The Inside Scoop on Gaming

I received an advance copy of What Evil Lurks, and to be honest, my plan was to be fair and impartial, not having any preconceived notion of how good it would be or what it was about, and not wanting to be a 'gushing fanboy' of yet another release from Necromancer Games.

I failed.

What Evil Lurks deserves any praise and accolades I can give it. Quite simply, it's an excellent achievement from Lance Hawvermale.

The module has a sense of foreboding through its entirety, from the color cover art to the last page of player handouts (the title font on the cover may be a bit tough to read, right off) that is absolutely fitting for the setting. The adventure reads like a story (from start to finish, I didn't put it down), but it is neither plot-nor timeline-bound. It should be suitable for both "plot-driven" and "dungeon-delver" type players. It is quite interactive; the opponents are very intelligently presented, and have goals and desires that will challenge the PCs at many turns. They seem like characters from an epic tragedy, and you can't help but feel for them. As far as the level requirements, it states the adventure is for four 9th-level PCs. "Only if they are also experienced gamers" is my opinion, otherwise I would say more like 11th to 13th, if they are going to try and "duke it out" with the NPCs. I don't want to give away any of the story here, as that is part of the fun for the DM. Reading (and rereading) this module before game play IS A MUST!

The mechanics of the module look very good. I found no glaring typos or grammatical errors and the sidebars and tables were all handy and easy to reference. The maps at the end of the adventure were quite beautifully done, and used the "tilted 3-D view" that I personally like (thank you Chris Boll!). A new monster (Soul Nibbler) and a new template (Shade) are introduced, and a new feat (Anchored Spell). As far as technical information, the adventure weighs in at 36 pages, with an additional 8 pages of appendices, maps, and a player handout. Interior art is black and white, with a vertical skull banner in the margins.

This quote from the introduction sums up the story in a very basic way: "...What Evil Lurks is an adventure that draws the PCs into a complex and passionate story that harries them from dungeon catacombs to the far reaches of the multiverse. In order to invoke a broad spectrum of emotional responses from both the DM and the players, the settings and NPCs of the adventure represent the extremes of right and wrong, joy and anguish, light and dark. However the story ultimately concludes, everyone should come away from the gaming table with a new perspective on adventuring...and a new name for evil."

This is a dark adventure, and PCs of good alignment will have no problem finding foes within. That said, the players of good PCs might have some trouble with the situations presented. There are some sections of the adventure where good detective work will be important. This is not as simple as "Line up the bad guys, we're here to do justice!" The players will need to determine who they should trust, who they need to help, and how they need to help them. There are some moral questions that need to be resolved before the conclusion. Simply killing the main bad (?) guy is not going to complete this adventure. There are many situations that need to be resolved through good role playing, as hack and slash will not get the PCs to the conclusion. However, for those of you concerned by the need for role playing, never fear! There is a healthy amount of combat that will be necessary to complete this story. One of the interesting things about this module is that a truly well balanced party will have the easiest time negotiating the storyline. There are times when forest PCs will be helpful, and times when 'cosmopolitan' PCs will have the advantage. A party must work together well to face the trials presented.

What Evil Lurks
What Evil Lurks Capsule Review by Skeeter Green on 22/03/02 Style: 5 (Excellent!) Substance: 4 (Meaty) A great adventure for either "hack and slash" and "roleplayer" groups. More adventures released should have this level of quality. Product: What Evil Lurks Author: Lance Hawvermale Category: RPG Company/Publisher: Necromancer Games Line: Cost: 10.95 Page count: 45 Year published: 2002 ISBN: 1-58846-193-9 SKU: WW 8371 Comp copy?: yes Capsule Review by Skeeter Green on 22/03/02 Genre tags: Fantasy Horror	I received an advance copy of What Evil Lurks, and to be honest, my plan was to be fair and impartial, not having any preconceived notion of how good it would be or what it was about, and not wanting to be a 'gushing fanboy' of yet another release from Necromancer Games. I failed. What Evil Lurks deserves any praise and accolades I can give it. Quite simply, it's an excellent achievement from Lance Hawvermale. The module has a sense of foreboding through its entirety, from the color cover art to the last page of player handouts (the title font on the cover may be a bit tough to read, right off) that is absolutely fitting for the setting. The adventure reads like a story (from start to finish, I didn't put it down), but it is neither plot-nor timeline-bound. It should be suitable for both "plot-driven" and "dungeon-delver" type players. It is quite interactive; the opponents are very intelligently presented, and have goals and desires that will challenge the PCs at many turns. They seem like characters from an epic tragedy, and you can't help but feel for them. As far as the level requirements, it states the adventure is for four 9th-level PCs. "Only if they are also experienced gamers" is my opinion, otherwise I would say more like 11th to 13th, if they are going to try and "duke it out" with the NPCs. I don't want to give away any of the story here, as that is part of the fun for the DM. Reading (and rereading) this module before game play IS A MUST! The mechanics of the module look very good. I found no glaring typos or grammatical errors and the sidebars and tables were all handy and easy to reference. The maps at the end of the adventure were quite beautifully done, and used the "tilted 3-D view" that I personally like (thank you Chris Boll!). A new monster (Soul Nibbler) and a new template (Shade) are introduced, and a new feat (Anchored Spell). As far as technical information, the adventure weighs in at 36 pages, with an additional 8 pages of appendices, maps, and a player handout. Interior art is black and white, with a vertical skull banner in the margins. This quote from the introduction sums up the story in a very basic way: "...What Evil Lurks is an adventure that draws the PCs into a complex and passionate story that harries them from dungeon catacombs to the far reaches of the multiverse. In order to invoke a broad spectrum of emotional responses from both the DM and the players, the settings and NPCs of the adventure represent the extremes of right and wrong, joy and anguish, light and dark. However the story ultimately concludes, everyone should come away from the gaming table with a new perspective on adventuring...and a new name for evil." This is a dark adventure, and PCs of good alignment will have no problem finding foes within. That said, the players of good PCs might have some trouble with the situations presented. There are some sections of the adventure where good detective work will be important. This is not as simple as "Line up the bad guys, we're here to do justice!" The players will need to determine who they should trust, who they need to help, and how they need to help them. There are some moral questions that need to be resolved before the conclusion. Simply killing the main bad (?) guy is not going to complete this adventure. There are many situations that need to be resolved through good role playing, as hack and slash will not get the PCs to the conclusion. However, for those of you concerned by the need for role playing, never fear! There is a healthy amount of combat that will be necessary to complete this story. One of the interesting things about this module is that a truly well balanced party will have the easiest time negotiating the storyline. There are times when forest PCs will be helpful, and times when 'cosmopolitan' PCs will have the advantage. A party must work together well to face the trials presented.