3 /10 1 Votes
Code CB2 Character levels 10-14 Authors | 1.5/5 Goodreads TSR Product Code 9124 Campaign setting Hyborian Originally published 1 November 1984 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Rules required Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st edition Similar Conan Unchained!, Conan the Buccaneer, The Conan Chronicles II, Conan the Outcast, Conan - Scourge of the Blood | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Conan Against Darkness! is a 1984 adventure module for the first edition of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, set in the Hyborian universe of Robert E. Howard's character Conan the Barbarian. It is designed for four player characters at character level 10-14 and uses some minor rule variations in an attempt to recreate the setting's atmosphere. It was publicized as containing a "journey of epic proportions".
Contents
Plot summary
Conan Against Darkness! is set during Conan's reign as King of Aquilonia, and features a battle against the Stygian arch-mage Thoth-Amon. The adventure leads to the forbidden city of Khemi, and the catacombs beneath the city's sacred pyramids.
The adventure requires the use of some variant rules specified in the publication. These include "Fear", a faster healing rate and "Heroism".
The publication includes four new monsters (Winged Gaunts, Crawler in the Dark, Serpent Folk, Fire Guardians), several new magical items and game statistics for the four suggested player characters - Conan, Pelias the Sorcerer, Nzinga the Amazon and Prospero the General.
Publication history
Conan Against Darkness! was written by Ken Rolston, with art by Jeffrey Butler and Jeff Easley, and was published by TSR in 1984 as a 32-page booklet with an outer folder.
Its module code is CB2 and its TSR product code is TSR 9124.
The module was edited by Anne C. Gray, with graphic design by Elizabeth Riedel and cartography by "Diesel".
Reception
Jez Keen of Imagine magazine gave it a mixed review. He praised the cover and the overall "attractive package" of the module. However, he noted that the game could only be played effectively as Conan and his companions. Criticisms included the "disjointed and sometimes purposeless" gameplay, mundane and overwritten encounters, and that the "extreme violence and lack of clerics" made survival difficult.