Excellent adventure which could easily be inserted into any fantasy campaign. Such a great hook! The map is a thing of beauty, and the adventure itself, with the three part solution, encourages players to visit several parts of the map. Really good entry.
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The Eldritch Staff's itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Art: how well does the art support the other content? | #13 | 4.692 | 4.692 |
| Theme: how well would the module have fit into the Appendix N? | #24 | 4.500 | 4.500 |
| Overall | #30 | 4.246 | 4.246 |
| Playability: how easy would it be to run this module? | #51 | 3.885 | 3.885 |
| Layout: how easy is it to find all the presented information? | #56 | 4.192 | 4.192 |
| Writing: how clear and/or interesting is the writing? | #75 | 3.962 | 3.962 |
Ranked from 26 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Comments
Oh my Goddess. These adventure site sinuses get grades better than straight A-'s. Love the "split party" recognition. Great psychedelic poster art look.
Submitted
Saber of the Saffron ElfLoved this, the map is so so good. Best map/cover in the jam for me. I really liked the other parties trapped in the staff, each at different stages of being absorbed/crystallised
Submitted
Armour of the Phlox HazeI love the idea of trapping the characters inside the staff. The art is beautiful. My only slight criticism is that it took me a while to spot that there are exits indicated on the cover map in addition to those mentioned in the room descriptions, so I couldn't figure out how you got into some of the areas. Otherwise all great and I really like using the playing cards at the end.
Submitted
The Moon-Blight of MercuryAmazing map and cover! The design right through all pulls together to make it clear to DM what is going on. I like the mirror game at the end, that’ll ramp up the tension! A really well executed classic style adventure, congrats!
Submitted
Death, Imprisoned!The map is excellent, I love the colors, and using it as a cover makes the adventure more eye-catching. The adventure has a very Appendix N-like tone.
Submitted
The Gloaming UrnfieldI love how the cover is also the map as others have mentioned. It wasn't immediately clear to me that you start in Area 1 until I read the room descriptions but that is pretty nitpicky, I think. Overall, it's clean and readable and seems fun to run so good job!
Submitted
Entranced in the Verdurous VillaThe hook for this is excellent, I really appreciate how easy this would be to just drop this into an adventure. Stunning map which I'd totally want to use as a player facing map to share the amazing art at the table. Awesome work.
Submitted
Travellers of the Last EonThe cover art is spectacular, the premise for the adventure seems very practical, and its execution is outstanding. I almost missed one of my favorite adventures of the jam; thank goodness the power of the crystal guided me.
Submitted
Raiders of the Crystal KeepThe map as cover is sublime. The contrast and spacing of the layout popped on my tablet. System neutral but the stats provided are so usable in many systems. Worm in the brain pan made me giggle. Great work all around.
Submitted
The Malachite PoxI love the combined cover/map. Original and effective use of space. Artwork is gorgeous.
The layout is beautiful! Even before reading the text, it’s possible to see at a glance intro, tables, encounter areas, stats. Great use of boxes, colour, fonts.
Imaginative interpretation of the title: the staff is not just a found object or goal of the quest, it is the location in which the adventure takes place. Allows the adventure to be dropped in to any campaign without any elaborate setup.
Slightly bonkers setting, great Appendix N vibe. Nice balance of puzzles, traps and combat. Would work very well for DCC or Moldvay Basic.
Overall, looks like a great adventure. I would use this.
Critique:
- If the party succeed in obtaining the Eldritch Staff, what are its powers? The same as the Spirit?
- Just a thought: might it be better to put the intro text and random encounters on the back page, so all the numbered encounter areas are together on the inside spread?
- Minor nitpick: a few grammar errors (singular-plural accord between nouns and verbs) and strange punctuation choices (unnecessary comma, semicolons where a comma would make more sense). Really very minor with no affect on playability.
Submitted
Witchbreed of the Sunken ValeEvocative art and writing! You pack a lot into just a few pages. Adding this to my to-play list!
Submitted
THE NULL CONCLAVEHighly interactive, highly organized, and with stellar art to boot. Excellent work.
Submitted
The Cutpurse's DilemmaSo good! This whole thing is really impressive. Solid concept, stunning and utile art, very clear layout. Honestly the best I’ve seen so far. I’m aiming today’s D&D session to end where this one begins; I can’t wait to run it.
Submitted
Disciples of the Pale PyreI will always be so taken by your art and presentation. I'm a pretty chill guy, but your work makes me so jealous haha. The map as the cover is a genius move, but also I think only you could pull that off. The hook is also so effortless.
I can think of no better death for an adventurer than to be absorbed by a magical maelstrom inside a well inside a crystal hall inside a giant Wyrm inside the Eldritch Staff on top of a pile of treasure, inside of presumably the last room of a dungeon...
6/5 Stars!
Submitted
The War Below the WavesOkay, the art for this is literally incredible, the colors are SO fun and the linework is wonderful. I love the dual use of the cover/map, and the actual layout design just really reads old school to me. Also, touching a looted staff and getting trapped in it is sooo funny lol.
Submitted
The Sleeping King Wakes
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