If Tower of the Black Sorcerers is a conservative first effort at a module that lays the groundwork for a series, Dungeons of the Dread Wyrm (2018), Dungeoneers Guild Games’ second effort, pulls out all the stops. This one has probably the least emergent plot, but it is also the easiest to plop into any given campaign world.

This is a high level dungeon, the heavily fortified domain of a red dragon that has been terrorizing the region for years. It is, essentially, a death trap. When it comes down to it, given nearly unlimited resources and power, it makes sense that a red dragon is going to make a stronghold this deadly. The first level is a gauntlet of vicious traps specifically designed to murder interlopers. Between that and the dragon’s lair are the living quarters of an assortment of the dragon’s henchmen, all of whom are necessarily insane to serve such a malicious mistress.

Usually, I’d balk at running this sort of thing. It is super adversarial and maybe a little bit unfair. On the other hand, this is maybe the coolest dragon’s lair I’ve ever encountered. It firmly embraces the idea of a dragon as a terrible foe, massively powerful and insidiously cunning, something pretty rare in my experience. Going up against a dragon should feel unfair.

Lots of great art here. Russ Nicholson, of course. I think Matthew Ray does some standout work, and Chet Minton’s portrait of the dragon in yellow and orange is maybe my favorite module decoration since Trampier’s fire giant in G2.