I tend to be of the opinion that when you're advancing characters a level each session, each session should be impactful - there should be a meaningful revelation of the bad guy's motivation and plots or the characters should make measurable progress towards a goal. This adventure, by that measure, falls short in the arc of the "Embers of the Last War" mini-campaign.
At this point the characters have identified the location and motivation of their final confrontation, and then here - out of the blue - a side mission pops up, completely unrelated to the main objective. Why should the players take it? Better yet, why should a DM run it? It feels remarkably out of place.
It's not necessarily bad in and of itself - there is some decent roleplay in this scenario, and the combat encounter here is well balanced. A nice magic item is doled out - a magic weapon, the only one given out so far during the campaign. I suppose I simply expected a bit more cohesion and editing to this set of scenarios such that they'd work together and more seamlessly. Players at this point are probably antsy to get on with things and I'd encourage GMs to discover a better reason for this scenario's existence. I personally made it such that the location of next scenario's finale moved and shifted, and the foes here knew where it would be next and when - but your mileage may vary.
|