Time traval is damn hard to execute, so any work of fiction that dares to tackle this subject is notable. This is what drew my attention to this module, the fourth in Atlas Games' Penumbra line of D20 products. I've come to expect good stuff from this line, and I wasn't let down.
The cover depicts a yellow-robed figure (obstensibly a cleric) next to an ogre-sized crystal. The floor and other surroundings imply that this is inside some sort of temple, and that Something Big is about to happen. This piece is an example of how to foreshadow the adventure, both the beginning and the end, using cover artwork; draw the gamer in, set up the story, and foreshadow the end all in one go- I like it. The interior artwork remains black-and-white, but not once did I see anything substandard or out-of-place. The refinement of layout shows, making this module appear clearer and easier to read over those prior to The Tide of Years. Pertinent notes are in clear and clean sidebars that don't block the flow of the text. Overall, the way this module's put together is excellant, and an improvement over the rest.
As for the adventure itself, it's rather simple and straight-forward. The PCs are in some forest somewhere going from this place to that when, as they camp for the night, they encounter a ghost that acts like he's not dead and implores the PCs to help him get back a very powerful artifact that a thief stole from his temple. It possesses power over the flow of time, which explains the weirdness that some PCs may have noticed already. The PCs ought to grok that this is a Very Bad Thing and help the ghost (who isn't Evil) in his quest.
The PCs quickly find that the temporal energies in the area continue to warp the land back towards the primevil past, and that means that prehistoric animals also return to stalk the forest. From dinosaurs to insects and birds of giant size (and increasing numbers), along with the usual magical monsters of a fantasy forest, until they find and retrieve the artifact from a cliff face. Once retrieved, the PCs need to put it back where it belongs. This means going underwater to the ruins of the ghostly cleric's temple; if the PCs have the needed gear on hand to do the job, this gets easier. If not, they have to go see a self-absorbed nixie and talk her into bestowing them with her water-breathing magic before proceeding; the PCs can't beat her into submission, so the Charisma gods in the group get a chance to shine here as they talk the comely creature into doing the job.
Going down below the waves requires some more derring-do, as the PCs have to balance their needs to swim safely with their need to defend themselves from whatever is waiting for them below. This becomes clear when the PCs run afoul of another big ol' dinosaur; what worked on land doesn't do in the water. Once past the beast, it's on to the temple where they get to dig around (with help) until they find the room that they need. It won't be easy, as they have to deal with beds of tangle kelp, aquatic spiders, temporal traps, and a Time Elemental.
Once they get through the monsters and the traps, the PCs find the place to put the crystal. They put it back, and they experience an instantaneous rewriting of past and present now that the temporal energies are back in balance. The GM can use this as an opportunity to suddenly and believably drop a new civilization into his campaign, or this can be just a one-off as the priests send the PCs back to their home timeline with the explanation being "Your efforts restored our branch of the timestream." or something like that.
This adventure is a nice side trek sort of thing, one that easy to tack on to another adventure or to use to link two others together. For that reason alone, I'd say that it's worth a look-see, but as this module competantly deals with time travel and time magic (let alone has a new god, new spells, and a new domain, etc.) I must recommend it to everyone who plays D&D. There is something for everyone here.
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