Dungeon Crawl Classics #88: The 998th Conclave of Wizards by Jobe Bittman is a role playing game supplement published by Goodman Games for use with Dungeon Crawl Classics. As such, it is covered by the Open Game License and some parts are considered to be Open Game Content as a result. This is an adventure for 6th level characters.
The supplement is available from DriveThruRPG as a 50-page PDF for $9.99 but was purchased at a reduced price as part of a special bundle. Two pages are the front and rear covers, one page is the front matter, half a page is the Open Game License, two pages are concept drawings of the cover and one page is an ad.
The Introduction explains that the characters are invited to join a mysterious group of magic-users, if they can pass a challenge. At least one character should be a spellcaster; if not, why are they being invited to join?
Background explains that the Star Cabal is an assembly of some of the most powerful spellcasters in existence (by DCC definitions of powerful), originally formed to protect the universe from the elder gods and interdimensional predators. There are seeds for the adventure, if it is used in a campaign, a puzzle to solve to get the first challenge and a summary of plot elements.
Challenge One has the characters seeking out a tower in a supposedly extinct volcano, originally the location of Curse of the Emerald Cobra, and a sidebar explains that adventure could be used to expand this. The tower is actually a spaceship.
Challenge Two has the characters arrive at the city of Ciz, built on an asteroid. Details of the city and its inhabitants, law and factions are given, along with random encounters and a key to different locations in the city. This is one of the few places in DCC that magic items can be purchased; Judges might want to reconsider this. There are also pieces of alien technology. The characters then meet members of the Star Cabal. Each of these is then described, with an image (the images don’t match their images on the cover). The towers of the magicians are also covered, but these are generated randomly with different traps. Each wizard’s tower has some details specific to it, primarily its appearance, guardians and defences.
Challenge Three has the characters perform a quest for a missing artefact that was in the possession of a missing member of the Cabal.
Conclusion wraps things up and, if successful, the characters can essentially become members of the Cabal.
Appendix A: Advanced Spell Duels has expansions and enhancements for the rules in the core book.
Dungeon Crawl Classics #88: The 998th Conclave of Wizards in Review
The PDF is bookmarked with major and some minor sections linked. Navigation is okay. The text maintains a two-column black and white format and appeared to be free of errors. There are a lot of custom black and white images, including full page handouts and two-page maps. Presentation is very good.
Though this might appear to be a linear adventure, there are a number of options that make it less so. There are some definite happenings, but what the characters do in Ciz is up to them, and what they do can then have an effect on the adventure itself. Even parts of the plot are determined by players actions. There is a lot of potential to make this a significantly larger adventure than it is, especially as Ciz is an entire city with only some parts described. In some ways, this feels like a seed for a greater adventure rather than an adventure in itself. It has some interesting bits but, due to space, not every potential option could be covered. Dungeon Crawl Classics #88: The 998th Conclave of Wizards can be found by clicking here.
Leave a Reply