Shadow of the Demon Lord (SotDL) is a brilliant game, which has seen a lot of love around my table. Take a ruleset that has elements of D&D, throw in inspired mechanics to aid the playing of mini-campaigns and add a fallen world, and you’ve got something that is tremendously fun. And more than a little creepy.
Jerry LaNeave’s adventure He Sees You When You’re Sleeping brings the joy of Christmas to the world of SotDL. The joy isn’t for the regular inhabitants though, instead it’s for the minions of the Demon Lord.
In the adventure, the characters need to solve a mystery of missing children while also dealing with cultists and a particularly nasty demon. It takes place over three days, with the stakes rising as time passes. The adventure presents the main events of each day, and giving details on the areas and NPCs the characters are most likely to encounter on that day.
The overall play of the adventure is somewhat linear, although there are sections where the players can investigate freely. I don’t feel that it’s primarily an investigative adventure: the investigation isn’t used to reveal clues leading to a solution so much as it’s used for revealing elements of horror and dread. I feel that the story begins and ends very strongly, but the events of Day 2 are weaker. There are several events that occur on Day 2, but there’s no guidance given in the adventure if the players investigate them. Advice from a NPC to not enter the Dark Forest because it’s late may elicit surprise from the players as they think it’s still the morning! This is one area of the adventure that the GM will likely need to expand on.
The rest of the adventure is fantastic. It’s very evocative and throws in several surprises. This isn’t an adventure where everyone goes home happily afterwards; although the characters will be able to hold back the dark for just a little while longer. The mythology behind it is particularly strong, and you should ensure the players discover it order to deepen their appreciation of the adventure.
Adapting the adventure for use in a regular Dungeons & Dragons game would be relatively straightforward. You’d need to design or adapt a couple of monsters, as well as use the D&D skill and ability check system in place of SotDL’s, but this could be done quite quickly.
Overall, this is a great adventure for Shadow of the Demon Lord, although you might need to flesh out the investigation a little more. Recommended.