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Novice #N1
Against the Cult of the Reptile God
Terror by night! The village of Orlane is dying. Once a small and thriving community, Orlane has become a maze of locked doors and frightened faces. Strangers are shunned, trade has withered. Rumors flourish, growing wilder with each retelling. Terrified peasants flee their homes, abandoning their farms with no explanation. Others simply disappear...
No one seems to know the cause of the decay - why are there no clues? Who skulks through the twisted shadows of the night? Who or what is behind the doom that has overtaken the village? It will take a brave and skillful band of adventurers to solve the dark riddle of Orlane!
This module is designed for 4-7 characters of first through third levels. It includes a map of the village and a description of its buildings and occupants, an overland journey to a challenging underground adventure for especially brave (or foolhardy...) characters, and a list of pre-rolled first level characters.
No one seems to know the cause of the decay - why are there no clues? Who skulks through the twisted shadows of the night? Who or what is behind the doom that has overtaken the village? It will take a brave and skillful band of adventurers to solve the dark riddle of Orlane!
This module is designed for 4-7 characters of first through third levels. It includes a map of the village and a description of its buildings and occupants, an overland journey to a challenging underground adventure for especially brave (or foolhardy...) characters, and a list of pre-rolled first level characters.
28 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1982
3 people are currently reading
55 people want to read
About the author
Douglas Niles
175 books236 followersDouglas Niles is a fantasy author and game designer. Niles was one of the creators of the Dragonlance world and the author of the first three Forgotten Realms novels, and the Top Secret S/I espionage role-playing game. He currently resides in Delavan, Wisconsin with his wife, Christine, and two Bouviets, Reggie and Stella. He enjoys playing his guitar, cooking, and visiting with family.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
January 20, 2022
It was 1983. I was 10, maybe 11. I hadn't hit puberty yet, so I was still cute. In my aunt and uncle's nicely finished off basement, I was playing Against the Cult of the Reptile God with my cousin and I had no idea what I was doing. Not only was it just my second or third time playing Dungeons & Dragons, but I was also a very clueless child. As the memories trickle back to me, I recall not "getting it" much of the time and having to be led about by the hand through this adventure by my patient cousin.
Fast-forward many years later, at a time when I'm not cute any more but I am a tad more intelligent, I unearthed this old gem and had a lovely walk down memory lane with it. I recalled this being an old favorite of mine and now I see why. It includes many of my favorite elements in a fantasy adventure game. It kicks off with an intriguing story, there's plenty of fighting, a touch of mystery, a quaint village to investigate, a creepy dungeon to infiltrate, a few kooky characters for comic relief, and a sincerely sinister ultimate evil to defeat.
Where does Against the Cult of the Reptile God fail? Well, the "touch of mystery" I alluded to is a very light touch for anyone who can read that title and for anyone with a pair of working eyes* who could see that cover with its pair of lizardy type warriors (stink-mongering troglodytes), it's pretty obvious that you are going to fight reptiles of various sorts. The mystery as to who is heading up this cult, what kind of being is this "reptile god," that mystery lingers a bit longer. But even that is fairly easy to solve by about the halfway point:
Spoiler -->>
Hells bells, there are spoilers all over this review and if you seriously plan on playing this one, why the hell are you reading this?!
For a module designed for low level characters, this can be somewhat difficult. There are a lot of tough monsters and traps awaiting what must necessarily be a fairly weak party of adventurers. Granted, the module is intended to last over the course of a few game-time weeks, so there's ample time to rest and heal up, plus there is the possibility of obtaining assistance from some of the townspeople.
But aside from those minor complaints, this remains one of the most complete and completely satisfying adventures created by TSR for the D&D playing public.
* Serious side note: D&D was a great game for the blind, as so much of it is played out verbally!
Fast-forward many years later, at a time when I'm not cute any more but I am a tad more intelligent, I unearthed this old gem and had a lovely walk down memory lane with it. I recalled this being an old favorite of mine and now I see why. It includes many of my favorite elements in a fantasy adventure game. It kicks off with an intriguing story, there's plenty of fighting, a touch of mystery, a quaint village to investigate, a creepy dungeon to infiltrate, a few kooky characters for comic relief, and a sincerely sinister ultimate evil to defeat.
Where does Against the Cult of the Reptile God fail? Well, the "touch of mystery" I alluded to is a very light touch for anyone who can read that title and for anyone with a pair of working eyes* who could see that cover with its pair of lizardy type warriors (stink-mongering troglodytes), it's pretty obvious that you are going to fight reptiles of various sorts. The mystery as to who is heading up this cult, what kind of being is this "reptile god," that mystery lingers a bit longer. But even that is fairly easy to solve by about the halfway point:
Spoiler -->>
Hells bells, there are spoilers all over this review and if you seriously plan on playing this one, why the hell are you reading this?!
For a module designed for low level characters, this can be somewhat difficult. There are a lot of tough monsters and traps awaiting what must necessarily be a fairly weak party of adventurers. Granted, the module is intended to last over the course of a few game-time weeks, so there's ample time to rest and heal up, plus there is the possibility of obtaining assistance from some of the townspeople.
But aside from those minor complaints, this remains one of the most complete and completely satisfying adventures created by TSR for the D&D playing public.
* Serious side note: D&D was a great game for the blind, as so much of it is played out verbally!
November 17, 2010
A fantastic second adventure. Though it can be run for 1st level characters, I think it shines for 2nd-3rd level ones who have a better chance of escaping from the evil cult's ambush. This adventure features a strong plot without being railroady; there are many ways this adventure could play out and when I run it, I can't wait to see how it goes. Just overall a nice blend of role-playing, investigation, intrigue, and dungeon crawling. The only flaw is a reliance on an NPC wizard to see the party to victory against the arch-villian of the saga, though that can be circumvented with care.
May 26, 2024
5/26/2024: Coming back eight years on, I have little to add to my original comments, except that it's unfortunate that the designer didn't give some ideas for managing the table, eg if one or more of the characters is kidnapped or converted by the cult.
4/24/2016: My favorite adventures for Dungeons and Dragons have always been the beginning adventures. I love the thrill of creating a new character, with limited skills and resources, putting him or her into a harsh world with a few other low-level allies, and watching their slow development into an effective fighting team. I think this makes me somewhat unusual among players, who often want to rush ahead to middle- or higher-level, so they can start throwing some real power around. I actually find it much more interesting to play a character who, left by himself, might actually lose in a fair fight with a single orc. This forces you to use your brains and think of ways to avoid getting killed – and who says you have to fight fair when the enemy is an orc?
Anyway, this is a good example of a beginning adventure, with a classic dungeon to explore at the climax, but an interesting set of problems to investigate and some weaker enemies to fight before you find it. It’s set in a small village where people have been “converted” to an evil cult against the traditional good deity that has always ruled here. The converts seem to lose their will and some of their personality in the process, but retain their memories, speaking patterns, etc. The characters will have to investigate and ask a lot of questions to figure out what is going on, and eventually will need to fight the cult on its own ground. Along the way, there will be more disappearances and conversions, and possibly one or more players will wind up in the hands of the cult. The longer it takes them to figure out what’s going on, the tougher it is to beat the cult.
The only criticism I have of this adventure is that it doesn’t provide enough really easy challenges for the players to overcome as beginners. You need a few kobolds or huge spiders to fight before you can take on the cultists and their troglodyte allies. It claims to be an adventure for 4-7 characters or 1-3 level, but if all your characters are first level, 7 is barely going to do it. And you’ll have a tough time in the dungeon if any of them are still 1st level when you get there. It’s still a good early adventure for a team of smart players, but maybe not quite an introductory one.
4/24/2016: My favorite adventures for Dungeons and Dragons have always been the beginning adventures. I love the thrill of creating a new character, with limited skills and resources, putting him or her into a harsh world with a few other low-level allies, and watching their slow development into an effective fighting team. I think this makes me somewhat unusual among players, who often want to rush ahead to middle- or higher-level, so they can start throwing some real power around. I actually find it much more interesting to play a character who, left by himself, might actually lose in a fair fight with a single orc. This forces you to use your brains and think of ways to avoid getting killed – and who says you have to fight fair when the enemy is an orc?
Anyway, this is a good example of a beginning adventure, with a classic dungeon to explore at the climax, but an interesting set of problems to investigate and some weaker enemies to fight before you find it. It’s set in a small village where people have been “converted” to an evil cult against the traditional good deity that has always ruled here. The converts seem to lose their will and some of their personality in the process, but retain their memories, speaking patterns, etc. The characters will have to investigate and ask a lot of questions to figure out what is going on, and eventually will need to fight the cult on its own ground. Along the way, there will be more disappearances and conversions, and possibly one or more players will wind up in the hands of the cult. The longer it takes them to figure out what’s going on, the tougher it is to beat the cult.
The only criticism I have of this adventure is that it doesn’t provide enough really easy challenges for the players to overcome as beginners. You need a few kobolds or huge spiders to fight before you can take on the cultists and their troglodyte allies. It claims to be an adventure for 4-7 characters or 1-3 level, but if all your characters are first level, 7 is barely going to do it. And you’ll have a tough time in the dungeon if any of them are still 1st level when you get there. It’s still a good early adventure for a team of smart players, but maybe not quite an introductory one.
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November 14, 2025"Explictica Defilus" must be a contender for the greatest bombastic villain name of all time. Based on the coolness of her name alone, she should be firmly enshrined within the D&D Hall of Infamy, alongside such luminaries of evil as Orcus, Demogorgon, Asmodeus, and Lolth the Demon Queen of Spiders.
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December 18, 2022I got the POD version of this from DriveThru, but it wasn't an option to pick on here.
Though it suffers from several "of its time" quirks, like weirdly detailed lists of everyone's treasure and many characters being unnamed, it's still a ton of fun. The early part is a creepy mystery sandbox, where your players need to figure out what evil is at play and who, if anyone, they can trust. The second part is a fairly standard dungeon crawl that's full of the usual random assortment of critters that make no sense together. The villain is a touch undercooked, but I think with a bit of spit & polish, you could make her much more interesting.
My plan is to flesh this out (& redo the dungeon) and plug it into a larger sandbox Dungeon Crawl Classics game at some point. Should be fun.
Though it suffers from several "of its time" quirks, like weirdly detailed lists of everyone's treasure and many characters being unnamed, it's still a ton of fun. The early part is a creepy mystery sandbox, where your players need to figure out what evil is at play and who, if anyone, they can trust. The second part is a fairly standard dungeon crawl that's full of the usual random assortment of critters that make no sense together. The villain is a touch undercooked, but I think with a bit of spit & polish, you could make her much more interesting.
My plan is to flesh this out (& redo the dungeon) and plug it into a larger sandbox Dungeon Crawl Classics game at some point. Should be fun.
May 21, 2025
The entire time reading this I kept thinking to myself, there's no way 1st-3rd level characters would survive this. Then I remembered this was AD&D 1st edition, when dungeon authors were ok with PC death, and PCs weren't all heroic super-powered like with 4th or 5th edition. I still wonder though, if anyone has successfully run this and if so, what class/race/level the PCs were? Nevertheless, I really liked it from a story and setting perspective.
April 25, 2018
YouTube has taught me that I like to play, but I don't like to watch. I never read this when I was young, because it was one of the few early low level modules. This Spoiler Review Includes Temple of Elemental Evil
Reading Jason Koivu's review and commentary made me recall that I don't much like watching playthroughs on YouTube. Is this because people change their behavior when being filmed? Part of it is DM semantics, i.e. I would never run The Isle of Dread with three players. Sometimes it's because I know the players they've collected just aren't going to gel. Oftentimes the DM is foot dragging--trying to create an open world feel, when he could just start them on the stupid island already. Every game is a true one time performance, and this is the Heartstone of the magic of role playing.
Reading Jason Koivu's review and commentary made me recall that I don't much like watching playthroughs on YouTube. Is this because people change their behavior when being filmed? Part of it is DM semantics, i.e. I would never run The Isle of Dread with three players. Sometimes it's because I know the players they've collected just aren't going to gel. Oftentimes the DM is foot dragging--trying to create an open world feel, when he could just start them on the stupid island already. Every game is a true one time performance, and this is the Heartstone of the magic of role playing.
February 27, 2020
A trip down memory lane. The first module I ever attempted to DM. I was 11 years old and obsessed. Didn’t really get the subtleties but managed to escape unscathed and move on to bigger and better things. Like running A1-4 and g1-g3. My DM career was launched...
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June 9, 2022Similar in vibes to The Village of Hommlet, but written with a bit more verve and personality than that one was. More than half the pagecount is taken up with a description of the village and its denizens, some of whom, would you believe it, have been indoctrinated into the cult of the reptile god.
Then there's a short overland journey with nothing to write home about in it, and a descent into the lair. The lair itself isn't bad, lots of mud and filth and reptilian creatures. But although there are worse introductory adventures than this one, there are also much better ones. In fact, even within the N series, Treasure Hunt is a much stronger piece of work and I'd recommend it over this any day of the week.
Then there's a short overland journey with nothing to write home about in it, and a descent into the lair. The lair itself isn't bad, lots of mud and filth and reptilian creatures. But although there are worse introductory adventures than this one, there are also much better ones. In fact, even within the N series, Treasure Hunt is a much stronger piece of work and I'd recommend it over this any day of the week.
July 19, 2023
A TPK type module and has to be regulated and adjusted by the DM accordingly, especially as written for low level characters. There are certainly more graceful introductions to D&D such as The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh or The Keep on the Borderlands. I wouldn't recommend this for any starting characters, a bare minimum for LVL 3 as written.
The maps and ideas presented in this module are great though, an investigation type mystery with an antagonistic cult who are deadly and secretive in their intent. The treasure is overinflated for low level characters, many should be able to buy their own castles after battling through this adventure.
Still, with proper adjustments, this could be a great module for a more experienced DM and party.
The maps and ideas presented in this module are great though, an investigation type mystery with an antagonistic cult who are deadly and secretive in their intent. The treasure is overinflated for low level characters, many should be able to buy their own castles after battling through this adventure.
Still, with proper adjustments, this could be a great module for a more experienced DM and party.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 26, 2018
An interesting module from the AD&D 1e days for Level 1st to 3rd level player characters set in the Greyhawk campaign world. The story is interesting and includes a lot of gaming hooks that I believe would be a great campaign starting point and will keep your players interested. I am looking forward to DMing this module.
May 29, 2020
I read this in preparation for leading a group though this adventure. We have already started, and there are many possibilities going on. I am excited to see how this all plays out. I have always loved the artwork in this module, and I think that it is well planned out.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews