''Return of the Eight'' 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 ...

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 Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (T ...

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving 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 literature and drama ...

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

, set in the game's ''

World of Greyhawk Greyhawk, also known as the World of Greyhawk, is a fictional world designed as a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy roleplaying game. Although not the first campaign world developed for ''Dungeons & Dragons''—Dave Arneson ...

campaign setting A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A ''campaign'' is a series of individual adventures, and a ''campaign setting'' is the world in which such adventures and c ...

. The module was published by

Wizards of the Coast Wizards of the Coast LLC (often referred to as WotC or simply Wizards) is an American publisher of games, primarily based on fantasy and science fiction themes, and formerly an operator of retail stores for games. It is currently a subsidi ...

in 1998 under its recently acquired "TSR" imprint for the second edition ''Advanced Dungeons & Dragons'' rules. The 64-page module was written by Roger E. Moore and involves several iconic Greyhawk figures and legends, such as Tenser the Archmage.

Plot summary

An enemy of the Circle of Eight, "a group of powerful magicians dedicated to preserving the balance between good and evil", has captured one of the Circle's members, Jallarzi Sallavarian. 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 become embroiled in the Circle's machinations as they try to rescue her. The characters move from the shantytowns of Greyhawk City, to the fortress-tower of the archmage Tenser, a member of the Circle of Eight who was slain some years ago. The characters will ultimately uncover a conspiracy which threatens the world.

Publication history

''Return of the Eight'' was the first installment of a series of new material, after TSR restarted the

Greyhawk Greyhawk, also known as the World of Greyhawk, is a fictional world designed as a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy roleplaying game. Although not the first campaign world developed for ''Dungeons & Dragons''—Dave Arneson ...

line.

Reception

James MacDuff reviewed ''Return of the Eight'' in 1998, in ''

Shadis ''Shadis'' is an independent Game, gaming magazine that was published in 1990–1998 by Alderac Entertainment Group (AEG). It initially focused on role-playing games. Publication history Shadis was conceived and started by Jolly Blackburn as an i ...

'' #50. MacDuff was critical of the book's approach, in that the writing assumes that the players are already familiar with the Greyhawk setting, and that it does little to integrate those unfamiliar with the material. He did appreciate the adventure's difficulty, calling it "wickedly dangerous, designed only for high level characters who can think on their feet". MacDuff also noted that the author,

Roger Moore Sir Roger George Moore (14 October 192723 May 2017) was an English actor. He was the third actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond in the Eon Productions film series, playing the character in seven feature films between 1 ...

- a long-time writer for TSR - took steps to foil the "Monty Haul" tactics of some players. He felt that the adventure can be overwhelming at times: "The dungeons here are truly lethal, and require both power and an old-school tunnel-crawling mentality to succeed. The module lists optimum character levels at 6-12, but I can't imagine any PC lower than 10th level taking it on." MacDuff complained that the book contained little information for fans unfamiliar with the Greyhawk setting, and that Moore "always assumes that his readers are familiar with the characters and situations he describes," and therefore players new to the setting "should look elsewhere to get a proper introduction, and leave ''Return of the Eight'' to long-time players already familiar with Greyhawk". MacDuff did find a lot to like about the adventure, however, particularly its epic scope, well developed characters, and challenging dungeons, concluding the review by saying "As a fast and dirty way to ramrod players back into the setting, it's both effective and enjoyable. Just make sure your characters can roll with the punches."

References

External links

*
Return of the Eight
' at the TSR Archive {{D&D topics Greyhawk modules Role-playing game supplements introduced in 1998