''Death Unchained'' is an adventure for the 2nd edition of the ''

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Several different editions of the '' Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy role-playing game have been produced since 1974. The current publisher of ''D&D'', Wizards of the Coast, produces new materials only for the most current edition of the ...

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, or abbreviated as 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 ...

Plot summary

''Death Unchained'' is an adventure in which the

player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional Character (arts), 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 tha ...

s are continually pursued by a horde of assassins in the regime of Falkovnia as soon as the characters step out from the mists.

Publication history

''Death Unchained'' was published by TSR in 1996, and was designed by Lisa Smedman, with cover art by Fred Fields and interior art by John Dollar.

Reception

Trenton Webb reviewed ''Death Unchained'' for ''Arcane'' magazine, rating it a 9 out of 10 overall. Webb commented, "without a shadow of a doubt TSR's ''Death Unchained'' is a great off-the-shelf ''AD&D'' Ravenloft scenario". He declares that the adventure has "plenty of

Hammer A hammer is a tool, most often a hand tool, consisting of a weighted "head" fixed to a long handle that is swung to deliver an impact to a small area of an object. This can be, for example, to drive nail (fastener), nails into wood, to sh ...

-horror atmosphere, but this time it's more akin to the paranoid fears of '' Witchfinder General'' than the schlock of ''

Frankenstein ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 Gothic novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a Sapience, sapient Frankenstein's monster, crea ...

''". He called it a "hard core horror-fest" that "doesn't let up" against the player characters in its "non-stop chase through grim city streets and a beautifully labyrinthe dungeon complex". He notes that, for the DM, "it's a well-balanced adventure guide - it's strict enough to maintain direction but with enough flexibility and troubleshooting options to be useful under game conditions". Webb felt that ''Death Unchaineds insight comes from "its more mainstream feel", as while he feels that many

Ravenloft Ravenloft is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' roleplaying game. It is an alternate time-space existence known as a '' pocket dimension'' or demiplane, called the Demiplane of Dread, which consists of a collection of land piece ...

scenarios "have a late- Georgian atmosphere in which demi-humans and magic feel a tad anachronistic", this adventure "revels in a far more medieval flavour, essentially being set in downtown Transylvania at the time of Vlad Tepes". Webb concludes the review by saying: "Pushed along at a frantic pace, filled with plenty of clues which are clear enough for players to find and follow, and with a varied cast of refreshingly different villains, ''Death Unchained'' opens a promising trilogy. What's more, with its mainstream feel it's ideal for other world parties to test the murky waters of Ravenloft. However, if this is your first foray into the Demiplane of Dread, be warned - it's a real character killer."

References

{{D&D topics Ravenloft adventures Role-playing game supplements introduced in 1996