Rappan Athuk Swords & Wizardry Addendum is a role playing game supplement published by Frog God Games for use with Swords & Wizardry. 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 adds new levels to Rappan Athuk for Swords & Wizardry that were included in the Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition version.
The supplement is available as a 69-page PDF for $14.99 from the Frog God Games store but it was purchased at a reduced price thanks to a special bundle. Two pages are the front and rear covers, one the front matter, one the Table of Contents and two the Open Game License.
The one-page Tribute is a tribute to various pioneers of the industry.
The Introduction starts by explaining that this – referring to Rappan Athuk – is an old-fashioned dungeon crawl that isn’t supposed to necessarily make ecological sense and is very deadly. There is a list of Rappan Athuk’s levels, a list of how the levels connect with each other with visual, and complicated, maps showing the same. There are explanations as to how the supplement is formatted with general features of the dungeon and a timeline for Rappan Athuk, which covers lots of the Lost Lands This is followed by keeping time, an adventuring party that is now mostly dead and a d100 list of rumours. There is information on rules and rulings and good and evil.
Each level has its difficulty level and entrances and exits listed, along with wandering monsters. The first is Level 0F: The Sea Cave Dungeon. This is a hidden entrance to the dungeon through an old cultist temple and there’s a hook for why the characters might be looking for it. Level 3D: The Gilded Demesne is a level inhabited by wererats and an unusual dragon. Level 4C: Last Stand is the lair of a vampire. Level 5C: Syanngg a Song is home to a syanngg and a very old, though not necessarily hostile, lich.
Appendix A: Bestiary has the new monsters encountered.
Appendix B: Referee’s Guide has the new magic items, new items and new spells that are encountered within the dungeon levels duplicated in one place for reference.
Rappan Athuk Swords & Wizardry Addendum in Review
The PDF is decently bookmarked with major and minor sections linked. The Table of Contents only covers the major sections. Navigation is decent. The text maintains a two-column colour format and some errors were noticed. The most notable errors are in the Introduction. There are references to the D&D 5E SRD and explanations as to how 5E play differs from older versions. None of which is relevant for a Swords & Wizardry supplement. The Introduction appears to have been lifted from Rappan Athuk (5E) with insufficient editing. There are a number of colour illustrations, including maps, that appear to have been made for the 5E version. Presentation is decent.
What this supplement does is expand an already large megadungeon with yet more levels. These are towards the upper end of the dungeon, rather than the lower, so characters are more likely to encounter them; this is a very deadly dungeon after all. For those looking to complete an older version of the dungeon with newer material, this is a good buy, though quite expensive at full price. The sloppy editing of the Introduction is a shame; fortunately, these errors don’t cause problems with using the supplement, they just look unprofessional. Rappan Athuk Swords & Wizardry Addendum does what it says it does; converts the new 5E levels to Swords & Wizardry.
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