Brigands of Mirkwood (1987) is an alright adventure that gives players a new, interesting base of operations and then pits them against regional problems. The hub is Straytown, an enclave of seedy operators in Mirkwood. Sort of a rustic, frontier town, lined with corduroy roads and full of opportunities and danger. A bit like Lankhmar, really.

The first scenario is a check-out-the-neighborhood kind of jam, where a scholar requires the players to purchase a book on his behalf. Some light hi-jinx ensue, but for the most part this is a sightseeing mission. The second scenario has the players raiding the guild hall of the rogues, which is basically a Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser scenario. I’m not complaining. The final scenario pits them against the local mage, who is the primary power in the town. He’s also in league with Sauron and has a castle, of course. That’s a fairly straightforward assassination, but disappointingly, his removal likely leads to the dissolution of the whole settlement, which is a shame.

Another Angus McBride cover, so baseline great. It isn’t one of my faves, though and it doesn’t really seem aligned with the module the way most of his other MERP work is. I like that little lizard guy tho. Interior art is again by Jason Waltrip. Much of it is rather cartoony. Like, Disney-level cartoony. Which is an unusual choice. Not a bad one, necessarily, but unusual.