| The Fog | |
| by Ben Frank | |
| Alcritas’ Review | |
A mysterious fog... An ancient curse... And no escape... Ben Frank’s Fog starts off on these notes, and progresses from there.
Actually, that’s perhaps being a bit too kind. The beginning, to me, is one of the (fortunately few) low points of the scenario. The premise begins that you were out exploring, in search for adventure, when you wandered into this particular valley, and now you’re trapped. It makes for an interesting subtitle, but it doesn’t make for that great of an introduction.
Fortunately, the dullness of the start fades very quickly. After an initial exploration of the only village of the area, where all the residents advise you unconditionally to leave, you’ll soon realize you’re trapped in the area, a victim of the mysterious fog the scenario takes its name from. After realizing that you’re trapped along with them, the villagers soon open up, and the real exploration of the mystery begins.
The players in this mystery are diverse — the villagers themselves, the group of bandits known only as the “Tokal”, the owner of the nebulous and ancient castle, and the very spirits of the fog — but are all woven together nicely. Playing the scenario, you’re never sure exactly of what’s going on, but you’re also never at a loss for what to do next, which is a very nice combination.
It’s also a strength of Fog that you’re never told exactly what’s going on. It’s not all that difficult to figure out probably what occurred, but I’m glad for once the mystery didn’t end with “Oh yes, here’s exactly what happened,” in the grand tradition of Fred unmasking the villain at the end of each and every Scooby-Doo episode. You can certainly make some very educated guesses as to what happened, but there’s no way to know for sure if you’re correct.
Fog possesses a couple of nagging
faults here and there — the Moss assignment feels more like busywork than
anything else, and the ancient tomb near the conclusion of the scenario raises
several plausibility flags — but by and large the solid mystery and suspense
theme drown out any objections. Fog never quite transcends these genres into
horror, as I was secretly suspecting it would, but I don’t think it’s any
worse off for not doing so.
All said, Fog is a very enjoyable little scenario, that is certainly worth the download. Fog is rated G (although this raises my eyebrows a bit, I think it’s PG at least...) and is designed for beginner level parties.
My score — 8.5
— Alcritas