| From: | Mike Elkins <MikeE@*********.COM> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Re: DNA/DOA |
| Date: | Wed, 6 May 1998 14:03:31 -0500 |
You know, when DNA/DOA first came out, I bought it and thought
"Wow! this is the best adventure I've ever read!", but when I dusted it
off, in order to run it again last year I read it and said "What a piece of
crap!". It took me a while to figure out what happened...
When DNA/DOA came out, the only things I had to judge it against were
TSR modules of the 70s and 80s (yes, I bought modules in the 70s, lets
not do that "age thread" thing :) These were pretty much a map, lists of
the monsters and traps in each room, and a wandering monster table or
two. Compare that to DNA/DOA and the difference hits you like a
thunderbolt: an adventure divided into scenes instead of rooms, a clear
narative flow (too clear, it means leading the PCs around by the nose),
lots of atmosphere, backstabing, political machinations... Remember, the
"Plot synopsis", "Tell it to them straight", etc. and the datafax
handouts
at the end were all, as far as I know, pioneered by this adventure.
It wasn't as worthless as it seems now (although I wouldn't run it today,
it did it first, not did it well).
Double-Domed Mike
