ASC3 Review - The Wreck of the Spinefish
Adventure Site Contest 3 review
This adventure was submitted for consideration in Adventure Site Contest 3 being run by Ben Gibson at Coldlight Press. This is an unofficial review, which was written prior to reading (or watching) any of the official judges’ reviews. Links to the official reviews are at the bottom of the review.
* Failing grade. The adventure doesn’t meet minimum standards of playability.
** I could see running this, but it fails to inspire me or has significant playability issues.
*** I would consider running this.
**** I am considering running this.
***** I want to run this. Now.
The
Wreck of the Spinefish
By
ShockTohp. Edited by Lockmere
For ACKS
II
Levels
4-6 (5-8 characters)
Playtesters named
Time to grock: 20 minutes, but still confusing
Set-up:
A ghost ship, except this one is captained by a real-live chaotic crusader—which I assume is the ACKS version of the anti-paladin—who commands the undead. It is also home to minor demon, who has changed the environment with its power to create coral. No reason is given for why the party might come here, but presumably it is because of rumours of treasure on board.
Things I like:
We have a strange environment with a highly suspicious NPC and an obviously dangerous underwater passage leading to the big boss and some good treasure.
Things to note:
The physical environment features coral tubes, some of which form inter-level tunnels and some of which are closed at the bottom and filled with water. It took me a long time to understand that the coral tubes are watertight. That is not a normal property of coral, so it would be worth explaining.
Also, as the big boss fight will likely take place in an underwater cavern made of coral, it would be good to know how easily the coral walls can be cracked, how quickly the cavern will fill with water, etc.
Another question is the significance of the ship being a “Shadowed Sinkhole of Evil”, which presumably has some mechanical effects that are detailed in the ACKS’s Judge’s Journal. It would help GMs who aren’t running ACKS specifically to repeat these in the adventure.
There were a few too many random monsters thrown in random rooms. How does a swarm of sea stars pose any danger in an air-filled room? I was also surprised to see that there were living guards. Do they fish for food? Don’t they want to make land? My suggestion would be to remove both the sea stars and living guards and avoid these questions.
Rating:
*** maybe 3.5 if some of the confusion above could be clarified
Link to adventure (on the Flooded Realms substack)
Link to official judges’ reviews:
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