I'm looking to weed out the chaff so to speak and find out what the best adventures are without having to run all of them to find out for myself.
I'm lazy like that 
What are you looking for in an adventure? Exciting combats? A compelling plot? Lots of room for roleplay that's only loosely connected to the adventure? I think we'd need to know your preferences before we can advise you on that.
For example CORM 1-1 has a great skill challenge that has lots of role-play opportunities, but if you're looking for challenging combat encounters you'll be rather dissapointed.
I'm asking what YOU think is a good adventure.
LG for instance had some terrible adventures. A lot of them suffered from very poor design and numerous errors. So I'm asking what the good nuts are in the current crop.
This has been discussed in numerous other threads, but I'll bite (again). This is purely opinion-based:
H1:
- BALD1-1 - Fairly exciting adventure with a good level of challenge in combats. Also, the combats all have some strategic elements to them, unlike most H1s.
- CORM1-5 - Extremely well-written adventure with a fun story. Combats are a bit simplistic, however.
- SPEC1-1 - The most "epic" as far as H1 adventures are concerned. Some fun combats.
- CORE1-13 - Really flexible adventure set in an exotic locale. It's nice to see player actions really impact the adventure path.
H2:
- CORM1-2 - Very cool concept with lots of player-driven options. Most people will agree here.
- DALE1-2 - I can't really explain why I liked this one... I have just always had fun playing it.
- CORE1-4 - Another well-written adventure in a fun setting. The combats are varied and interesting, and Sean Molley writes some hilarious, campy lines that make me love his adventures.
H3:
- CORE1-8 - I haven't played it yet (I know, I know), but I have heard rave reviews from enough trusted sources that I feel confident recommending it. Also, Pieter is a great writer (if you can overlook the occasional grammatical mistake from an ESL writer).
- EAST1-3 - Great dungeon delve adventure. Pure fun.
- MOON1-4 - Good variance in the combats, and the adventure had a goal that most PCs could relate to. I enjoyed it.
- QUES1-1 - Great story with a cool setting - subterfuge is always fun. The combats leave much to be desired, but the role-playing opportunities more than make up for that.
- IMPI1-3 - I wrote it, so I can't say much. I think many people have enjoyed it.
- SPEC1-3 (H3) - Very innovative combat encounters with some fun creatures. I wish the maps were a bit more imaginative, but the innovation in the first encounter really made up for that... *cue Indiana Jones theme music*.
P1:
- CORE1-14 - A strong conclusion to one of the more signature storylines in LFR thus far. The second and third combats are exciting and somewhat innovative (especially the second). Teos was just getting his feet wet with this one - I anticipate really strong work from him in the future.
- SPEC1-3 (P1) - I wrote it, so again, won't say much. I've received a lot of positive feedback.
...but if you're looking for challenging combat encounters you'll be rather dissapointed.
I would have to agree with this, although I have only played the Level 1-4 adventures to date (CORM1-1, WATE1-5, MOON1-1, CORE1-2). Four Level 1 PCs should not have an easy run in HIGH mode. I really think the authors had better encounters in mind but they were scaled down by the authorities.
Here are some of my favorites:
Levels 1-4
- Core 1-2, Radiant Vessel of Thesk -- aside from a shaky start (the players really have to go along with the plot hook), this features some fun roleplaying. The final combat encounter + skill challenge is a doozy, and quite memorable. I personally particulary enjoyed this adventure because shortly after it started, I wrote down what I thought the title meant, and I turned out to be correct. I like feeling smart.
- Core 1-3, Sense of Wonder -- again, the start is strained, but there's ample room for roleplaying -- maybe too much so -- I don't understand why the final encounter doesn't at least allow the OPTION for combat. But the key combat is potentially exciting (DMs: force the PCs to move around!) and the key puzzle / skill challenge is brilliant.
- CORM 1-1, Black Knight of Arabel -- way, way too easy as written, and I find one of the skill challenges (in town) to be highly contrived. Yet somehow this is great fun both to DM and to play... I think the NPCs are what make it work, as well as the general atmosphere of the town beseiged by shadows.
- EAST 1-1, These Hallowed Halls -- your basic dungeon romp, compressed into an LFR adventure. Nice variety of monsters to fight (some players might find the variety to strain their suspension of disbelief, though), and although the nature of the mission (find the missing person) is pretty generic, it resonates with a lot of players I've run this for.
- SPEC 1-1, Shades of the Zhentarim -- somewhat less of a must-play after the Veteran's Armor nerf ;), this is still a very fun, and LONG, adventure. Everyone loves to hate the Zhents, and you get plenty of opportunity to mess 'em up real good in this adventure. All the combat can become something of a drag, but the battlemaps are nicely varied.
Levels 4-7
- AGLA 1-2, At the Foot of the Lighthouse -- any adventure with shipboard combat is always fun in my book. Plus, the final combat (surprise! it's at the foot of the lighthouse) is awesome, although the players need at least some PCs with movement-based powers to really mix things up.
- CORE 1-4, Crystal Clear -- this one has a nice, icky feel to it thanks to the nasty transformation that starts things off. I think this adventure bogs down somewhat in the middle, but the final combat features one of my favorite types of enemies, and it's actually hard (or it was when I played it).
- CORM 1-2, Gangs of Wheloon -- or, as I like to refer to it, "Kurt Russell in: Escape from Wheloon". Fantastic concept for an adventure, with lots of nice flavorful touches, from the one-eyed man who is the PCs' initial contact, to the various (D&D)-racially appropriate gangs in the city. Wide open role playing / skill challenge in the middle, fun combat at the end with an alternate in-combat objective. Plus, if the PCs do things "wrong" (or "right" in my book), they get to fight a dragon!
- EAST 1-2, Marauder's Spear -- I have a love/hate relationship with this one. I hate that the PCs can get cheated out of the gold (if they don't take a certain item), but I like the opening combat, I like the various encounters the PCs can have after the combat, I even like the skill challenge. The final combat is a little disappointing because the map is WAY WAY TOO SMALL (a common LFR failing), but it's pretty fun nonetheless.
- TYMA 1-2, Taking Stock of the Situation -- pretty bland adventure, but you get to fight a dragon, and that's always worth a nod. ("Illegal" DM Empowerment tip: if you fear the PCs will make mincemeat out of the solo dragon, swap it out for two lower-level dragons: a maited pair. Muuhahah.)
Levels 7-10
-- I haven't played as many of these, so the fact that there are fewer is because of that, not because there aren't any good ones.
- TYMA 1-3, Tools of the Trade -- if you like combat, you'll like this one. I think there is one? role-playing / skill challenge, and then nothin' but fighting from then on. And, depending upon how aggressive the PCs are, the fights can bleed into each other, depriving the PCs of their precious short rests and making them dig deep for the stamina to pull things out. The ending makes no sense whatsoever (at least to me as a player), so that is a drawback.
Dishonorable mentions
-- adventures I didn't like
- BALD 1-1, Flames of Initiation -- Fetch Quests 101. In one of them you fetch seashells. SEASHELLS! That didn't make me feel heroic, at all. Blatantly unfair combat encounters, too. The adventure only starts to get interesting at the very end, but then it ends and (as written) the PCs are not allowed to have any influence on things.
- DALE 1-1, The Prospect -- "Investigate this haunted temple that is three blocks from downtown." Uh, yeah. This adventure also features seemingly pages and pages of NPCs talking to each other, with the PCs as onlookers. *yawn*
- AGLA 1-1, Lost Temple of the Fey Gods -- featuring one of the worst, least fair combat encounters I have seen in any LFR adventure. (One word: ants.) Plus, it's just not a very interesting adventure.
- IMPI 1-2 / LURU 1-2 -- I don't dislike these adventures strongly, but they are VERY VERY SIMILAR. I had the misfortune of DMing them back-to-back at a convention, and I couldn't tell the difference between them unless I looked at the adventure code on each page.
Hope this helps. As always, IMO, YMMV, void where prohibited by law, etc.
To the "dishonorable mention" list, I feel I need to add AKAN1-1, "The Rotting Ruins of Galain".
- It's got four combat encounters, all of them against the same type of opponent (spoiler: I hope you like goblins a lot...)
- Because it has four combat encounters, there is no skill challenge; in fact, skill use is pretty minimal throughout.
- The plot hook isn't even delivered in a full encounter to start off the adventure; it's in the Player's Introduction (which does, I suppose, save time for those four combats)
- There's only one encounter that doesn't fundamentally start with, "roll initiative", and it's a very short Q&A session with an NPC.
- The plot itself is absolutely linear; about the only possible variation I can see in it is fights #2 and #3 could blend into one long combat.
- Even the thin plot hook winds up being somewhat disappointing in its resolution (spoiler: you're hired to find a girl's missing brother, or at least evidence of what happened to him; you find his dead body, and his locket, which his sister is "overjoyed" to get back.)
To a certain extent, I cut early modules some slack: everyone (authors included) was just learning 4E, they had a limited number of low-level monsters to work with, etc. Even so, this is the weakest of the bunch.
I've played most of the older Level 1-4 mods - not too many most recent ones (BALD1-4, CORM1-5, etc), and not TYMA1-1 (just never had the opportunity) or AKAN1-1 (heard it was horrible without heavy DME)
I'd definitely recommend CORE1-13 as my top pick for a level 1-4 mod.
After that I'd lean towards SPEC1-1 next.
After that... there's a lot of shaky ground. CORM1-1 for example is fun RP, but the combats are totally awful. CORE1-2 has a cool ending, but is pretty bad up to that point (on the plus side, by ending on a high note it does end up more popular). CORE1-3 has some potentially shaky parts, but can be quite entertaining. I like AGLA1-1 a lot except for a single combat in the middle that's just repulsive. CORE1-1 is badly paced and can be quite frustrating as a player, but the mildest amount of DME in revising encounter order makes it a much stronger module. I actually greatly enjoyed BALD1-1 and have had multiple tables I've run it for very happy with it, but it certainly has some people vocal about hating it. Though at least one seemed to be from a DM running a particular combat... wrongly. Take a look at what quests interest you, also, since you're likely to want to continue and finish quests along the way. DALE1-1 was ludicrous in some ways (really, a few blocks from an adventurer's bar? Really?) and I think had some big flaws in two of its combats, but I've played it twice and enjoyed it a lot both times. EAST1-1 is good old fashioned dungeon fun, but I barely remember RPing while we did it. I really enjoyed the RP for WATE1-1, but I've heard other players who refused to play it again... and I think a lot of it is in how the skill challenge is handled. DRAG1-1 has some potentially very challenging combats in it, and some people complain about its temple subject matter, but I enjoyed it.
The whole Radiance against Thay series is great (I think that's what it's called).
CORE1-2, CORE1-6, and CORE1-14
This has been discussed in numerous other threads, but I'll bite (again).
Should be stickied. Who would one talk to about getting such a thing done?
Thanks for all the replies so far, this has all been very helpful.
Should be stickied. Who would one talk to about getting such a thing done?
That'd be the VCLs...WolfStar76, Dragon9, or myself.
In the past, I know that we were limited to a very small number of sticky threads per board (and, as you can see, this board already has several). I don't know if that's changed. Let me confer with WolfStar.
I'd suggest something like use the wiki for LFR adventures with people able to comment and rate them, and a link from the FAQ to that...
Not criticizing anyone here or their playstyles or opinions. However, I absolutely love AKAN 1-1 The Rotting Ruins. I love it for all of its faults and in my opinion they are strengths.
Its a straighforward basic story that doesn't require loads of prep time. You can play around with it some and have fun. You never are pushed against the clock to finish on time with it. It showcases the same types of creatures but with different roles. Its the first appearence of the infamous hexer cloud (cloud of suck). Its reminds me very much of old 1e adventures.
Its absolute genius for what it is. This mod always tends to get tacked on as the "third mod" if time allows at lots of our events. Everytime I play it, I can't help thinking how perfectly it fills its role.
Well done, well done AKAN 1-1.
To the "dishonorable mention" list, I feel I need to add AKAN1-1, "The Rotting Ruins of Galain".
I have to agree with Mind_Flayer_Monk on this one.
Although there isn't very much in the way of plot, role-playing or skill-use in AKAN1-1 Rotting Ruins of Galain I have grown to love this adventure. I use either AKAN1-1 or TYMA1-1 (Elder Wisdom) whenever I schedule an event when I expect new players, both modules are easy for new players to jump into with lots of combat.
AKAN1-1 uses one type of monster covering various roles, showing how similar 4e monsters can do a wide variety of things. They also have more than enough combat so that by the end of the adventure even new players should be familiar with the combat system.
TYMA1-1 is slightly better than AKAN1-1 because it has skill checks interspersed throughout it which aid new players in learning how skill checks are done (though its an easy system anyway). It has several combat encounters against varying foes covering differing roles.
The story in TYMA1-1 is slightly easier to play through, as in initial hook/explanation is stronger than in AKAN1-1, however if you take 10-15 mins at the beginning and end of AKAN1-1 the story can be made far more central to events.
I think very similarly to most, it seems.
Low and mid heroic have been well covered, so I'll add a few high heroic picks:
Core1-8: Aka infiltrate the Death Star. Very open ended, cool RP. Fights are a bit on the weak side, though.
Core1-6: Part 2 of the radiance against Thay quest, this features some tough combats, and an interesting resolution.
Luru1-4: Pray for the Night. Has a slightly different challenge from most mods. Very atmospheric. Some players will hate the main gimmick though, so be warned.
Dale1-3: Great RP opportunities, an interesting plot, and a fun combat ala Star Wars part II.
Impi1-3: Only the masochistic need apply. Probably the hardest non-spec 7-10 mod out there.
Also in mid heroic, a shout out to Core1-10. Also very atmospheric, an imaginative combat, and a dragon. Very cool.
And the dishonourable mentions:
Core1-9: I can't remember a damn thing about it. That's not good.
Wate1-4: Nice ideas, but too overblown, and an absolutely excruciating combat to run.
Spec 1-2: A shame, because the plot's great, but the problems with the combats in this one are well documented: they are too many and far, far, far too long.
list of favor as a player:
- Core1-13, for obvious reasons
- drag1-1, lots of possibilities for Rp downsides, swarms, the halfling squatter(why a halfling)
- wate1-5, to bad we played it without a leader and i marked more targets with my sorcerer than the swordmage
- Core1-3, why am a suddenly in a different bar. loads of fun arrrgh
- drag1-3, me flint you steel we go to masked ball tonight
- corm1-2,
- forgot the name, lvl 1-7 somewhere. it involves a wifes soul that is captured on a other plane and money that has to be delivered to the cemmentary, after which we had a high speed chase through the town on a coach while questioning one of the thugs.
list of favor as a DM:
- east1-1, easy adventure but fun, gives beginning players a feel of "i am an adventurer"
list of disfavor
- east1-5, first pick songs, second make encounters that fit the songs, last make up a story around it. IMO the encounters are a little to diverse and the story-line is weak
- bald1-4 it is almost to easy to cause a TPK when the party is not that great
list of favor as a player:
- forgot the name, lvl 1-7 somewhere. it involves a wifes soul that is captured on a other plane and money that has to be delivered to the cemmentary, after which we had a high speed chase through the town on a coach while questioning one of the thugs.
That would be IMPI1-2. That run of the adventure was a great example of how important the players and the DM are in regards to making a skill challenge work ;)
(Try as I might, I don't see the similarities with LURU2-1, except that at its most basic at some point you chase the BBEG through a city and meet the villain in its lair afterward. The reason for doing so are completely different. The setup to both chases are completely different. What happens while doing so is completely different.)
Interesting to see how different people make completely different lists which places the same adventures on the complete opposite end of the scale. I wonder how important the DM and fellow players were in making an adventure great...
I wonder how important the DM and fellow players were in making an adventure great...
Critical.
But we're still all working from the same recipes, and it's fun to talk about them.
I played BALD1-3 recently and really enjoyed it.
** Vague discussion, mostly avoiding any real spoilers ***
I liked the skill challenge/puzzle, as well as the story and setting. Our DM ran the two last encounters without a short rest, which actually worked really well (our judge new us and would have pulled punches as needed, but didn't have to do so). The extra feature within the final combat made it a real pleasure.
Also, I finally played BALD1-5 and thought it was awesome. And, yeah, I'm totally kidding about this last line. :-)
I just ran CORE1-12 and really enjoyed that as a DM, and I think the players were into it - I know one of them is already talking about running it himself. Solid challenge to the combats, lots of RP potential, a different premise and situation than usual, and all within a reasonable amount of time.
Running SPEC1-3 H3 next week and that looks extremely promising to be fun.
Hmm I don't have a long list.
AGLA1-5 Silver Lining - if you get a DM who works with the NPC well this mod is a lot of fun.
SPEC1-1 was a good mod overall, but you will need 8 hours most likely, but shouldn't need more.
QUEST1-1 makes it worth using the Zhent Quest card and playing 3 mods that will let you qualify for it, even more awesome if you don't have a time restriction.
Modules I Dislike, but that can be good:
LURU1-1 - it just doesn't seem to work right, and the idea that you are a 10 day away from the dungeon in it grates on me every time.
BALD1-1 - one of the fights in this module is simply rediculous. If you are not sure the players are good I always avoid it. Yet if the players are good, this is a solid mod, but the party and players will make or break it.
SPEC1-2 & SPEC1-3 (all versions) - if you are using a time restriction just avoid them, otherwise these are solid modules.
Dishonorable Mentions by others that I like:
AKAN1-1 - I find the fights interesting, despite their use of only 1 race of opponent, the premise is really no worse than many of the other modules, and there is opportunity to RP in there if the players and DM engage with the information that is in the module.
AGLA1-1 - now admitedly my swordmage onwed the hated encounter (turns out swapping spots with the Barbarian to get away from the offending monster, after marking it, then using transposing lunge on it, then thunder waving it away from the party, changes the encounter a lot), but this module had a solid story and some nice RP opportunities at multiple points. Working on that 1 encounter with some DME would be worthwhile.
SPEC1-1 was a good mod overall, but you will need more than 4 hours most likely, but not much more.
Odd... I never been able to run that below 6-7 hours (and only when they avoid one particular fight), which is not weird considering it is a 2-rounder. Or are you quick pacing through the extensive skill challenge at the start? Or are you calling 2 to 3 hours not much more then 4 ;)
No just not remembering its a 2 slot module... *doh* I claim being tired and... and.. oh look shiney...
I knew it took more than 4 hours to play, and have fixed the prior post to reflect the real state of affairs better.
Favorites -
Bald 1-1 : This is a fun mod. I've seen some people complain here about it being too hard, unfair, but we didn't have that much trouble with it. The cave encounter was probably what they were referring to, but if you have some good ranged characters and a good defender you should be fine. My Swordmage was heaving an excellent fun time wrestling with the monsters in there.
Core 1-3 : This was one of my first mods, and although it was frustrating (especially because I had a level 1 character at a 3-4 table), I can really appreciate the flavor and excitement of the adventure looking back). The Solo was absolutely terrifying, and the combat at the end is pretty intense, but fair. Really cool locale too.
Corm 1-5 : This is a role-play heavy mod, but it was actually tons of fun. We got to do all sorts of ridiculous things, and it was one of the few skill challenge intensive mods that had every player at the table feel useful. We only did one combat in our group (there are more available), and that encounter was absurdly easy, so it's really not a tactical mod.
Tyma 1-1 : Ran this one. Really cool mod with cool combats if a bland story.
Least Favorite -
Tyma 1-5 : Possibly the least fun encounter I've ever seen. Excellent chance for a TPK, and you're pretty likely to run into a player going ... Oh, I still can't do anything for multiple turns. Aggravating for 1-4. From the school of let's put all the XP for the adventure in 1 combat encounter writing.
Luru 1-1 : I should like this one, but I just don't. The monsters aren't interesting, the role-playing is kind of fun... but the actual combat environments are brutal. Another easy TPK if your party isn't build a certain way. We only had one character die when we played it, but 2 others were pretty freaking close.
Core 1-1 : 3 Aggravating skill challenges in a row... Not fun. Combats weren't much fun either.
Not criticizing anyone here or their playstyles or opinions. However, I absolutely love AKAN 1-1 The Rotting Ruins. I love it for all of its faults and in my opinion they are strengths.
Its a straighforward basic story that doesn't require loads of prep time. You can play around with it some and have fun. You never are pushed against the clock to finish on time with it. It showcases the same types of creatures but with different roles. Its the first appearence of the infamous hexer cloud (cloud of suck). Its reminds me very much of old 1e adventures.
Its absolute genius for what it is. This mod always tends to get tacked on as the "third mod" if time allows at lots of our events. Everytime I play it, I can't help thinking how perfectly it fills its role.
Well done, well done AKAN 1-1.
Aw, shucks. That made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
Glad you enjoy it.
CORE1-10 Dancing Shadows
I think I agree with them... the Mab encounter was priceless.