Dungeon Crawl Classics #99: The Star Wound of Abaddon by Marzio Muscedere 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.
The supplement is available as a 28-page PDF from DriveThruRPG for $6.99 and is also available in printed form from sites such as Amazon. The PDF is the version reviewed although it was purchased at a reduced price as part of a special bundle. Two pages are the front and rear covers, two pages are ads, one page is the front matter and one the Open Game License and pictures from when this adventure won the Rodneys.
The Introduction explains that this adventure is for level 3 characters, thought it can be scaled, and is in three parts. It involves travelling through a strange landscape inspired by Robert E. Howard and Clark Ashton Smith.
Background explains that an ancient people performed rites of reverence for a fiery comet, believing it was a gift from heaven, when in fact it was the opposite. The wound caused by the fall of the comet is a strange land inhabited by a creature from the outer dark.
Judges Notes gives details on the geography of the Star Wound and travelling within, which is a point-crawl system. Characters will need to make despair checks to avoid temporary stat loss and every time a spell is cast there is a chance of a cosmic perversion, which affects how the spell turns out.
The adventure starts when the characters are requested to enter the Star Wound, as people are renouncing their gods and vanishing within. There’s a list of rumours and superstitions, then the encounters.
Player Start – The Doorway to Doom has the characters arrive outside the Star Wound.
Part 1: Sojourn into Nightmare is a pointcrawl. There are a number of locations characters can travel to and at each location there are others they can see, and thereby travel to them. A sidebar has some special encounters.
Part 2: The Cathedral of the Comet is essentially a dungeon crawl, exploring a buried cathedral from which astronomers watched the comet come.
Part 3: The Forsaken Garden is the final encounter.
Concluding the Adventure wraps things up.
Finally, there are two handouts.
Dungeon Crawl Classics #99: The Star Wound of Abaddon in Review
The PDF is bookmarked but only has major sections, amps and some tables linked. Navigation is okay but could be better. The text maintains a two-column black and white format and appeared to be free of errors. There are a number of black and white illustrations, up to full page in size, plus the full-page maps. Presentation is good.
All told, this is a pretty strange, and potentially pretty dangerous, adventure. Various rules make the Star Wound extremely hazardous to explore, especially as parties may end up with their spells not working correctly or, in the case of clerics, not working at all. There is one encounter where simply looking at something is very dangerous and permanently changing, perhaps a bit too much so. The feel of the adventure locations is a bit different, which is good. Dungeon Crawl Classics #99: The Star Wound of Abaddon is a strange venture into a strange reality and it can be found by clicking here.
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