"It was one of those missions that you instinctively knew would be trouble; one that will lead to a lot of blood spilled- yours. And it didn't help to have the villagers spreading rumors and making up stories. Sometimes being in the service of a Druid is not healthy, for even wile the sune shines bright, you're led into the SHADOWS OF EVIL"
717 Shadows of Evil is a ROLE AIDS Adventure For 3-6 Characters at Skill Levels 4 to 7. Suitable for use with Advanced Dungeons & Dragons*. Celtic Culture, Druidic Background, New Magic, Two Major Adventures from the back of cover of Shadows of Evil by Stephen R. Bourne. Shadows of Evil by Stephen R. Bourne came out in Eighty Four. This is a fantasy Greco Roman Celtic adventure with some very dark undertones for various Druid covens in the adventure.
Shadows of Evil by Stephen R. Bourne is a Greco Roman Celtic themed adventure with a core of Roman Empire goodness; "Between 500 and 400 years B.C., the Celtic World
was at its peak. Celtic culture covered most of
Western Europe, including France, Britain, Germany, and the northern lowlands, and it extended eastward almost to the Black Sea. There seems to
have been, however, a sharp line dividing it from the
southern societies about the Mediterranean.
The Celtic presence was more of a culture than an
empire. The Celts lived in a very decentralized societyone might say that they had a stateless society.
The first Celtic traces in Britain appear as early as 750
B.C., roughly corresponding to the late Bronze Age. The
first tribes came from continental Europe, and by400 B.C.
they were dominant throughout Britain.
The Celts were an early Iron Age people, and with
superior metallurgy for weapon-making, they swept
through the country in a relatively short time.
Although much of their culture and technology suggests otherwise, the Celts have been called "barbarians."
Unfortunately, the word barbarian conveys images of
uncivilized savages, naive primitives, and moral inferiors.
Such was the view of the Romans and the Greeks who
wrote about the Celts in their own time. When studying an
ancient people who did not speak for themselves (through
written records) it is important to understand the bias of
others who wrote about them.
Julius Caesar, for instance, left fascinating accounts of
Celtic society. However, his account is suspect because he
did not enter Britain in 56 B.C. to study the Celts, but to
conquer them!
In the main there are three sources of information on the
Celts of Britain:
Archaeological Evidence: ruins, unearthed tools, weapons
and other diggings such as burial grounds or huts.
Legends and Folklore: as found in various books such as
the Irish vernacular texts written in medieval times
(after 500 A.D.). These old Irish books represent the
first attempt to record the Oral Celtic Tradition.
Testimonials: from Greek and Roman scribes."
The basic adventure draws the characters into a world of dark irony & Celtic magick. The cartography & layout is typical Mayfair Role Aids. Shadows of Evil by Stephen R. Bourne is the perfect adventure module to run with Castles & Crusades The Codex Celtarum. Seriously the dungeon master is gonna have to do a bit of a mix of systems but this is really where Castles & Crusades shines as a table top OSR semi clone Siege.
This module is Advanced Dungeons & Dragons evil druid heaven. 'Shadows of Evil by Stephen R. Bourne takes the PC's into the world of a very uneasy occupied Roman Britain. This makes Shadows of Evil because its a module geared for first edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons lines up perfectly with Castles & Crusades Codex Classicum making this a perfect campaign line up with Stephen T. Bourne, & Martin F. King's module 'Evil Ruins'. I covered that review yesterday.
There's more then enough room in Castles & Crusades to run the PC's through the full gauntlet of
of encounters & horrors to get a true feel for the awesomeness of 'Shadows of Evil' by Stephen R. Bourne.
Because this is a Roman occupied fantasy Britain in 'Shadows of Evil' by Stephen R. Bourne this module could easily be ported over to Adventurer,Conqueror, King rpg's Auran Empire campaign setting. Roman occupied fantasy Britain becomes a vassal colony country of the Auran empire. The module moves along as planned & events play out with dire repercussions if the PC's are not careful. 
In Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcererers of Hyperborea rpg 'Shadows of Evil' by Stephen R. Bourne takes on new connotations as the PC's have to navigate a former Hyperborean empire colony now manned & ruled by the human counterparts of the Hyperboreans. The Keltic elements & Druidic adventure bits take the PC's deep into the heart of a sore spot with the humans occupying the former lands of the Keltics.
'Shadows of Evil' could be linked up with the basic events of the Swampgate community to draw attention to the plight of Keltic peoples within the former Hyperborean empire now human dominated. This makes the druids very nasty indeed with a very dark history.
'Shadows of Evil' by Stephen R. Bourne isn't perfect but it fits the niche of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Celtic weirdness nicely. The second edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons book HR 3 Celtics while not necessary could be used as a far reaching addition to the Mayfair Role Aids module. HR 3 Celtics could give additional background, setting material, & even possible campaign expansion.
All in all I found 'Shadows of Evil' by Stephen R. Bourne to be a fun and enjoyable adventure romp with all of the Druidic danger & Celtic weirdness that I've come to expect from this underrated adventure writer & designer.
'Shadows of Evil' by Stephen R. Bourne is available through Amazon right here!
"Evil Ruins: An ancient terror among timeless ruins is an adventure set in an ancient Saxon/Celtic castle. Intended for 3 to 6 characters of 1st to 4th level, and is part of the Role Aids line of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons-compatible products."
Time & again over the years I've heard from various gamers that Mayfair Games Role Aids series never created any low level adventures. This is pure manure with Stephen T. Bourne, & Martin F. King's module 'Evil Ruins'. The striking cover art by Boris Vallejo has absolutely nothing to do with the module's adventure plot. The PC's are hired to clear out an ancient Saxon/Celtic castle.
This is a very cut & dry module clocking in at thirty two pages or is it? Evil Ruins has several interesting mistakes in the mapping like a missing set of stairs. A clever dungeon master can take advantage of this to add in to the module a few dungeon adventure elements to adapt Evil Ruins to their own home campaign game. Now Evil Ruins is intended for the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons first edition game. The encounters are quick & to the point & the writing is crisp & I especially like the Arthurian angle; "The ruined castle at Tintagel (by-the-sea) actually exists in
Cornwall, England. It is said to be the original site of King
Arthur's castle. For the purposes of role-playing, the
origins of this adventure predate the player characters' era
by 400 years. By now Tintagel is in ruins, and yet it exerts a
terrible and malevolent influence on the land. For miles
and miles about the castle all settlements were destroyed
and the land reverted back to a thick and dense forest. Now
the castle stands practically buried in weeds and brambles
30 miles from the nearest inhabited place.
The local secular authority (the Duke) is troubled and
frustrated that so much of his land is adversely affected by
this menace. Lately, a helpful retainer of the Duke has put
him in touch with a religious retreat. The Duke is only too
pleased to give the property to the religious order if they
can first deal with the malevolence that abides there. It
falls upon a cleric (from that religious order) to organize
an expedition to confront and disperse the Evil in the
castle"
Evil Ruins is an adventure from another era & it shows it in everything the module embodies. For me this is part of its charm & wit with many Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual favorites taking center stage whist an evil wizard lurks in the shadows.
Even though Evil Ruins is a basic module there's an advanced plot lurking in the background & several solid Arthurian leads that can be used to weave the module into your home campaign. For my money with the way that 'Evil Ruins' plays out I would reskin it over to the classic AD&D Greyhawk setting.
Because 'Evil Ruins' clocks in at thirty four pages it has the potential to be used to kick off an easily established low level Arthurian campaign. Even though it comes off as nothing special with a bit of work Evil Ruins could be reworked into a completely weird late post Greco Roman/English post occupation Saxon campaign. 'Evil Ruins' even includes a small grouping of towns,villages, and even an inn with a black smith. The history of the castle lends itself to all manner of campaign expansion; "Four hundred years before this adventure, the castle of
Tintagel was the main northern outpost of the ancient
Saxon Kings. It was built on the north shore of Cornwall,
in the West Country of England. The castle belonged to
Godwin, First Lord of the Realm and personal retainer of
the King of the Gold Swords, Leefrick. Godwin played a
crucial role in assisting Leefrick retain control of the
realm after years of anarchy."
'Evil Ruins' isn't spectacular but with a bit of elbow grease this can go from being a four star module into a full on five star campaign starter. I would ruin Evil Ruins with either OSRIC or Advanced Dungeons & Dragons first edition. Evil Ruins could even be run with the Lion & Dragon rpg. The module's castle is an Elven haunted ruin & the local authorities call in the PC's to clear it out.
For Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea 'Evil Ruins' becomes something else entirely. The module can be run from the ground up as a time lost portal in the Keltic countryside that leads to a Saxon England of Arthurian times. The PC's become embroiled in the power struggles of a time lost castle but in actuality. The castle is very real in the back bay of Keltic lands. This approach reflects the writings of Clark Ashton Smith approach. 'Evil Ruins' outcome affects the ruins of the castle in the present. Clever DM's will see what I mean with the module having further use as double location in present day Hyperborea.
'Evil Ruins' isn't perfect but with a little work 'Evil Ruins' could be used to jump start an OSR or old school campaign & keep it going for years.
