Well at least the hate posting and down votes finally started coming in. (I had to delete a long crazy post and ban the person - seriously, the Internet, gotta love it!) I was worried that my videos werent reaching the Reddit crowd but now they obviously are! Thanks again to the vast majority of you who pass the test! :)
@@xavierp7658 In this video, nothing. But some people just have so much hate and feel unseen they think they need to smear their feces all over the internet.
@@welovettrpgs Great video--I too have very fond memories of S-3, and I love your different takes on how to run the game with different audiences and flavors. Spot -f---ing on, chief! I hope newer folks love it just as much as we did.
It absolutely is a blast, and I definitely recommend the Goodman Games version of it, as the Goodman Games has plenty of side quests for getting to the dungeon and then even side quests inside the dungeon. I would put forth that the Mind Flayer should be the main antagonist of the dungeon as it is smart enough to know to be looking for the captains level card and how to use the technology.
I avoided this video for too long as I was afraid I might spoil it for myself. On the off chance my wife might get her groove on and decide to pick up the 5e version. But I want to give these videos a boost and help the channel out. So glad I did! It really didn’t spoil anything. Sure it covered the big surprise but it didn’t go level by level and address the module in the entirety. Great advice here for helping to present it to more modern players, and truly, if you have people that are gonna meta their way through the adventure then there ain’t much a DM can do to avoid those issues. People that wanna suck the joy outta an adventure like a Strix are going to do so. Best to cut bait on those players. Makes the group happier in the end. Great video! I’m gonna recommend it to my wife.
Awesome! And yes, in general I try to avoid big spoilers. I feel like so many others already do that and frankly, I don't see the point in just regurgitating what's already printed in the book.
Thank you for sharing the thoughtful review! During the 1980s as DM, i asked for the Players to draw their own map based on what i described. We used poker chips for character tokens. At the end , i shared the official module map and artwork, and in fact the Players all had seen everything secretly at our local game shop anyway
I remember loving this adventure when it first came out and I can't help but look forward to running it again for a new group....Now if I could only fine the goodman edition for less than $600
I *LOVE* the fact that that illithid was originally a prisoner being transported by the ship to a new prison. The lore alone for this adventure is mind blowing. Great review, Aten. I consistently enjoy and share the essays you create here on We Love TTRPGs! Cheers 🍵🍪
This video, like your sweet mustache, is the best I have seen on this platform featuring this adventure! I, unfortunately, have missed every opportunity to play in this adventure I have had for the last three decades due to circumstances outside of my control (moving away from established gaming groups, groups suddenly dissolving due to personality clashes, once the DM just disappeared). This module/adventure has become my White Whale. Even when I have tried to run it (about 3 times) similar unforeseen events would occur and prevent it. I have not had this issue with any other adventure. I’m not superstitious, but if I was I’d think this adventure was cursed. Maybe my luck will change at some point. This mega dungeon creates some of the craziest, most entertaining rpg war stories I’ve ever read or heard. Thank you for showcasing it in your slick and stylish way, you sexy handlebar-mustachioed beast! I have even done the prep to convert and run this using the Fantasy AGE ttrpg and don’t think it would be difficult to run using the Savage Worlds, Genesys, Shadowdark, and Basic Role Playing TTRPGs. I even think it would be at home using Numenera, the Electrum Archive, Shadowrun and even Star Wars d6 rules. A small tip/note For those who don’t prefer DnD. This dungeon is really cool and doesn’t necessarily scream DnD specifically, its concept is flexible enough to meet your needs for all kinds of fantasy. Yes even grim-dark or low magic. I mean I could even see a way to run this using Call of Cthulhu, Fallout, Conan 2d20, and with some careful prep and planning; Scion and Exalted.
I remember hearing about this module a long time ago but never played it. My group wasn't big into mega dungeons. We only played one game with a mega dungeon in the 7 years we were a group growing up. Your advice is great for anyone wanting to run it to keep the surprise.
Agreed. Every new-ish DM needs to get those. I look through them just to inspire my imagination but regardless of experience there's something there for everyone.
This is such a great, weird module. I had it as a kid but picked up the big book deluxe reprint recently. It’s got such a Flash Gordon/Buck Rogers pulp sci fi vibe. If you were not around any of that, it’s very different flavor to sci fi nowadays. I’ve only ran it once, but everyone loved it. This one is fun just to read for fun. It’s so … odd. In a good way.
Jon Pintar is an awesome artist, who has recreated scores of classic D&D modules, and is well worth checking out via artstation. Great overview of this module!
@@welovettrpgs Loot the Body is a band that produces D&D-based (as well as other systems) music, and has produced a "Concept Album" around Barrier Peaks. It's well worth a listen, and is available via Bandcamp and youtube.
The Goodman games version uses all of it plus added even more art!! As far as the WotC coast version, I have no idea how they're going to find the space for it in that book.
I wanna run this so bad since I have a second D&D day for my group with the difference being one player is swapped out from the other who’s part of the Sunday campaign. And I call the party the tomb raiders, it’s a more wacky party and I just run anthology modules from yawning portal and soon to be infinite staircase. So this one is right up their alley in terms of insanity.
This was one of the first few adventures I ran, back when I actually ran modules. I rarely touch them, anymore. Haven't, in years. I loved this one so much, I've developed my own version of it... I've considered packaging that and making it available, but, as it contains copyrighted material (the ship is a crashed Miranda-class frigate saucer section from Star Trek)... I don't think I can legally do that. Lots of fun, though! Great video! You're right, too - when you have haters, you know you're doing something right!
Hello Kind Sir! Just stumbled across your channel, and I have been binging! You and I are of similar age and experience, and we are on the same page. DMing since the early ‘80’s, but I’m still learning a ton from your channel…. When I’m not agreeing and giving you a virtual fist bump! Keep up the work my brother…. You are doing it right! Don’t stop! Your brother from Motown, Eric
Thanks! I'm really surprised and pleased to see the positive response this video has received! It's always a gamble when uploading a video that isn't some drama/clickbait if it'll get any views at all.
this works in all sorts of other ways too. I can imagine a sci-fi Phandelver 'rephrased' in such a way that magic is tech, monsters are aliens etc. Or taking any Sci-fi adventure game and running it as magic. I've been dabbling at turning Phandelver and Curse of Strahd into Dark Sun games, but I imagine it would be possible to take all my old Dark Sun adventures and turn them into Dragonlance adventures to create more content for that setting besides the recent Dark Queen box set. or maybe have a spelljammer crash on Barsoom with Tharks (thrikreen), white martians (halflings), red martians (humans) etc.
Absolutely. I regularly grab creatures from the books (for example) and just give it a different name and appearance. First off it saves time in my process instead of making something from scratch that will just end up being the same or near the same to the thing I reskinned and ensures players arent likely to meta game.
Intelligent aberrations give the referee the opportunity to add some science fiction to their campaigns. Who doesn't love the idea of giving beholders shield belts, neogis stun rays, mind flayers chain swords, grell flash bangs, and destrachans weirding modules. Heck the kaorti already have freaky alien resin items and bioweapons. They've made several monsters that fill in perfectly for xenomorphs. There's lots of existing material to springboard off of. XD
For sure! My entire campaign atm involves finding a massive starship (like the one from Close Encounters of the 3rd kind) that is deep below the desert and now called "The Sunless City" and an Aboleth posing as a God (who is controlled by dreams sent from Tharizdun) is the BBEG.
I had a similar experience with this module in the 80s. It’s fantastic! I remade my own version of it full of all my favorite sci fi tropes and movie references to run in 5e. I 1000% agree with framing to details of the adventure in terms the characters would understand like constructs instead of robots.
Been contemplating running this for my players, but with a twist...instead of a mind flayer as the "final boss" I would replace him with a Yautja (aka The Predator from the movie series of the same name). It would mostly just be a matter reskinning, but their are stats for a Yautja/Predator online.
Great video and I appreciate the hard work you put into your videos. I agree about keeping the images to yourself and using descriptions that only their characters would relate to. Don't worry about the haters. You speak from a logical viewpoint on your videos and as we know many people don't like logical or critical thinking.
My pleasure! I'm so sorry I wasn't uploading for two weeks. I had to get a new computer, set it up, etc. But I'm back on track and already have next week's video recorded. I should be able to return to 1/week now.
I added a couple of levels, one was for maintenance and one was all computers. Since S3 is one segment of that spaceship, I wonder what the other segments might have contained. Regarding Goodman Games, I suspect Wizards of the Coast has a say on what they may or may not include, there must be some negotiation there.
I don't have a problem with crossing genres, as long as it's done right and not just smooshed together. I love that you started with the quote from Arthur C Clark. It's one of my all time favorites! Great video Aten 👍. I'm looking forward to your upcoming posts. 🖖😎🤘🇨🇦🍻
Aten Thanks for this masterpiece of video! I am a DM for this group from 6 months from now on, i was making a Campaing that merge Keep on the Borderlands and Expedition to The Barrier Peaks in the same story, and i was figuring out how i gonna explain some aspects of the spaceship if i dont say: "Well is a Spaceship" thanks man your video gave me a light to make this and i am gonna watch your videos about Dragons and Lasers guns and horror (Because the Mind flayer in the final area was a serve of a Star Spawn) so i want to set a cosmic horror vibe in this part. But for now on this is a fantastic video, huges from Brazil!!!
OMG that's a lot of pressure! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Be sure to read that review on rpg.net just to hear their perspective but frankly I think the reviewer just had a personal issue with the subject matter. idk. Good luck!
Another great video! I'm late to the viewing (been busy, but finally catching up a bit). This was always one of my favorite modules as well. This and Gamma World have always been a big influence on my D&D campaign world. I run a very-post-apocalypse campaign world, where the players might discover lost ancient technological installations buried beneath not-quite-as-ancient dungeons filled with magic and monsters ~ as well as whatever constructs, weaponry, or gadgets have leaked up into the dungeon from below.
When I started my current 5E campaign in the Spring of 2022 I couldnt decide if I wanted to play Star Wars D6, Star Frontiers, Gamma World, or D&D. So I turned my 5E campaign into all of them. There's an enormous ship (like the big one from close encounters of the 3rd kind) buried beneath the sands (of what is basically ancient Egypt) and a time travelling mind flayer with lasers has been screwing with the PCs. :) And the ship is now in a state of ruins aka Gamma World.
@@welovettrpgs that's awesome 🙂 Jeez! A time travelling mind flayer! He's probably smart enough to not get flustered or confused by meeting his past / future selves. I could see it pulling in multiple selves to help out in a serious conflict vs a party. "You suddenly see three of it appear from ripples in the air!" It would also be wicked evil to have the party kill it only to have several of his past / future selves show up to recover the body and bring it back to life >.< My current party fought a Wight Monk that had a robotic laser-beam (scorching ray) eyeball. After they defeated it the party barbarian decided to stick the tech gadget into their own eye. I can't wait to start giving her strange dreams and headaches as the nanobots try to take over >:-]
Great review Aten! And the flow chart method really needs it's own video. Young players today are very familiar with flow charts. And in my Kickstarter adventure for Khor, I'll be using a flowchart method for those younger DMs. The challenge tho, is organizing the flowcharts into the module text so that DMs don't have to flip back n forth thru the module as they run it. Which, imo is another topic for a great video my friend!
Wonderful stuff! Looking forward to the new 5e book containing this adventure. I played it as a kid but the DM wasn't great. I then played it more recently as a competition-style adventure, and it was good fun. I'm a huge fan of 1st ed modules and the Goodman Games versions of this and The Lost City look phenomenal.
Hard agree.... Goodman Games' update is definitive. The WOTC version will have to be absolutely stellar to impress me like Goodman's has, and most of their recent re-releases just haven't. If I'm being honest, I think D&D would be better served by generating new content for their IP, and leaving the re-releases to the people who will put the love, time, and work in to do them properly. Good video, Aten.
@@lusolad I think that you're gonna have to look at used bookstores at this point, friend. I do believe that Wizards rescinded Goodman's license to publish that one when they decided to do it themselves.
Great video. I've always liked the idea of mixing genres, but every time I've tried it, it's come across as contrived and cliched. There was some really good advice that I think I can extrapolate to positive effect while revisiting some old adventures I ran many years ago. I will definitely be checking out this particular adventure, as well as the earlier video you mentioned on introducing sci-fi into fantasy games. Incidentally, it's exactly this kind of melding that makes the setting (although sadly not the ruleset) of Hyperborea one of my all-time RPG obsessions.
You know, I've heard several people in the past use terms like "contrived and cliched. " to describe things and I've been considering doing a video to address that. I think I will now. I think I can help overcome that.
Thanks. And even if the Goodman Games version never existed, the WotC version is going to be terrible. Look at what they've already done to other classic 5E "updates."
Ooh, I never got to play or run this one. I wonder if my local game shop might have it, they do have a selection of older stuff-not huge but still good. Awesome review Aten, I'm almost caught up again. lol =^_^=
Or, you can have it not be a ship at all. A powerful creature, that's the end boss, has seen the far distant future and he's gone insane so he's imagining things the best he can and it has warped the cave he's stuck in into a biometal hellscape the players have walked into. It will take a touch of horror and description, but once you hit that sweet spot, the players can see the pictures but they'll imagine the nightmare.
No joke... I had the big reveal twist in Empire Strikes Back spoiled for me on opening day... prior to the first showing... WHILE I WAS IN LINE. lol It was a massive line and we were waiting at our local theater to get into the matinee first showing of the day. My mom's friend was with us and he was in the entertainment industry and was fortunate enough to be at the premiere for the movie, so he had already seen it. I guess he thought he would be "cool" or something to give me some inside information that he knew, so he said, "Want to know a secret?" He bent down and whispered in my ear, "Darth Vader is Luke's father." lol Literally spoiled for me right then and there minutes before we were about to see the movie. Even as a 9 or 10 year old, I was mildly annoyed that the surprise was spoiled for me. lol It bothered me more after the fact. ;-)
It's probably more complicated than that. I was researching Tim Cain's Fallout for my upcoming Gamma World 2E video (next week) because I heard Gamma World had inspired Fallout but it's ends up that Gamma World was only one of many many different inspirations. So I bet Numeria has many many different inspirations and it is certainly possible this is among them however this was inspired by many different sources as well.
I've never played this adventure but I find it kinda funny that my homebrew world also has barrier mountains. Might be a good place to drop something like this. Gonna have to do a massive amount of conversion to 3.5e though. Should I try to convert the original or pick up the 5e Goodman Games version and convert that?(edit: spelling)
I think the Goodman version does a lot of cool extra work for you - if you really want to get super deep[ into the aventure. But for the more casual gamer the original is good enough. It all depends on what youre looking for.
@@welovettrpgs thanks for the advice. I tend to overbuild things so maybe the Goodman Games version is what I should go with. Give me less work hopefully...lol
Is it bad that a part of me wants to rework the ruined ship so that it IS a crashed Illithid vessel? As the players skulking through, they might find more Mind Flayers, wearing power armor, carrying blasters/grenades, with Intellect Devourers, and maybe some Brain Golems? Aphelion could get swapped out for an Elder Brain? This is making me feel scummy, as Illithids can already be tough encounters, but I like the idea of a sample of them that actually still has more of their stuff, from when they fled their dying future empire, and their ship "materialized" deep in the Underdark. Maybe the faerrzress is doing weird things, or even being affected by its emissions, instead. It won't fly, but it could have the labs they'd use to "tailor" slaves, and just be terrible.😊 Thank you for going over this; I now have some awful ideas.
ZAP!! Get your ray guns ready! "BUT I DONT WANNA BLEND SCI FI WITH MY D&D!!" Thought Experiment: What if you already are? What if magic does not exist and all of our primitive heroes are already using high tech alien items that they think are magical? It's all a matter of perspective. Something as simple as a cigarette lighter would seem like a magical gift from the devil 400 years ago.
In Khor, I make the real-world connection between the quantum world & how magic would be perceived by a "primitive mind." I go into a 2 page exposition on how magic & the quantum "foam" that surrounds a solar system. That's the basis for all those portals that science now calls "wormholes." It's a great way imo on to bridge the gap between medieval magic & modern science.
@@welovettrpgs great work as always. i've been reading non stop and the silo books lately so this is in my current sweet spot. excited about the MA video. and i really feel your closing comments. there is a greater than zero chance that my ship has just come in, I have to work for a year to find out but I may have stumbled on something "Extremely rare and desirable" according to a professor I asked. It would be nice to make a good living but I am more excited that I may have a chance to bring something to the world that should be beautiful. To close in on doing something that will make the world a better place is pretty exciting.
the goodman version is the poorest of hardcovers needed art and descriptions of monsters especially ones new camp[agn material used other volumes have better illustrations - its still very awesome 4 ot of 5 for me i think its a flawed early gygax adventure the vegepygmie army early on took a whole session to play - then another one down the hall most of encounters after were not really that bad and felt anti climactic needs a better quest and ending
I don't like Nickelback and I certainly don't like this adventure. For me a mixture of sci-fi and fantasy has always been one of the greatest no-goes. It just never clicked with me. I mean even renaissance style is way too modern for me. I prefer my fantasy settings based on early to high middle-ages. That said I really appreciate your effort and your perspective. It's always interesting to hear a different opinion and at the very least think about that opinion with an open mind (I still don't like this adventure - even back in the 80s I didn't like it and that was at a time when we played anything and everything we could lay our hands on).
Everyone has their own tastes. Youre neither wrong nor right. There's no "objective truths" as to what is best. I would however say that a good GM can make a bad adventure great while a novice DM can make a great adventure bad. The blending of sci fi with fantasy is not a new thing, not to D&D or even the genre on which it is based. And at least we agree on nickleback. :) Best wishes.
i disagree. let the keycards, and every other bit of tech, detect as magic. let it be dispelled as magic as well. let them think this is some kind of mad mage's sanctum where every door and object has been enchanted and weird golems patrol the corridors.
Well at least the hate posting and down votes finally started coming in. (I had to delete a long crazy post and ban the person - seriously, the Internet, gotta love it!) I was worried that my videos werent reaching the Reddit crowd but now they obviously are! Thanks again to the vast majority of you who pass the test! :)
Confused, what did you say controversial that would draw ire?
@@xavierp7658 In this video, nothing. But some people just have so much hate and feel unseen they think they need to smear their feces all over the internet.
@@welovettrpgs Great video--I too have very fond memories of S-3, and I love your different takes on how to run the game with different audiences and flavors. Spot -f---ing on, chief! I hope newer folks love it just as much as we did.
@@andrewlustfield6079 thank you
I'm no DM (lost the flame long ago), but I have fond memories of running through this 40some years ago
Thanks! It's pretty awesome!
It absolutely is a blast, and I definitely recommend the Goodman Games version of it, as the Goodman Games has plenty of side quests for getting to the dungeon and then even side quests inside the dungeon. I would put forth that the Mind Flayer should be the main antagonist of the dungeon as it is smart enough to know to be looking for the captains level card and how to use the technology.
I avoided this video for too long as I was afraid I might spoil it for myself. On the off chance my wife might get her groove on and decide to pick up the 5e version. But I want to give these videos a boost and help the channel out. So glad I did! It really didn’t spoil anything. Sure it covered the big surprise but it didn’t go level by level and address the module in the entirety. Great advice here for helping to present it to more modern players, and truly, if you have people that are gonna meta their way through the adventure then there ain’t much a DM can do to avoid those issues. People that wanna suck the joy outta an adventure like a Strix are going to do so. Best to cut bait on those players. Makes the group happier in the end.
Great video! I’m gonna recommend it to my wife.
Awesome! And yes, in general I try to avoid big spoilers. I feel like so many others already do that and frankly, I don't see the point in just regurgitating what's already printed in the book.
Thank you for sharing the thoughtful review! During the 1980s as DM, i asked for the Players to draw their own map based on what i described. We used poker chips for character tokens. At the end , i shared the official module map and artwork, and in fact the Players all had seen everything secretly at our local game shop anyway
I love it! That's very cool!
I remember loving this adventure when it first came out and I can't help but look forward to running it again for a new group....Now if I could only fine the goodman edition for less than $600
Yeah I'm so angry I didnt buy lost city when it was first released. I had planned to but ...
I LOVE your froghemoth mini! 👍
Thanks! 😊
Outstanding!
Thank You! :)
I *LOVE* the fact that that illithid was originally a prisoner being transported by the ship to a new prison. The lore alone for this adventure is mind blowing. Great review, Aten. I consistently enjoy and share the essays you create here on We Love TTRPGs! Cheers 🍵🍪
Thank you!
This video, like your sweet mustache, is the best I have seen on this platform featuring this adventure!
I, unfortunately, have missed every opportunity to play in this adventure I have had for the last three decades due to circumstances outside of my control (moving away from established gaming groups, groups suddenly dissolving due to personality clashes, once the DM just disappeared). This module/adventure has become my White Whale. Even when I have tried to run it (about 3 times) similar unforeseen events would occur and prevent it. I have not had this issue with any other adventure. I’m not superstitious, but if I was I’d think this adventure was cursed.
Maybe my luck will change at some point. This mega dungeon creates some of the craziest, most entertaining rpg war stories I’ve ever read or heard. Thank you for showcasing it in your slick and stylish way, you sexy handlebar-mustachioed beast!
I have even done the prep to convert and run this using the Fantasy AGE ttrpg and don’t think it would be difficult to run using the Savage Worlds, Genesys, Shadowdark, and Basic Role Playing TTRPGs. I even think it would be at home using Numenera, the Electrum Archive, Shadowrun and even Star Wars d6 rules. A small tip/note For those who don’t prefer DnD. This dungeon is really cool and doesn’t necessarily scream DnD specifically, its concept is flexible enough to meet your needs for all kinds of fantasy. Yes even grim-dark or low magic. I mean I could even see a way to run this using Call of Cthulhu, Fallout, Conan 2d20, and with some careful prep and planning; Scion and Exalted.
Oh Thank you very much! And here I am still thinking I could have do much better! There's so much more I wish I had covered!
I remember hearing about this module a long time ago but never played it. My group wasn't big into mega dungeons. We only played one game with a mega dungeon in the 7 years we were a group growing up. Your advice is great for anyone wanting to run it to keep the surprise.
i was always intimidated by this adventure but it always looked cool since i play Gamma World 1e
Nothing to be intimidated by. Also, next week's video is a LONG review of Gamma World 2E!
The Monsters Know What They're Doing is such a great read.
Agreed. Every new-ish DM needs to get those. I look through them just to inspire my imagination but regardless of experience there's something there for everyone.
Goodman Games is my favorite company making games today. They really understand what brought people to the hobby so many years ago.
Agree!
This is such a great, weird module. I had it as a kid but picked up the big book deluxe reprint recently.
It’s got such a Flash Gordon/Buck Rogers pulp sci fi vibe. If you were not around any of that, it’s very different flavor to sci fi nowadays.
I’ve only ran it once, but everyone loved it. This one is fun just to read for fun. It’s so … odd. In a good way.
Dude, your explanatory style is great. I love this module as well and I appreciate your tips. Excellent work! Looking forward to your next post.
Thank You! (TH-cam kills nearly every video after 12 hours so you may need to look and not rely on notifications.)
Jon Pintar is an awesome artist, who has recreated scores of classic D&D modules, and is well worth checking out via artstation. Great overview of this module!
Yes his maps are terrific! Thanks!
@@welovettrpgs Loot the Body is a band that produces D&D-based (as well as other systems) music, and has produced a "Concept Album" around Barrier Peaks. It's well worth a listen, and is available via Bandcamp and youtube.
I really like your video series; you often bring me back to those first adventures I ran my players through and inspire me to run them once again.
Thank you very much! Glad you enjoy them!
I ran this when I was young. This module had a lot of art. They're gonna replace all that?
The Goodman games version uses all of it plus added even more art!! As far as the WotC coast version, I have no idea how they're going to find the space for it in that book.
I can't believe the lore you and some of these posts have. I have a lot of fond memories tied up with this module in particular.
I wanna run this so bad since I have a second D&D day for my group with the difference being one player is swapped out from the other who’s part of the Sunday campaign. And I call the party the tomb raiders, it’s a more wacky party and I just run anthology modules from yawning portal and soon to be infinite staircase. So this one is right up their alley in terms of insanity.
This was one of the first few adventures I ran, back when I actually ran modules. I rarely touch them, anymore. Haven't, in years.
I loved this one so much, I've developed my own version of it...
I've considered packaging that and making it available, but, as it contains copyrighted material (the ship is a crashed Miranda-class frigate saucer section from Star Trek)... I don't think I can legally do that. Lots of fun, though!
Great video! You're right, too - when you have haters, you know you're doing something right!
Thanks! I'm still looking for that "Return to the Mysterious Peaks" 5E spin off.
Hello Kind Sir!
Just stumbled across your channel, and I have been binging!
You and I are of similar age and experience, and we are on the same page. DMing since the early ‘80’s, but I’m still learning a ton from your channel…. When I’m not agreeing and giving you a virtual fist bump!
Keep up the work my brother…. You are doing it right! Don’t stop!
Your brother from Motown,
Eric
Welcome aboard! Awesome thank you!!
Always loved running this adventure. Just makes me happy running it
Thanks! I'm really surprised and pleased to see the positive response this video has received! It's always a gamble when uploading a video that isn't some drama/clickbait if it'll get any views at all.
I'm delighted that others of a similar age as I (50+) remember this module and still follow ttrpg news. Thanks for the video and forum to discuss!
My pleasure!
this works in all sorts of other ways too. I can imagine a sci-fi Phandelver 'rephrased' in such a way that magic is tech, monsters are aliens etc. Or taking any Sci-fi adventure game and running it as magic. I've been dabbling at turning Phandelver and Curse of Strahd into Dark Sun games, but I imagine it would be possible to take all my old Dark Sun adventures and turn them into Dragonlance adventures to create more content for that setting besides the recent Dark Queen box set. or maybe have a spelljammer crash on Barsoom with Tharks (thrikreen), white martians (halflings), red martians (humans) etc.
Absolutely. I regularly grab creatures from the books (for example) and just give it a different name and appearance. First off it saves time in my process instead of making something from scratch that will just end up being the same or near the same to the thing I reskinned and ensures players arent likely to meta game.
Intelligent aberrations give the referee the opportunity to add some science fiction to their campaigns. Who doesn't love the idea of giving beholders shield belts, neogis stun rays, mind flayers chain swords, grell flash bangs, and destrachans weirding modules. Heck the kaorti already have freaky alien resin items and bioweapons. They've made several monsters that fill in perfectly for xenomorphs. There's lots of existing material to springboard off of. XD
For sure! My entire campaign atm involves finding a massive starship (like the one from Close Encounters of the 3rd kind) that is deep below the desert and now called "The Sunless City" and an Aboleth posing as a God (who is controlled by dreams sent from Tharizdun) is the BBEG.
Loved the video brought back great memories of going through it the first time
I had a similar experience with this module in the 80s. It’s fantastic! I remade my own version of it full of all my favorite sci fi tropes and movie references to run in 5e. I 1000% agree with framing to details of the adventure in terms the characters would understand like constructs instead of robots.
Awesome! I love hearing how much everyone enjoys this adventure!
I LOVED BARRIER PEAKS!!!!
1000%!!
really excellent tips for running a tech dungeon in fantasy, well done
Thanks, and Ive redone my sci-fi + fantasy video from last Spring. Should be uploaded next week.
I've always wanted to run this adventure. Thanks for the review and the ideas.
Been contemplating running this for my players, but with a twist...instead of a mind flayer as the "final boss" I would replace him with a Yautja (aka The Predator from the movie series of the same name). It would mostly just be a matter reskinning, but their are stats for a Yautja/Predator online.
Love your videos! Thanks for always making them interesting, informative and entertaining!
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!
Great video and I appreciate the hard work you put into your videos. I agree about keeping the images to yourself and using descriptions that only their characters would relate to. Don't worry about the haters. You speak from a logical viewpoint on your videos and as we know many people don't like logical or critical thinking.
I appreciate that!
Thank you for another fun and engaging video!
My pleasure! I'm so sorry I wasn't uploading for two weeks. I had to get a new computer, set it up, etc. But I'm back on track and already have next week's video recorded. I should be able to return to 1/week now.
Great video, thank you!
Thanks!
I added a couple of levels, one was for maintenance and one was all computers. Since S3 is one segment of that spaceship, I wonder what the other segments might have contained.
Regarding Goodman Games, I suspect Wizards of the Coast has a say on what they may or may not include, there must be some negotiation there.
Have you seen the Goodman games version? Sounds similar to your ideas. "Great Minds ..."
I don't have a problem with crossing genres, as long as it's done right and not just smooshed together. I love that you started with the quote from Arthur C Clark. It's one of my all time favorites! Great video Aten 👍. I'm looking forward to your upcoming posts. 🖖😎🤘🇨🇦🍻
Thanks!
Aten Thanks for this masterpiece of video! I am a DM for this group from 6 months from now on, i was making a Campaing that merge Keep on the Borderlands and Expedition to The Barrier Peaks in the same story, and i was figuring out how i gonna explain some aspects of the spaceship if i dont say: "Well is a Spaceship" thanks man your video gave me a light to make this and i am gonna watch your videos about Dragons and Lasers guns and horror (Because the Mind flayer in the final area was a serve of a Star Spawn) so i want to set a cosmic horror vibe in this part. But for now on this is a fantastic video, huges from Brazil!!!
Welcome! Thanks!
I love Barrier Peaks. I need to run this.
Goodman Games remade it? Good, let's shop. 💓
Goodman and Kobold Press are among my top picks for mid sized indy publishers.
Because of this video, I’m going to buy the 5e Goodman Games updated version of barrier peaks. Thanks for the recommendation.
OMG that's a lot of pressure! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Be sure to read that review on rpg.net just to hear their perspective but frankly I think the reviewer just had a personal issue with the subject matter. idk. Good luck!
Another great video! I'm late to the viewing (been busy, but finally catching up a bit). This was always one of my favorite modules as well. This and Gamma World have always been a big influence on my D&D campaign world.
I run a very-post-apocalypse campaign world, where the players might discover lost ancient technological installations buried beneath not-quite-as-ancient dungeons filled with magic and monsters ~ as well as whatever constructs, weaponry, or gadgets have leaked up into the dungeon from below.
When I started my current 5E campaign in the Spring of 2022 I couldnt decide if I wanted to play Star Wars D6, Star Frontiers, Gamma World, or D&D. So I turned my 5E campaign into all of them. There's an enormous ship (like the big one from close encounters of the 3rd kind) buried beneath the sands (of what is basically ancient Egypt) and a time travelling mind flayer with lasers has been screwing with the PCs. :) And the ship is now in a state of ruins aka Gamma World.
@@welovettrpgs that's awesome 🙂
Jeez! A time travelling mind flayer! He's probably smart enough to not get flustered or confused by meeting his past / future selves. I could see it pulling in multiple selves to help out in a serious conflict vs a party. "You suddenly see three of it appear from ripples in the air!"
It would also be wicked evil to have the party kill it only to have several of his past / future selves show up to recover the body and bring it back to life >.<
My current party fought a Wight Monk that had a robotic laser-beam (scorching ray) eyeball. After they defeated it the party barbarian decided to stick the tech gadget into their own eye. I can't wait to start giving her strange dreams and headaches as the nanobots try to take over >:-]
Great review Aten! And the flow chart method really needs it's own video. Young players today are very familiar with flow charts. And in my Kickstarter adventure for Khor, I'll be using a flowchart method for those younger DMs.
The challenge tho, is organizing the flowcharts into the module text so that DMs don't have to flip back n forth thru the module as they run it. Which, imo is another topic for a great video my friend!
Thanks! And look for my Gamma World 2E video next week!
@@welovettrpgs I get all your videos within 3 hrs of upload. 😉👍🏻 No worries there! I have defeated the algorithm!
@@helixxharpell Thank You!!
@welovettrpgs Can you do a Star Frontiers video some time? Was a big fan growing up!
@@helixxharpell Yeah it's already half way done. Been on my list since last year. One of my favorites.
Wonderful stuff! Looking forward to the new 5e book containing this adventure. I played it as a kid but the DM wasn't great. I then played it more recently as a competition-style adventure, and it was good fun. I'm a huge fan of 1st ed modules and the Goodman Games versions of this and The Lost City look phenomenal.
And Castle Amber. I'll be doing a full video on that soon.
Hard agree.... Goodman Games' update is definitive. The WOTC version will have to be absolutely stellar to impress me like Goodman's has, and most of their recent re-releases just haven't. If I'm being honest, I think D&D would be better served by generating new content for their IP, and leaving the re-releases to the people who will put the love, time, and work in to do them properly.
Good video, Aten.
Thanks! We need to hold a candle light vigil to cast a spell so WotC sells D&D to Goodman Games!
Where do you find Goodman Games version? Couldn't find on their site.
@@lusolad I think that you're gonna have to look at used bookstores at this point, friend. I do believe that Wizards rescinded Goodman's license to publish that one when they decided to do it themselves.
I have been wishing to run this for years. Great video.
Thanks!
most excellent rundown of this adventure! I really do need to get a copy of the godman games version..
Thanks buddy!
Great video. I've always liked the idea of mixing genres, but every time I've tried it, it's come across as contrived and cliched. There was some really good advice that I think I can extrapolate to positive effect while revisiting some old adventures I ran many years ago. I will definitely be checking out this particular adventure, as well as the earlier video you mentioned on introducing sci-fi into fantasy games. Incidentally, it's exactly this kind of melding that makes the setting (although sadly not the ruleset) of Hyperborea one of my all-time RPG obsessions.
You know, I've heard several people in the past use terms like "contrived and cliched. " to describe things and I've been considering doing a video to address that. I think I will now. I think I can help overcome that.
@@welovettrpgs I would truly appreciate such a video.
Excellent video
I agree, WotC probably won't be able to do a great job on this module.
I've heard great things about Goodman Games
Thanks. And even if the Goodman Games version never existed, the WotC version is going to be terrible. Look at what they've already done to other classic 5E "updates."
@@welovettrpgs So true WotC screws up just about everything they touch
Ooh, I never got to play or run this one. I wonder if my local game shop might have it, they do have a selection of older stuff-not huge but still good. Awesome review Aten, I'm almost caught up again. lol =^_^=
haha welcome back!
For the Machine God
Or, you can have it not be a ship at all. A powerful creature, that's the end boss, has seen the far distant future and he's gone insane so he's imagining things the best he can and it has warped the cave he's stuck in into a biometal hellscape the players have walked into. It will take a touch of horror and description, but once you hit that sweet spot, the players can see the pictures but they'll imagine the nightmare.
No joke... I had the big reveal twist in Empire Strikes Back spoiled for me on opening day... prior to the first showing... WHILE I WAS IN LINE. lol It was a massive line and we were waiting at our local theater to get into the matinee first showing of the day. My mom's friend was with us and he was in the entertainment industry and was fortunate enough to be at the premiere for the movie, so he had already seen it. I guess he thought he would be "cool" or something to give me some inside information that he knew, so he said, "Want to know a secret?" He bent down and whispered in my ear, "Darth Vader is Luke's father." lol Literally spoiled for me right then and there minutes before we were about to see the movie. Even as a 9 or 10 year old, I was mildly annoyed that the surprise was spoiled for me. lol It bothered me more after the fact. ;-)
dang!
Could this Module have inspired the region of Numeria in PF's Golarion Setting?
It's probably more complicated than that. I was researching Tim Cain's Fallout for my upcoming Gamma World 2E video (next week) because I heard Gamma World had inspired Fallout but it's ends up that Gamma World was only one of many many different inspirations. So I bet Numeria has many many different inspirations and it is certainly possible this is among them however this was inspired by many different sources as well.
I've never played this adventure but I find it kinda funny that my homebrew world also has barrier mountains. Might be a good place to drop something like this. Gonna have to do a massive amount of conversion to 3.5e though. Should I try to convert the original or pick up the 5e Goodman Games version and convert that?(edit: spelling)
I think the Goodman version does a lot of cool extra work for you - if you really want to get super deep[ into the aventure. But for the more casual gamer the original is good enough. It all depends on what youre looking for.
@@welovettrpgs thanks for the advice. I tend to overbuild things so maybe the Goodman Games version is what I should go with. Give me less work hopefully...lol
Is it bad that a part of me wants to rework the ruined ship so that it IS a crashed Illithid vessel? As the players skulking through, they might find more Mind Flayers, wearing power armor, carrying blasters/grenades, with Intellect Devourers, and maybe some Brain Golems? Aphelion could get swapped out for an Elder Brain? This is making me feel scummy, as Illithids can already be tough encounters, but I like the idea of a sample of them that actually still has more of their stuff, from when they fled their dying future empire, and their ship "materialized" deep in the Underdark. Maybe the faerrzress is doing weird things, or even being affected by its emissions, instead. It won't fly, but it could have the labs they'd use to "tailor" slaves, and just be terrible.😊 Thank you for going over this; I now have some awful ideas.
Like and comment for the algorithm.
Thank You!
ZAP!! Get your ray guns ready! "BUT I DONT WANNA BLEND SCI FI WITH MY D&D!!" Thought Experiment: What if you already are? What if magic does not exist and all of our primitive heroes are already using high tech alien items that they think are magical? It's all a matter of perspective. Something as simple as a cigarette lighter would seem like a magical gift from the devil 400 years ago.
In Khor, I make the real-world connection between the quantum world & how magic would be perceived by a "primitive mind." I go into a 2 page exposition on how magic & the quantum "foam" that surrounds a solar system. That's the basis for all those portals that science now calls "wormholes."
It's a great way imo on to bridge the gap between medieval magic & modern science.
@@helixxharpell very cool!
Aten? Atin? Aden? How do you make RPG talk so hot? 🥵
lol thanks!
oh shz. SCORE!
Thank you!
@@welovettrpgs great work as always. i've been reading non stop and the silo books lately so this is in my current sweet spot. excited about the MA video.
and i really feel your closing comments. there is a greater than zero chance that my ship has just come in, I have to work for a year to find out but I may have stumbled on something "Extremely rare and desirable" according to a professor I asked. It would be nice to make a good living but I am more excited that I may have a chance to bring something to the world that should be beautiful. To close in on doing something that will make the world a better place is pretty exciting.
@@WTFoolproof awesome! And thank you!
the goodman version is the poorest of hardcovers
needed art and descriptions of monsters especially ones new camp[agn material used
other volumes have better illustrations - its still very awesome 4 ot of 5 for me
i think its a flawed early gygax adventure
the vegepygmie army early on took a whole session to play - then another one down the hall
most of encounters after were not really that bad and felt anti climactic
needs a better quest and ending
That sucks you had a bad experience but I feel that's more about the DM than the adventure. A good DM can make even the worst adventure sing.
Jar Jar Binks! Lol
You mean: "I don't have a life savings anymore."
FJB
haha
I don't like Nickelback and I certainly don't like this adventure. For me a mixture of sci-fi and fantasy has always been one of the greatest no-goes. It just never clicked with me. I mean even renaissance style is way too modern for me. I prefer my fantasy settings based on early to high middle-ages. That said I really appreciate your effort and your perspective. It's always interesting to hear a different opinion and at the very least think about that opinion with an open mind (I still don't like this adventure - even back in the 80s I didn't like it and that was at a time when we played anything and everything we could lay our hands on).
Everyone has their own tastes. Youre neither wrong nor right. There's no "objective truths" as to what is best. I would however say that a good GM can make a bad adventure great while a novice DM can make a great adventure bad. The blending of sci fi with fantasy is not a new thing, not to D&D or even the genre on which it is based. And at least we agree on nickleback. :) Best wishes.
i disagree. let the keycards, and every other bit of tech, detect as magic. let it be dispelled as magic as well. let them think this is some kind of mad mage's sanctum where every door and object has been enchanted and weird golems patrol the corridors.
You do you. But they aren't magical and if you "let them detect as magical" you are breaking your game's verisimilitude.
This may be Madness, but here goes. What if, only Artificer Magic will accept this stuff as Magical?