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Dungeon Crawl Classics #34:
Cage of Delirium

The Dungeon Crawl Classics line of d20 modules from Goodman Games just keeps on going and going. As the name implies, they pretty much are dungeon crawls in the vein of the original TSR AD&D/D&D modules. But they aren't afraid to try different things, either. This, Dungeon Crawl Classics #34: Cage of Delirium, is one of those different things.

Basically, it's a module that comes with a musical soundtrack. Or rather, it seems to be a module built around an existing musical soundtrack. Specifically, "Gates of Delirium" by Midnight Syndicate. Which is a group (?) who specialize in RPG related music.

It's all music, it's not like some of the TSR modules (just before they went under) that came with a cd of speech and effects and such. Besides the cd itself, you get the inserts to put in a jewel case (which is a nice touch, and how I know the cd dates from 2001, according to the copyright notice on it).

The use of music in gaming can be helpful, but at times, it can be a distraction. I mean, unless you happen to have a DJ handling the music for you, the DM has another thing to take care of, and often DMing is a hectic enough job as it is without changing music all the time.

Still, I remember when I first starting playing D&D, my friend would play the song "Dragon Attack" off of Queens latest (at the time) album, The Game, whenever a dragon would attack in the game. And another time, playing MERP, we would always listen to the Beach Boys and the soundtrack to Jesus Christ Superstar. Though I can't remember why, exactly.


The Module
Backstory

This is a somewhat unusual module for d20, in it takes place in a haunted asylum. I mean, how many D&D settings actually have asylums? About the only one it really fits would be Ravenloft, I think. Other than that, I suspect it would probably be most useful for a d20 Modern game where the PCs were ghost hunters/paranormal investigators.

The asylum actually burned down (mostly) 40 years ago, and has a very tragic past. The head of the asylum had twin sons. Like all twins, one was good, one was evil. The good son ended up becoming a doctor at the asylum; the evil son was committed to the asylum as a patient.

The good son ended up marrying a cured patient. This really drove his evil twin mad. So he concocted a scheme, whereby he would somehow switch places with the good twin. And he managed to pull it off. (I think I were a twin, and had a brother who was locked up in an asylum, I would get a tattoo saying "I am the sane twin" (or something to that effect)).

Anyway, now in place as the head doctor of the place (their father, the former head, having passed away before the coup), the evil twin had something of a reign of terror over the asylum. And when the wife of the good twin realized that they had switched places, the evil twin had her re-committed. But not before she became pregnant. Which twin is the father, she didn't know.

His reign of terror went on for a while, some more tragedy struck, then eventually the patients rioted under the leadership of the good twin, and in the confusion, the place burned down. Killing almost everyone.

But the asylum and its dead would not rest peacefully. And so enter the PCs, to put them to rest. (There's really not a great hook for the PCs to get involved, though there are some examples given - the former head nurse being on her deathbed is one, another involves them being asked to by a local cleric).


Game stuff


The module itself takes up about 45 pages (the background takes up a good 5-6 pages, as do handouts) and about 45 keyed areas (40 inside, 5 outside, plus a final showdown).

While there is some combat, a lot of the module consists of simply investigating the old place. It really is haunted by its history, and the PCs will encounter bits and pieces of it as they explore. For the most part, it seems laid out like a real asylum, though a bit smaller than implied in the text (and maybe some logistical questions).

To get to the heart of the matter (the spirit of the evil twin) and confront him, they have to lower a necromantic energy barrier. This is done by doing various tasks - usually setting various spirits at peace. In the case of good spirits, doing something to make them happy (often by bringing them their favorite object which the evil twin took away and hid). That's right - while it goes against the DCC slogan, there are several NPCs in this that the PCs are meant to talk to, not just kill. The evil ones they can (and are supposed to) kill though.

I really like the non-linear nature of the module. There's a bunch of things the PCs can do, but they don't have to do them all to get to the final boss. In fact, it's very tweakable, the DM can largely decide how many of them they have to do to have him show up.

I can think of some nitpicky things, though. For one, I think there could have been a bit more variety in monsters. There are a lot more allips than necessary (3 encounters with them). Just one would have been enough. I also think there really could have been more "unique" monsters, most are pretty standard D&D ones, except for one former doctor who is now attached with his operating table. That's creepy - I would have liked to have seen more like that.

For another, although quite appropriate for an asylum, there's not a lot of attractive loot for the PCs - pretty much a handful of lesser magic items. A lot of players like loot. So that could be troublesome.

Less importantly, but still nagging, is that some minor details seem off. I mean, it's supposed to have had hundreds of patients (I think 400 is mentioned). Yet the building is not nearly that big. There's maybe room for 100 patients at most, and even then they need more room for other functions. But even at that, it seems unlikely that there would be that many mentally ill people in a small village or town. And who was paying for it to be run and all that? Who licensed the doctors to begin with?


Looks/Layout

To a certain extent, the DCC modules mimic the old TSR modules in how they look. Basically, little white space and a very simple layout. For the most part it's readable where there is a new area, but in the beginning where there are no breaks, it can be a bit hard to read.

It's a small touch, but I liked how in the handouts, different fonts were used to represent the different handwriting of different people.

The cover features a piece by the legendary Erol Otus, illustrating the fight between a party of PCs and a monster that is an amalgamation of the bones of many of the patients who died in the fire. The back has an okay piece by someone, but it's interlaced (sort of like a regular TV), so looks sorta blurry (unless you look close, then it looks like it's liney)

The interior art is by a bunch of people. Most of the art is solid, neither bad nor great. I did really like one picture of a ghost in a library (by Jason Edwards, I think), where the ghost is translucent. It's a real neat effect.

The maps are pretty much old school style, very easy to read. However, there is some confusion when it comes to stairs. They used to use 2 different symbols for stairs, one for stairs going up (all solid parallel lines), one for going down (parallel lines getting smaller). This seems to use the same symbol for both, which can be confusing


The Music

I am a big music fan, but I am, I must confess, something of a snob when it comes to music (I don't mean to be, it just happens when most of the stuff you listen to only comes out on vinyl). I was honestly expecting to hate the music in this, and honestly, figured it would be very amateurish (like stuff from the old Mp3.com). But I was quite surprised - it's actually both quite good and professional quality.

There are 22 tracks, ranging from a minute or so, to 3-4 minutes (about 56 minutes total). Some are actual songs, others seem more like small mood pieces or have a lot of special effects (creepy noises).

I don't know how the songs were made, but it sounds like real instruments. No real vocals, but some chorally sounding stuff (lots of "Aaaahs". My musical vocabulary outside the realm of dance music is pretty much non-existent, so bear with me.)

The only ones I really didn't like were the ones that apparently were meant to be a ghost (or banshee or something spectral) singing or moaning. Sounded too fake, not like a real person (though having said it, it probably was. But it doesn't sound like one)

Also, some of the song introduction are a bit rushed - a lot of them start with a crash of a drum. I guess the space was limited, but I think a slow build is generally better. Actually, I think a lot of the songs are sort of rushed. That is, they tend to be pretty much nonstop melody, rather than pausing or even slowing down much. Which might be okay if played just once, but if played over and over, it might be a bit wearing.

I'm not sure you'd listen to any of them for fun, but I quite liked a couple of the piano mostly pieces, particularly track 8, "Phantom Sentinels" (which if it had a beat and were drawn out more, would almost be a progressive house song). Track 6, "Residents Past" is also pretty good.



Final Thoughts

This is a rather unusual module in the Dungeon Crawl Classics line. While it definitely is still a "crawl", in that the PCs must comb the place in the course of the adventure, it's the only one of the line that I have where the background story is so vivid and so important to the module itself. It would make a decent horror movie, I think. Actually, now that I think about it, it would make a pretty good survival horror video game (in the vein of Silent Hill or Fatal Frame more so than Resident Evil or Moonwalker). Definitely very memorable.

I also like how the story doesn't quite spell everything out. At least, it hints at some stuff - like just how good was the head doctor that actually founded the place? While it doesn't state it outright, there's some seriously creepy things going on before the evil twin took over. It makes you wonder if there was some symbolism in having the good and evil twins - perhaps they were aspects of the head doctor's own personality? Or maybe that's reading too much into things. But that sort of possible deepness is a sign of a good horror story.

As mentioned, I do really think that an asylum like this really wouldn't fit most D&D settings, and many things, like the treatments and the place itself seem very 18th-19th centuryish, almost Victorian. So that does dramatically reduce the usefulness of this module. But on the other hand, it's not like the module pretends to be anything put a haunted asylum module, it makes no pretense of anything else, so the buyer does know what they are getting.

It's actually ironic, I recently got the first of Green Ronin's "Bleeding Edge" line of d20 modules, which also dealt with somewhat Gothic horror (and as part of their slogan, takes something of a potshot at the DCC series). But this is far more "Bleeding Edge" than their initial entry.

Although it's not for every D&D setting, it is a very memorable adventure, and the included soundtrack shows that Goodman isn't afraid of taking risks with new product ideas. A-