Shadows of Rith Keep is a two-hour, Tier 1 adventure set in the Borderlands of the Forgotten Realms. Released as part of the D&D Adventurers League’s CCC program, it sees the characters on a mission to rid the eponymous keep of undead.

The adventure features two bonus one-hour objectives, one that sends the characters to deal with a young dragon in the area, the other which allows the characters to confront an emissary of the Black Wyvern, a major villain of this series of adventures.

Shadows is a relatively straight-forward scenario, where the goals and decisions facing the party are easily understood. The action in the bonus objectives is a little more freeform and varied and thus requires a bit more from the DM to adjudicate events.

The main scenario consists primarily of exploration – the keep contains fourteen areas, of which four are combats and one a role-playing encounter. All the rooms have items of interest for those who like exploring old ruins. The highlight for me is the role-playing encounter: the ghost of a young girl, who has the potential to tug at the heartstrings of the players. Importantly, she allows you to put a human face to the history of the ruins, that otherwise might seem cold and dead.

I like how the adventure uses time; a few areas are buried, and the adventurers or villagers must excavate them. That allows events to take place over several days and gives space for the bonus objectives to occur. This technique falters a little with the exploration of the courtyard, where it might not be evident that the characters should investigate; it’s easy enough to adjust this, so the party always hear movement behind the collapsed wall and thus are drawn to it.

The presentation and writing of the adventure are done very well, with only the introduction (the Call to Action) faltering somewhat. I note that it’s one of the last vestiges of the Season 8 format left; the main text is easier to read. I continue to question the wisdom of presenting the bonus objectives eight pages after the rest of the adventure text finishes (after the monster stats). I would so much prefer them to flow naturally as part of the adventure but marked as optional.

With links to the history of the area and current events, Shadows of Rith Keep is an excellent adventure. It is rarely doing anything fancy, but it is doing it well, and I much appreciate that. Recommended!