Recommend an Adventure Path to Me

[Stegyre]

I'd like to try my hand at DM-ing (3.5 / 3.P). For a campaign starting at level 1, what adventure paths would you recommend that I try running?

To be most helpful, I'd appreciate a very brief synopsis of what the adventure is about and then why you would recommend it (well written, easy to GM, fun for players, etc.).

[Melkior]

For my first DMing stint I ran the players through this module I found http://www.albinjohnson.com/d&d/resources/downloaded%20adventures/1%20-%20burning%20plague/BurningPlague.pdf

I modified the boss to be a drow instead of an orc and I changed the names of everything, making the quest giver be a slick, untrustworthy aristocrat who owned the mineral rights for the mine. The module worked really well, and if the encounters in it seem harsh (the kobolds use pretty intelligent tactics). Depending on your party size (module assumes 4) you should modify the encounters a bit so theres more xp to go around and the difficulty is still the same. For my PCs it was difficult, so their victory felt deserved, but it never actually put their lives in serious danger.

[Stegyre]

Thanks. I will review it.

[TypoNinja]

I ran the Sunless Citadel as my first adventure as a DM, I recommend it, its nice and low level, it includes investigation and diplomacy, and the module writers designed it for new DM's. The descriptions and information are more verbose than most modules because they know you might need a few things explained.

Also, my PC's sucessfully used "Dig up" as a means to escape a trap, so there is always that story which leaves a fond memory :D

[Palanan]

Originally Posted by TypoNinja
I ran the Sunless Citadel as my first adventure as a DM, I recommend it, its nice and low level, it includes investigation and diplomacy, and the module writers designed it for new DM's.

This is exactly what I was going to recommend. This was the first module our DM chose when we were all new to 3.5, and we had a great time going through it. It has enough of a classic feel that I was hooked, and our DM did fine running it despite being new to the system.

After Sunless Citadel we segued straight into The Forge of Fury, as a lot of groups did, and we had a great time with that one as well. Together they make a nice one-two combination for new groups, or just low-level groups who want an easy, fun start to the campaign.

[TypoNinja]

This is exactly what I was going to recommend. This was the first module our DM chose when we were all new to 3.5, and we had a great time going through it. It has enough of a classic feel that I was hooked, and our DM did fine running it despite being new to the system.

After Sunless Citadel we segued straight into The Forge of Fury, as a lot of groups did, and we had a great time with that one as well. Together they make a nice one-two combination for new groups, or just low-level groups who want an easy, fun start to the campaign.

There's actually a whole adventure path built out of the sunless citadel, back before adventure paths were a thing, but each adventure and its follow up tie together. Names of the rest of the adventures escape me, but I remember that they exist.

[Palanan]

Yup, here's the full list, together with the levels they're meant for:


Sunless Citadel (1st-2nd)
Forge of Fury (3rd-5th)
Speaker in Dreams (5th-7th)
The Standing Stone (7th-9th)
Heart of Nightfang Spire (10th-13th)
Deep Horizon (13th-15th)
Lord of the Iron Fortress (15th-17th)
Bastion of Broken Souls (18th-20th, "and perhaps beyond")

There's some overlap, though it's not perfectly seamless, and some of them are only loosely connected; but together they're sort of a primordial Adventure Path.

My first 3.5 DM ran us through the first two, after which he was familiar enough with the system that he developed his own set of story arcs. In between two of those, while we were on the road, he dropped Heart of Nightfang Spire into our path, and while it was quite dungeon-crawly it was still a lot of fun.

So, these modules can be strung together or included as stand-alones where required.

[Stegyre]

Good. I shall plan to pick up SC, as well.

I appreciate your recommendations.

[Vortenger]

I've played through the Age of Worms, Jape Regent and Rise of the Runelords AP's, and all were pretty good.

Jade Regent is an escort from point A to point B set with an Asian feel for most of it (And one module has vikings vs. ninjas. That's right.). Runelords was a traditional dungeon crawl series with all the classic monsters and an endeavor to stop a dude from becoming a god. (both of the above PF AP's need some tweaking on the boss encounters if your players are experienced, otherwise goons are tough and bosses are easy...) Both are solid

Age of Worms had a high player death count, but the story and modules were really fun to play through. That's the AP I recommend most strongly.

As an aside, there seems to be a thing that at least two modules in any over-arching adventure path will not meet the standards of the rest of the content. (In both JR and AoW, the 3rd module was...not good...)

[Andry]

Shackled city is pretty good. It is easy to adapt to whatever setting you are running. I ran it in Eberron and the Forgotten Realms with good results.

[Stegyre]

I am currently in an Age of Worms campaign. I think we are in chapter two currently, so I guess the disappointment of chapter three is still to come. I agree that it is very good and fun.

Thank you for the descriptions of Jade Regent and Rise of the Runelords.

What is the premise of Shackled City?