In May 2023 we presented the Dungeon Age Adventures Quick Deal featuring old-school fantasy modules in the Dungeon Age series by writer and game designer Joseph R. Lewis. Set on Joseph’s ancient world of Harth (inspired by classic fantasy authors like Jack Vance, Michael Moorcock, and Fritz Leiber), and presented in dual versions for both Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition and for Old School Revival-style retroclones such as Old-School Essentials, these ready-to-run Dungeon Age scenarios fit easily into any ongoing fantasy campaign. Explore a toxic city (Acid Metal Howl) – ride a flying merchant ship across the Great Sand Sea (Desert Angel Fiasco) – try to escape a cursed village (Witches of Frostwyck) – and two of these modules are titled, accurately, Kraken Corpse Delve and Orbital Vampire Tower.
Joseph R. Lewis has self-published two dozen novels and more than a dozen short Dungeon Age FRPG modules. These tightly focused scenarios earn praise for their clean layouts, clarity, OSR-style terseness and flavor, and immediate zero-prep page-to-table utility. Unstoppable reviewer Bryce Lynch, at his venerable Ten-Foot Pole blog, lists several Dungeon Age modules – Acid Metal Howl, Ragged Hollow Nightmare, Desert Angel Fiasco, Kraken Corpse Delve, and especially The Obsidian Keep – that satisfy his exacting expectations. (Content notice: Bryce does curse a bit.)
Joseph Lewis publishes prolifically on DriveThruFiction and Amazon. His new FRPG Harthbreaker and its solitaire version, Reavers and Rogues, both use the Apocalypse Engine. And in December Joseph published a new sequel Dungeon Age module, Orbital Vampire City, which is enough right there to make us want to revisit the line someday.
Meanwhile, this all-new Dungeon Age Adventures Quick Deal had enough adventure to occupy an entire Orbital Tower of old-school players. There were ten modules in our Dungeon Age Collection (retail value $66) as DRM-free .PDF ebooks, each in separate versions for D&D Fifth Edition and for old-school B/X-based systems:
- Acid Metal Howl (character levels 5-8): In the deep desert lies the dead city of Yumar, the source of countless bizarre rumors. Was it destroyed by a demonic metal sphere? Did it sink into a pit of acid? What happened to Yumar a century ago matters less than what will happen a few days from now.
- Battle for Carrion Vale (levels 6-7): In this dark sandbox adventure, the player characters have survived a terrible battle at Castle Yennagor and now decide whether to flee the field, plunder the dead, or finish their mission to discover what happened inside the castle.
- Desert Angel Fiasco (levels 1-3): The characters hire on as security for a flying ship attempting to cross the uncharted Great Sand Sea.
- Kraken Corpse Delve (levels 1-3): An eldritch woman from the future begs you to save her from her sister, who wants to drag her back to her own time. To close the time portal, you must climb down through the buried corpse of a kraken. The prize? A giant diamond worth 10,000 GP – if you can pull it out of the portal!
- The Obsidian Keep (levels 1-3): Last month a fleet of holy warships sailed out to destroy the evil sorcerers of the Obsidian Keep. The fleet never returned. Righteous heroes (or brave treasure hunters) try to find the fleet, rescue the sailors, recover lost treasures, and discover the fate of the Keep’s cruel masters.
- Orbital Vampire Tower (level 3): High in the night sky, a vampire’s tower is torn apart by a rampaging angel. People and monsters are trapped. Magical treasure lies scattered everywhere. It’s all yours for the taking, if you can find a way out before the angel finds you.
Ragged Hollow Nightmare (levels 1-4): Yesterday young Tobias went to investigate an old tomb by himself. Everyone told him it was a bad idea. Everyone was right. Today you and your companions awaken to a town in chaos. Why is the temple sealed behind a divine shield? Why are children and worshipers trapped within? What did Tobias do?!- Star Dragon Rage (campaign of 6-20 sessions, starting at level 1 and continuing to levels 5-6): The pastoral village of Kettle sits beside a strangely warm lake. When the cemetery erupts, a stranger reveals that a magnificent city lies hidden below. Wondrous treasures sit forgotten in towers and vaults, but deadly monsters roar in the darkness – and they’re clawing their way up.
- Witches of Frostwyck (levels 1-4): You’re lost in a frozen forest of deadly predators. Your only refuge is the tiny village of Frostwyck, where metal is rare and kindness is rarer. But Dama Zhadna has cursed the village so none can escape. Now you’re trapped here – unless you find a way to defeat the Witches of Frostwyck.
- 13 Weird One-Shots (level 3): Short linear dungeon delves and side quests featuring a wide variety of locations, environments, creatures, and genres.
