple is slowly taking over the complex, but this just makes the previous situation seem even more ridiculous.

This module can be used in two ways. If you wish to run a combat-heavy game with minimal plot and characterization, this module is excellent for you. It's better than the original with more content and more interesting setups. If you want to run a more plot-heavy game, this module is still usable but will require a lot of work. The keep should be kept, but the caves will have to be eliminated, replaced by various humanoid lairs and the secret location of the Hidden Temple, all separated from each other by a reasonable distance. The game could focus on the attempts of the temple to take over the valley from both within and without the keep walls.

Style: 3 (Average)
Substance: 4 (Meaty)

Return to the Keep on the Borderlands
Author: John D. Rateliff Category: game Company/Publisher: Wizards of the Coast Line: AD&D 2nd edition Cost: $12.95 Page count: 64 ISBN: 0-7869-1327-4 SKU: TSR11327 Capsule Review by James Landry on 05/07/00. Genre tags: Fantasy	Return to the Keep on the Borderlands is a remake of B2: The Keep on the Borderlands, an introductory adventure for original D&D and probably the most played role-playing module out there. The original Keep on the Borderlands (KotB) was a straight dungeon crawl with essentially zero plot, atmosphere, or character development. None of the NPCs in the keep had names and most of the module was about the various tricks and ambushes the monsters in the Caves of Chaos would inflict on players venturing there. It was designed to provide PCs an opportunity to slaughter humanoids, outthink their puzzles and traps, and take home their loot. After the denizens of the Caves were exterminated, the players would presumably go on to bigger and tougher monsters. The new Return to the Keep on the Borderlands is designed to serve as an update. It uses the same maps and locations and attempts to describe what has happened in the twenty years since the original adventure. The author has introduced a number of new elements. He has a timeline of events, so that people come and go at the keep and the caves while the characters adventure. All the NPCs at the keep are detailed and described, with subplots and connections spelled out. In addition, he has made some effort to remove a little of the ridiculousness of the multi-racial harmony of the caves. These are good efforts, but they do not fundamentally change this adventure from a kill/take money module to a plot or character-driven one. The organization of this module is excellent. The contents page is very detailed and all the sections are clearly marked. I never had a problem finding what I was looking for. There is a color cover and small black and white illustrations inside. They all portray either adversaries in the module or the same set of PCs working their way through the adventure, which is a great idea. Unfortunately, the cover painting is only decent, and the interior art has people with huge heads and curiously shortened and withered forearms. The module is broken up into four parts. The first part is a set of advice and rules recommendations for beginning players and DMs. This is a terrific idea, and this does its job well, offering optional rules (Death's Door, Free Retreat) that will help beginning character's survive. Unfortunately, it also recommends using the 1 GP = 1 XP rule. It explains this by saying that this will give PCs the idea that there are a number of ways to succeed. This is exactly wrong. Giving experience points for treasure teaches characters that it's all about the money. It encourages players to defile corpses, slay anything that moves in hopes of getting its money, and generally ridiculous actions. The second part details the Keep and its inhabitants. This is the best part of the module. The inhabitants are named and described, their occupations listed, and the way they fit into the larger community given. Some attempt is made to describe the history and current economic and political situation in the keep, along with a small discussion of what is going to happen in the future. Two things stand out. There are at least three sub-plots described that take place as the PCs are coming and going around the Keep, framing the time and providing additional plot and events as time goes on. In addition, there are eight NPCs described (two from each main class) that are provided as support to the PC party, but each is designed to have a character flaw that prevents them from becoming the leader, so the DM does not dominate the group. This is a wonderful idea and should be used more often. The only real downside to this section is the Rumors section, which contains a particularly ridiculous one, #12. That one cautions the characters that the lower caves are easier, as numerous adventurers have told the rumor giver. This makes it sound like the Caves are some sort of thrills and chills wildlife park where adventurers go to kill some humanoids and collect booty, a frankly ridiculous setup. The third part details the wilderness around the Keep and the Caves. There are a number of different encounters that provide the PCs with everything from reclusive humanoids to possible allies to comic relief to impossible encounters. That's the real problem with this section. The encounter with the bulette is an insta-PC-killer, unless they do exactly the right thing, which there is no way for them to know about before-hand. Also, the will-o-wisp encounter is fudged by an automatic protection from evil spell. It would be far better to have situations where PCs have a clear way to succeed or escape and can learn from their actions, instead of arbitrarily hampering creatures to give the PCs a fighting chance. The fourth part of the module details the Caves of Chaos. They are still a motley collection of various creatures each living in its own apartment in the complex. The traps and tactics are well-thought out and useful, and the encounters are challenging without being too difficult, though players may have a real problem with the necromancer. There is an effort at a timeline and plot progression, since the Hidden Temple is slowly taking over the complex, but this just makes the previous situation seem even more ridiculous. This module can be used in two ways. If you wish to run a combat-heavy game with minimal plot and characterization, this module is excellent for you. It's better than the original with more content and more interesting setups. If you want to run a more plot-heavy game, this module is still usable but will require a lot of work. The keep should be kept, but the caves will have to be eliminated, replaced by various humanoid lairs and the secret location of the Hidden Temple, all separated from each other by a reasonable distance. The game could focus on the attempts of the temple to take over the valley from both within and without the keep walls. Style: 3 (Average) Substance: 4 (Meaty)