''King's Festival'' is an

adventure module An adventure is a playable scenario in a tabletop role-playing game. These can be constructed by gamemasters for their players, and are also released by game publishers as pre-made adventure modules. Different types of designs exist, including l ...

for the ''

Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by TSR (company)#Tactical Studies Rules ...

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within ...

Plot synopsis

''King's Festival'' is an adventure scenario set in

Karameikos Mystara is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy role playing game. It was the default setting for the "Basic" version of the game throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Most adventures published for the "Basic" edition of ''D&D'' ...

. It functions as both a guide for beginning DMs and an introductory dungeon. The

player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...

s (PCs) must rescue a

cleric Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

from a group of orcs to ensure that the King's Festival happens. The presentation in ''King's Festival'' is simple, streamlined, and easy to follow, with staging hints and advice for first-time DMs, and concise setting detail in the read-aloud sections. Pre-rolled PCs are included for a quick start, and a pull-out Combat Sequence Table is included on the Player Reference Sheet. Also provided are a few recommended rules, adaptations, and clarifications, such as giving beginning PCs no less than a minimum number of

hit point Health is an attribute in a video game or tabletop game that determines the maximum amount of damage or loss of stamina that a character or object can take before dying or losing consciousness. In role-playing games, this typically takes the for ...

s at 1st

level Level or levels may refer to: Engineering *Level (instrument), a device used to measure true horizontal or relative heights *Spirit level, an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is horizontal or vertical *Canal pound or level *Regr ...

to avoid starting a character at one hit point.

Publication history

B11 ''King's Festival'' was written by

Carl Sargent Carl Lynwood Sargent (11 December 1952 – 12 September 2018) was a British parapsychologist and author of several roleplaying game-based products and novels, who used the pen name Keith Martin to write ''Fighting Fantasy'' gamebooks. Early life ...

, with a cover by

Clyde Caldwell Clyde Caldwell (born February 20, 1948) is an American artist. Self-described as a fantasy illustrator, he is best known for his portrayals of strong, sexy female characters. With his work at TSR in the 1980s, he is considered one of the artis ...

and interior illustration by

Valerie Valusek Valerie A. Valusek is an artist whose work has appeared in role-playing games. She is the sister of Jay E. Valusek, author of Museum of Voices: An Autobiographical Miscellany, where she is mentioned briefly. Works Valerie Valusek has produced i ...

, and was published by TSR in 1989 as a 32-page booklet with an outer folder. Editing is by Jim Lowder. ''King's Festival'' is TSR product number 9260. Sargent, Carl. ''King's Festival'', TSR, Inc., 1989 B12 ''

Queen's Harvest ''Queen's Harvest'' is a 1989 adventure module for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' role-playing game. ''Queen's Harvest'' picks up the story where B11 '' King's Festival'' left off; it can be played as a sequel to that adventure or by itself. Tailor ...

'' is the sequel to this adventure.

Reception

Ken Rolston Ken Rolston is an American computer game and role-playing game (pen and paper), role-playing game designer best known for his work with West End Games and on the computer game series ''The Elder Scrolls''. In February 2007, he elected to join th ...

reviewed ''King's Festival'' for ''

Dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

'' magazine in July 1991. He found the pull-out Combat Sequence Table a big help in conducting his ''Basic D&D'' game combat: "The summary and reference charts are effectively employed to help organize information for the rookie DM." Rolston felt that Carl Sargent did not "take a radical enough step to remedy the 1st-level character's chronic vulnerability to death from a couple of consecutive whacks from even weedy monsters", and suggested an alternative allowing a character to go unconscious and bleed to death unless bandaged by another character. He felt that the adventure "offers a quick, simple dungeon with a plenty of tricks and action and a few nifty touches". Rolston concluded the review by saying that ''King's Festival'' and ''Queen's Harvest'' "are absolutely the best introductory adventures in print for ''D&D''-game-style fantasy role-playing games (FRPGs). Presented simply and clearly enough for young folks, these adventures are also challenging and entertaining enough for experienced gamers."

References and footnotes

External links

{{D&D topics Dungeons & Dragons modules Mystara Role-playing game supplements introduced in 1989

Plot synopsis

Publication history

Reception

See also

References and footnotes

External links