Background
The Serpent of the Citadel is the third adventure in the Serpent Amphora trilogy. It takes place in Sword and Sorcery's Scarred Lands, where, during the Divine War, the gods rose, and the titans fell. And, boy, did they fall. You've probably heard the "God falls to Earth / Bits and pieces of said god become various landmarks" legends, but the Scarred Lands take this one step further. Where a titan fell, the land reflects the personality and alignment. So where good titans fell, the land flourished, and forests became beautiful and green. Where evil ones fells, the land corrupted, and forests became twisted and gnarled. D&D brought us the "neutral but not just true neutral" druid, and the Scarred Lands does a very good job with this class...
***Spoilers***
Introduction
The adventure consists of a short Introduction, the three Chapters of the adventure itself, and an appendix of prestige classes used by two NPCs in the adventure and suggestions for further play.
The Introduction provides an overview of the adventure so far, and provides suggestions for play if the GM did not run the previous books in the trilogy. The players enter the scene on a quest to destroy the Serpent Amphora. The ritual to destroy the artifact has been found, but they still need to bring the artifact to Mount Doom -- er, the Ganjus forest.
Despite this plot, the adventure employs a good number of NPC encounters, plus a nice dose of nasty intelligent monsters. In addition, no less than five factions want the Amphora. It's not exactly the Illuminati, and the GM can use the factions the spice things to his taste. I should mention that the Serpent Amphora trilogy has a free "prequel" download. In this adventure, the characters acquire the Serprent Amphora artifact. I highly recommend running it (adjusted for the level of the party) before playing The Serpent of the Citadel.
Chapter One: The Bosom of the Mother
This chapter is essentially a linear plot. The PCs meet various NPCs they need to guide them to Ganjus forest. Then Things Start To Go Very Wrong. One nasty hit-and-run attack (three storm hags, one wood golem, and a woodwrack dragon) later, the PCs are left to themselves, where they meet another NPC of dubious repute (and in serious need of a bath). GMs should not run this chapter for disruptive players. They'll need to negotiate with (read: Not Attack) various gruff NPCs, who will help guide them on their journey. Some "what if the players do XYZ" help is provided, but, if the players go too far, it's time for the S&S Wilderness & Wastelands supplement. But "players who follow the plot" will be rewarded with distinctive NPCs, hints of the Divine War (through descriptions of forest terrain), and some rather memorable foes.
Chapter Two: The Dark Heart of the Wood
But before they continue on their quest, they must rescue an NPC captured during the attack. This chapter is essentially a side-trek to rescue Commander Piradur from the Serpent Citadel, in the twisted, gnarled Hornsaw Forest. It can easily stand alone, or excised from the adventure. Much like the rest of the adventure, this chapter is rich with floral description. It's arguably "just another dungeon crawl", but the creativity in floral description and unusual encounters make it an impressive experience. The adventure ends with the druidical rite of the wicker-man. In this ritual, a giant wicker-man is built, and placed inside of it are prisoners to be sacrificed by fire to the bloodthirsty gods. And not only is Commander Piradur a prisoner, but if he's not rescued, his soul animates the wicker-man -- and the PC's have a new fight on their hands...
Chapter Three: The Shattering of the Amphora
As the party leaves the Hornsaw Forest to Ganjus, they again meet their un-bathen ally -- and a few enemies that attacked them before. Ground vs. air combat ensues, and, just as the players recover, the adventure adds a chase scene, in which the party is pursued by the woodwrack dragon. Eventually, the party arrives to their objective, where they meet the druids who will destroy the Amphora
But one betrayal later, the PCs must again save the world -- or rather, Mother Earth. One of the druids, has stolen the Amphora. In a foul ritual, he and his followers will finally open the Serpent Amphora, spill the essense of Mormo where the titan Mother Denev lies, and Mormo will be reborn. (The Amphora is opened with the blood of medusas, which is really, really, cool.) The fight's rather climactic, as the evil druids chant the ceremony, the party fights through a swathe of summoned creatures, and a titan is nearly resurrected.
Appendix
This section contains an epilogue, suggestions for further play, and two prestige classes. The epilogue provides a delightful ending, where one of the defeated factions may just have the last laugh. Suggestions for further play does indeed include ideas if the PCs fail. Two NPCs encountered in the adventure have their own prestige classes, which are detailed here.
***End Spoilers***
Conclusion
I truly enjoyed the Serpent Citadel. It adds atmosphere and creativity to what could have been your average everyday save-the-world quest. I also appreciated, on a practical level, how an individual encounter could be edited out (eg. if the game session is running over time) without affecting the overall story. I had some reservations with the first book, Serpent in the Fold, but highly recommend the Serpent Citadel.
Sword and Sorcery site
http://www.swordsorcery.com
Serpent Amphora free download
http://www.swordsorcery.com/swordsorcery/Downloads/serpentamphora.pdf
Review of The Serpent Amphora and the Serpent in the Fold
http://www.rpg.net/news+reviews/reviews/rev_7284.html
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