Tabletop Tales

  (c) logo by (r/Rhineglade) at https://www.deviantart.com/rhineglade   Using a Print-on-Demand Copy for Play I bought the Night Below boxed set quite a while ago. As a collector—and since my copy is in very good condition—I prefer not to use it at the table. To avoid wear and tear, I picked up a print-on-demand (POD) version from  dmsguild.com   I got it on sale for $25.99, and the delivery was surprisingly fast—it arrived in just over a week. Quality and Practical Use The book itself is of solid quality. The paper is fairly thick, the print is clear, and the color contrast is good. I chose the hardcover version so it can handle regular use during sessions. One of the biggest advantages of using a POD copy is that I can freely mark it up—highlight, annotate, and add notes—without worrying about damaging a collectible item. For me, that alone makes it worth it. After flipping through it extensively during preparation, it’s holding up well with no visible ...

  (c) logo by (r/Rhineglade) at https://www.deviantart.com/rhineglade   Night Below AD&D 2e Session 1: From Waterdeep to Haranshire (DM Prep & First Session Guide) Preparing for Session 1- Structuring the Opening in Waterdeep In this post, I’ll first go through how I prepared for this session, and then I’ll take a look at how it actually played out. I won’t retell every detail of what happened—instead, I’ll focus on key takeaways, surprises, and memorable moments. Session Preparation Why I Started in Waterdeep "city of splendors" I chose to start the campaign in Waterdeep for several reasons. Original Waterdeep map. All rights reserved Wizards of the coast First, I wanted to establish a sense of scale. By beginning in one of the largest cities in the Forgotten Realms , the players get a clear picture of what is at stake. If the evil in Night Below is not stopped, it won’t just affect a remote valley—it has the potential to spread and impact major centers ...

  (c) logo by (r/Rhineglade) at https://www.deviantart.com/rhineglade   Session Zero: Building the Foundation for Night Below As part of my preparation for running Night Below , I created a two-page handout for my players. This document included essential information about Haranshire and its placement within the Forgotten Realms . I also added details about the major families and villages in the region to help ground the characters in the setting. What Is Session Zero? For those unfamiliar with the term, Session Zero is when the players come together to create their characters before the campaign begins. For me, it’s an essential step—especially in a campaign like  Night Below . I wanted everyone at the table together so they could: Discuss relationships between their characters Coordinate party composition Make informed choices about roles and survival This is particularly important because this campaign is unforgiving. A poorly balanced group can struggle to surviv...

(c) logo by (r/Rhineglade) at https://www.deviantart.com/rhineglade How to Run Evils of Haranshire (Night Below Book 1): AD&D 2e DM Prep & Sandbox Structure  Guide How I Structured Evils of Haranshire I decided early on that I wanted to run this campaign for four of my friends. They have all been playing tabletop RPGs for over 30 years, so this is a very experienced group. They know Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition well, which gives me a lot to work with as a Dungeon Master. When I first opened the massive boxed set and started reading through the campaign, one thing became immediately clear: the first book, Evils of Haranshire , is a true sandbox. It offers a huge number of locations, encounters, and small adventures—but not in a way that is easy to grasp at a glance. I found it difficult to get a proper overview. On top of that, English is not my first language, which added another layer of challenge when working through such a dense and detailed modu...

  (c) logo by (r/Rhineglade) at https://www.deviantart.com/rhineglade Discovering Night Below — and Starting the Journey The first time I came across Night Below: An Underdark Campaign was through a video by Matt Colville. Something about the scale and tone of the campaign immediately caught my attention, and before long I decided to track down a copy of the boxed set—at no small cost. Night Below has a reputation for being one of the finest campaigns ever written for AD&D 2nd Edition. Its author, Carl Sargent, is also a figure surrounded by a certain mystery, having seemingly disappeared from public life under unusual circumstances. That alone adds a strange layer of intrigue to the work. The AD&D 2nd Edition boxed sets in general are something special. They represent a style of adventure design that feels both ambitious and tangible—complete with maps, handouts, and even dedicated monster booklets. Most of them are of consistently high quality, and as a collect...