Classic Modules Today: N2 The Forest Oracle (5e)

The land lies under a curse. Fruit drops to the ground, its pulp black and rotten. Leaves curl and wither on the branches. Animals flee the parched vale, or starve. 

Long ago, the Downs prospered under the care of Druids, but the priests of nature have retreated deep into the woods and rarely show themselves. One old man claims that the Druids have the power to save the valley, if only someone could find their Oracle to seek help. Will you reach the Forest Oracle of the Druids in time? And if you do, can they really lift the curse? 

Or does the answer lie elsewhere? 

Only the most daring and cunning adventurers will save the Downs. 

For characters level 2-4

Product History

N2: "The Forest Oracle" (1984), by Carl Smith, is the second AD&D adventure in the novice (N-) series. Unlike its predecessor, it is not intended for 1st-level adventurers, but instead for 2nd level and up.

A Generic Adventure. Whereas N1: "Against The Cult of the Reptile God" (1982) was very clearly set in Greyhawk, N2 takes the opposite tactic: It doesn't detail the community ("The Downs") where the adventure starts, nor does it include any specific world detail, thus leaving the novice GM to set it in the world of his choice. There is a generic European / Old World feel to the adventure, which might even make it appropriate for some of the HR campaigns (1992-1994), released much later by TSR.

A Bit of Wilderness. "Forest Oracle" mixes together wilderness adventuring - which was relatively rare in the era outside of Expert D&D - with dungeons, giving novice players the opportunity to interact with a variety of adventuring environments.

About the Creators. 1984 was author Carl Smith's most prolific year ever in the roleplaying industry. Early in the year he was a member of the Dragonlance Design Team, contributing to Tracy Hickman's DL1: "Dragons of Despair" (1984) and Douglas Niles' DL2: "Dragons of Flame" (1984). By mid-year, he'd left TSR to co-found new publisher Pacesetter. Here he contributed to two of their three new games: Star Ace (1984) and Timemaster (1984).