Planescape review: Deepest Pandemonium
For the last three years, I've run a Planescape1 campaign through almost all of its modules. Now, after successfully finishing it, I want to look back and review these adventures, highlighting the pros and cons of each one.
Each module will be rated in three categories, up to 3 points in each:
- Presentation: how easy it is to understand and run the adventure.
- Openness: how open the adventure's scope is, regarding the freedom of choice.
- Quality: Overall quality of the adventure, including the originality and richness of its content, and players' enjoyment.
The full list of currently published reviews is available under the planescape tag.
Deepest Pandemonium
In which the heroes seek refuge from Madness with a traveling circus, journey deep within the caverns of the Howling Plane, and unearth a long-buried Artifact of frightening power.
- Designer: Monte Cook
- Source: Dead Gods:2 Out of the Darkness, Chapter VIII
- Party: 4-6 characters of 6th-9th levels
- Play-time: 1 session
- Locations:
- Pandemonium
Having gathered all important intel from the Vault of the Drow and the Ruins of Pelion, the party's path lies to the maddening depths of Pandemonium. Depending on the characters' connections and faction affiliation, the ways of getting to the plane might vary; for example, the members of Bleak Cabal won't see any problem with this, as they maintain a permanent presence there in the burg of Madhouse. Either way, once the characters get to Pandemonium, their first order of business will be to learn about Agathion, the plane's fourth layer.
The traveling circus of Cynosure is the first location of the party's search. Over four pages are dedicated to describing this nomadic caravan of entertainers that travels across Pandesmos, the plane's first layer, including its origins and structure, important characters, and the show itself. While this is an interesting setting material in itself, all this could be condensed into a way smaller amount of text, considering the transitory nature of this location in regard to the adventure's goal. Here, the characters will meet Pirreg, a human fighter, and Antha, a bariaur priestess — a remainder of a lawful good party from Fortitude which met its unfortunate end in Phlegethon. Antha, wishing to escape Pandemonium, agrees to help the party in exchange for them helping her get back to Fortitude. After getting the needed info and dealing with Pirreg, who finally went completely mad from the howling winds and terrible fate that befell his companions, the party proceeds to Madhouse, where they can purchase much-needed equipment and hire a guide who can lead them to the third layer.
After a trip across the layers (which is only briefly described in the module), the characters arrive at the ruined fortress of Caderis, where they meet a rival party also seeking the Ingress — the same mysterious creatures that Antha described to the party as a way to reach the fourth level. The proprietor of the fortress can sell directions to the characters for a modest price; however, if the rivals catch wind about this, they will try to ambush the competition or even attack them openly, deciding that "too many people know about this." After dealing with the enemies, the character can finally find the grotesque Ingress and their abominable mother — the living portal to Agathion.
The hiding place of the Wand of Orcus is an isolated system of tubelike tunnels leading to the Reliquary cave protected by invisible barriers. Unbeknownst to the characters, the last priest of Orcus, half-ogre Quah-Namog, had already arrived here and now follows them through the labyrinth, awaiting an opportune moment to strike. A pair of visages sent by Tenebrous is another threat that the party must deal with before getting into the Reliquary. There, the characters must find a way to get through the impenetrable wall of force (three methods of successfully doing so are listed in the module). As is expected from a powerful artefact, destroying the Wand of Orcus is not an easy task (though one of the characters might have earlier come into possession of a magic item that can do this), and the party must quickly decide how to get rid of the Wand before Tenebrous claims it.
If the characters manage to hide or destroy the Wand, Tenebrous dies a second time. Otherwise, he will soon find the party and annihilate them before taking the Wand and regaining his former position of power, ready to bring untold evil and chaos to the multiverse. At this point, the only hope for the characters is the Orcusword they might have looted in Tcian Sumere, the destruction of which will cause Tenebrous enough pain to delay him by a couple of hours, which would grant them some time for getting rid of the Wand. In either case, the surviving characters remain stranded in Agathion if they didn't bother to bring along some way of escaping the layer. And even if the characters are successful in killing Tenebrous, it isn't over for them, for there is still a final chapter to be won before the threat of the dead god is over.
Presentation
🖋️ weak
The module contains basic information about the physical and magical effects of Pandemonium, but only in brief. As usual, the Planes of Chaos3 boxed set will be an instrumental resource regarding the detailed conditions and locations of the plane, including the full rules of four stages of Pandemonium madness and a list of 57 types of its effects on the characters.
The map of Agathion's labyrinthine tunnels barely has any notable features and is absent of a grid, only a 10-yard scale being present. No other maps are included. Naturally for this book, the illustrations and handouts are great and memorable.
Openness
☀️☀️ semi-linear
The module allows for some improvisation and alternative solutions, but ultimately remains merely a chain of locations and encounters, with everything else between them left to the DMs to improvise or prep on their own. Still, the possibility of completely failing on the mission and ushering the multiverse into a new age of darkness is a welcome sight.
Quality
★★ good
Despite its flaws, the module also has some redeeming qualities and, overall, was an enjoyable experience for the players. Needless to say, they've managed to send the wand away, thus depriving Tenebrous of its power and leaving them alive to deal with the remaining business of the adventure book. If the module spent more time describing the locations and enemies, instead of ultimately tangential lore of the traveling circus, it would be improved greatly. Alas, this task must be accomplished by the DM instead.
Discuss this post on Reddit