Death Frost Doom Redux

WARNING

This post contains spoilers for the adventure. If you've not played it and think you might end up playing it some day, don't ready any further. This is especially true if you play D&D with me because I really want to run this.

Zak S's revision/rewrite of Death Frost Doom has been released. I was excited when I heard he was doing one. I've said it before, but I'm a big fan of Zak's work (love the blog and Vornheim and am anxiously waiting for A Red and Pleasent Land) and I thought the original Death Frost Doom was fantastic (despite never having ran it). I don't normally care for so-called negadungeons in games. They remind of things like Silent Hill. Yes I like playing them myself, but I don't want to subject someone else to that. That being said I think Death Frost Doom is a great way to show characters that they really do have an impact on the world they live (for good and ill)

I prefer the layout and style of the new version better. I didn't care for the layout or artwork in the original. It worked. The adventure was great, but it wasn't my cup of tea.  The new artwork is unnerving and outstanding. Jez Gordon did 21 of the illustrations, the layout, and cartography. Here are a few examples:

As for the adventure itself, it feels much more cohesive than the original to me. The original adventure contained many weird scenes and encounters. They were all loosely tied together as being connected by a death cult. This connection is much more cohesive in Zak's version. The Duvan'Ku feel more whole than they did in the original. They are presented in all their unholy, horrific glory. Zak has included many notes about the original, how he presented the scenes in his game, and other options. I thought this was a really cool thing.  The inclusion of music suggestions for different scenes is a welcome addition.  I really look forward to running players through the Tombs of the Greater Repugnances. Each of these undead monstrosities is quite unique.

There are a few options included in the Hell Vomits Its Filth section. We are given exact numbers, stats, and different options for the hordes to look like.

It will probably be a while before I get to run this. I'm still in the early stages of my Forgotten Realms game. Once it's over I will run this as part of the Greyhawk game I mentioned.