Outpost of the Outer Ones is a 1st Edition Advanced Dungeons and Dragons adventure. It is published by Old School Rules and is written by Jeremy Reaban. The module bills itself as being based upon the works of H. P. Lovecraft. As I am no expect on Lovecraft I cannot say how faithfully the adventure follows that work. I can tell you, however, whether it is a playable module.
The adventure is about twenty pages long from cover to cover. It is available on Drive Thru RPG as a pay what you want file at the following link:
The adventure begins with a very brief discussion of the background. An alien race has recently begin exploring the region in which the adventurers find themselves. The motivations of these aliens is unclear but it does not appear as though they are entirely benign. Strange rumors about the goings on around this place will lead the delvers to the secret base of these creatures.
Lots of new “enhanced” creatures are offered in this adventure. Also a couple of totally new creatures are offered. And several new weapons and devices are introduced.
What I like About Outpost of the Outer Ones
It kind of reminds me of Expedition to the Barrier Peaks. New items. Aliens. Enhanced beings. Cyborgs. All of that are similar to that classic module.
This adventure is unique. I have not seen any others based upon Lovecraft and I seem to recall a few people discussing adventures based upon Lovecraft on Knights and Knaves so I know there is at least some interest in this subject.
The background information is short. That is always a plus. No one likes reading ten pages of history and background that the players and dungeon master really do not care about. That kind of crap bores the hell out of people.
What I do not like about Outpost of the Outer Ones
As I mentioned…..I am not a Lovecraft fan. Not really. I tried reading some of his short stories once. They were just a little too weird for my tastes. I do not mind reading horror. I used to love reading Edgar Allen Poe. But Lovecraft and Poe are miles apart.
I am not that keen on the Bionic creatures. But I guess I can see that these aliens might want to experiment on the local inhabitants and make “improvements.”
As I mentioned….the background is short. Perhaps even too short. There is really no mention of why the players, or their characters, should be interested enough to explore this base of aliens. There is no real motivation provided. No treasure. No mention of magic. So why would the adventurers choose to explore this outpost?
Would I recommend Outpost of the Outer Ones to others?
If they wanted to run a Lovecraft based adventure then sure. Why not. There don’t appear to be many others out there. It does appear to be a playable adventure. It would probably only last one or two sessions.
Would I run Outpost of the Outer Ones with my own group?
No. I would not. But then again…I am not into Lovecraft. Now if this adventure involved Cthulu it might be interesting. Anyway I do not see my own group of players being too interested in this subject matter.
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