My all time favorite module. We took it upon ourselves to try to recover all the rest of the gemstones of Tharizdun and destroy them. We eventually found one portion of the Theopart and quite a few of the gems, but were not able to complete our quest. In research I have done since on Tharizdun and his history within the World of Greyhawk I seem to remember reading that WG-1 and WG-2 were supposed to be the two books that ended up in the WoG boxed set. For my group in high school in the mid-80's WG-4 was our cross over or tie-in to H.P. Lovecraft. Tharizdun was one of the great outsiders and contact with his minions, like the grell, took an emotional toll on the characters, making them more susceptible to certain mind-influencing attacks for a short time after that contact. It was the closest thing to a sanity issue we could come up with. Excellent review but it rings oddly in the ear because we pronounced it tha-RIZ-doon.
@@yeoldegeek71 Could be, but then you are one of the few who pronounces Tsojcanth the same way we did as well. Of course the eternal dividing point is "drow".
Great video John. WG4 always struck me as something of an anomaly in TSR modules. It looked different, physically, which set it apart instantly and it felt different in mood and atmosphere. It stood out as an adventure for adults to enjoy rather than 11 and 12 year old kids, as me and my mates were then. Very atmospheric and doom-laden.
Spot on. Definitely one of Gygax's best. Tharizdun and the Elder Elemental God are very similar, and seem to overlap a lot, as seem by their temple discriptions. The only difference is tentacles and cyst. Gygax always said that the two deities were not, that they were very different, but you can't escape the parallel. Indeed, the Greyhawk god of death, Nerull, is a little too similar yet again. Another great review. Thanks for your efforts.
Happy belated birthday to the Missus! When I first got this I was a teen and not quite ready to get the true nature of the adventure. Though I do remember thinking that, if ever there was a module that should have ALL its art done by Erol Otus, this one was it. Reading it again in my twenties it took on a whole new appeal. I've still never run it, but I have mined it for concepts along the way.
Well many of Gary Gygax's modules took place in Greyhawk: G1, G2, G3, S2, S3... to name a few. Many of the details in the DM's Guide are from his Greyhawk campaign. The novels I have that he wrote all took place in Greyhawk as well I think.
I split this up into 2 pieces in my latest world build and turned it into a sort of fortress of the faithful and then the Temple/Cyst, as a separate and much creepier place all its own, could be accessed after dealing with those norkers and their giant overseer. With a little fleshing out, and seriously just a little this is fertile material to build from, you end up with a sweet 2-parter.
In my opinion, the forgotten temple of tharizdun might be the most underrated module from the AD&D era. Gary Gygax in one module has a better understanding and love for the writing of HP Lovecraft than a lot of Chaosium's new Call Of Cthulhu writers, who openly's advocate removing horror from the Cthulhu mythos.
This one could have been way creepier than it was for the most part. While the end of the dungeon is suitably horrifying, the rest of the dungeon missed the opportunity just as the Temple of Elemental Evil did. Both stocked generic monsters instead of more interesting and more fitting challenges.
You noted area 19 not having a description, but I wonder about one other thing. In the description of the dais area 20 it mentions doors to the north, but it seems as if they are missing? There should be a door to the vestry. I see a door from the vestry to the sanctum, but not the former....
I have long thought, as you say here, that if this module had had art and presentation like that in its sister module S4, or the next WG module, it would be seen as Gygax’s best.
I had this as a teenager and didn’t get it at all. Now I do, for the reasons you say, although I do think the use of FF monsters might have been aimed at selling that book to the unconvinced.
This module is kinda in weird spot in the history of D&D. It really is a good module and could be part of a large campaign. But it’s just kinda off if you ask me.
It was the ugliest of TSR module covers. It reminded me more of the Judge's Guild Modules of that time. There do seem to be lot of bad guys sitting on top of worse evil beneath them that they are unaware of. The Headhunters over top the Kopru on the Isle of Dread. The Dervishes occupying the upper temple in Pharoah. The small villages on top of the Dark Tower. The MU and bugbears on top of the undead at Bone Hill, thought they did know about each other. It does seem like there is a nesting doll impulse in D&D story creation. I plan to incorporate this dungeon into Vault of the Drow if I ever get characters who survive that far.
I loved this module back in the late 80s. It was just weird!
My all time favorite module. We took it upon ourselves to try to recover all the rest of the gemstones of Tharizdun and destroy them. We eventually found one portion of the Theopart and quite a few of the gems, but were not able to complete our quest. In research I have done since on Tharizdun and his history within the World of Greyhawk I seem to remember reading that WG-1 and WG-2 were supposed to be the two books that ended up in the WoG boxed set.
For my group in high school in the mid-80's WG-4 was our cross over or tie-in to H.P. Lovecraft. Tharizdun was one of the great outsiders and contact with his minions, like the grell, took an emotional toll on the characters, making them more susceptible to certain mind-influencing attacks for a short time after that contact. It was the closest thing to a sanity issue we could come up with.
Excellent review but it rings oddly in the ear because we pronounced it tha-RIZ-doon.
Might be a Brit vs US accent type thing?
@@yeoldegeek71 Could be, but then you are one of the few who pronounces Tsojcanth the same way we did as well. Of course the eternal dividing point is "drow".
Tharr-iszz-done.
Great video John. WG4 always struck me as something of an anomaly in TSR modules. It looked different, physically, which set it apart instantly and it felt different in mood and atmosphere. It stood out as an adventure for adults to enjoy rather than 11 and 12 year old kids, as me and my mates were then. Very atmospheric and doom-laden.
"I check for traps"
"Your eyes bleed looking at the walls"
Spot on.
Definitely one of Gygax's best. Tharizdun and the Elder Elemental God are very similar, and seem to overlap a lot, as seem by their temple discriptions. The only difference is tentacles and cyst. Gygax always said that the two deities were not, that they were very different, but you can't escape the parallel. Indeed, the Greyhawk god of death, Nerull, is a little too similar yet again.
Another great review. Thanks for your efforts.
Nice one! Thanks! If I can get the players, I’ll definitely run it.
I ran this within the last three months and had a great time. Thank you for the review. Happy Birthday to Mrs. OldeGeek.
One of my favourites
Happy belated birthday to the Missus!
When I first got this I was a teen and not quite ready to get the true nature of the adventure. Though I do remember thinking that, if ever there was a module that should have ALL its art done by Erol Otus, this one was it. Reading it again in my twenties it took on a whole new appeal. I've still never run it, but I have mined it for concepts along the way.
Agreed - artwork by Otus would have been perfect for this one!!!
Well many of Gary Gygax's modules took place in Greyhawk: G1, G2, G3, S2, S3... to name a few. Many of the details in the DM's Guide are from his Greyhawk campaign. The novels I have that he wrote all took place in Greyhawk as well I think.
Nice review, and I'll be combining this with our T1-4/Lost Caverns campaign in a few months in 2nd Edition with the family...can't wait! 👍
I split this up into 2 pieces in my latest world build and turned it into a sort of fortress of the faithful and then the Temple/Cyst, as a separate and much creepier place all its own, could be accessed after dealing with those norkers and their giant overseer. With a little fleshing out, and seriously just a little this is fertile material to build from, you end up with a sweet 2-parter.
Thanks for reviewing this. It looks like something I need....
If you like a bit of darkness with your D&D then definitely...
Sounds like an interesting module to play through.
It is... the contrasts in the sections of it really stand out.
In my opinion, the forgotten temple of tharizdun might be the most underrated module from the AD&D era. Gary Gygax in one module has a better understanding and love for the writing of HP Lovecraft than a lot of Chaosium's new Call Of Cthulhu writers, who openly's advocate removing horror from the Cthulhu mythos.
This one could have been way creepier than it was for the most part. While the end of the dungeon is suitably horrifying, the rest of the dungeon missed the opportunity just as the Temple of Elemental Evil did. Both stocked generic monsters instead of more interesting and more fitting challenges.
You noted area 19 not having a description, but I wonder about one other thing. In the description of the dais area 20 it mentions doors to the north, but it seems as if they are missing? There should be a door to the vestry. I see a door from the vestry to the sanctum, but not the former....
Agreed on all fronts.
Aces review!
I have long thought, as you say here, that if this module had had art and presentation like that in its sister module S4, or the next WG module, it would be seen as Gygax’s best.
I had this as a teenager and didn’t get it at all. Now I do, for the reasons you say, although I do think the use of FF monsters might have been aimed at selling that book to the unconvinced.
This module is kinda in weird spot in the history of D&D. It really is a good module and could be part of a large campaign. But it’s just kinda off if you ask me.
I will take my players to this module, even if it kills them.
Do like the old fiend folio as well.
It was the ugliest of TSR module covers. It reminded me more of the Judge's Guild Modules of that time.
There do seem to be lot of bad guys sitting on top of worse evil beneath them that they are unaware of.
The Headhunters over top the Kopru on the Isle of Dread. The Dervishes occupying the upper temple in Pharoah.
The small villages on top of the Dark Tower.
The MU and bugbears on top of the undead at Bone Hill, thought they did know about each other.
It does seem like there is a nesting doll impulse in D&D story creation.
I plan to incorporate this dungeon into Vault of the Drow if I ever get characters who survive that far.