The second part of the mini-storyline by Greg Marks felt slightly weaker than the first part. The adventurers receive a sudden, unexpected opportunity to destroy the entire leadership of Hillsfar in the hopes that this will end the oppressive tyranny. (SPOILERS BELOW)
What I liked
The opening scene primarily consists of roleplaying and the players can really get into character for a few minutes, although time constraints might prevent them from spending a long time on this.
Other than the "hook" after the opening scene, the party has pretty wide freedom in how to approach their quest. When they reach the site, they can survey all the different locations within it. They should be given time to decide on a plan (possibly with some initial forays to gather more intelligence). Characters with backgrounds and hooks specifically tied to this storyline may get serious payoffs if they pay attention and work those angles.
What I didn't like
At the risk of repeating myself from quite a few other reviews of this season, the map was terrible. While not to scale, it looks like somebody spent about 10 minutes scribbling on graph paper. I built my own in Roll20; while far from professional quality, I feel like it added quite a bit of flavor. Some lack of coordination with the previous module means that the text indicates it's snowing a few days after midsummer. DMs should note that and adjust accordingly.
Tips and Conclusion
DMs will almost certainly need to improvise, as the players will likely concoct some scheme that doesn't align with the ideas in the module. That's great! They should feel free to come up with something new. As a DM, I control the monsters and opposition to the characters, but I am not the players' adversary. If anything, the DM should be their biggest fan! Give them a chance to shine here. That doesn't mean that a heroic sacrifice or two might not occur - courage implies risk - but even that should serve the larger narrative.
Spend some time assembling a real map, regardless of whether you play on a virtual tabletop (VTT) or in meatspace. This need not be elaborate, but it should give the players a sense of planning a covert assault on a high-value target.
If you invest a bit of time into this module, the payoff is fantastic. Your players will feel like they indeed have achieved something heroic and their characters should be wrapping up tier 1.
PS: This module can be easily followed up by the CCC-BMG-10, -11, and -12 trilogy, which explores the aftermath of what the heroes achieved. Not every happy ending is neat and tidy, nor should it be.
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