The Sunless Citadel is a 36-page adventure module for Dungeons & Dragons 3rd edition released in September 2000. It is intended for 1st-level characters.
It is the first in a series of eight linked modules unofficially referred to as the Sunless Citadel adventure path. It consists of The Sunless Citadel (2000), The Forge of Fury (2000), The Speaker in Dreams (2001), The Standing Stone (2001), Heart of Nightfang Spire (2001), Deep Horizon (2001), Lord of the Iron Fortress (2002), Bastion of Broken Souls (2002),
The Sunless Citadel received a reprint in the Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition adventure compendium Tales from the Yawning Portal (2017).
- Spoiler alert: The following article contains spoilers for an adventure module.
Official synopsis[]
Evil Grows beneath the Earth
Why should anyone travel the cracked cobblestones of the Old Road? The fortress that once cast its shadow across the road does so no longer - some whisper that the earth swallowed the fortress whole in an age long past. Four brave adventurers resolved to discover the truth and set off down the Old Road, but they never returned.
"The Sunless Citadel" is the first in a series of eight stand-alone adventures for the Dungeons & Dragons game. This carefully crafted adventure, designed to challenge 1st-level D&D heroes, follows a path to a mysterious dungeon where evil has taken root, and a terrible tree and its dark shepherd plot in darkness.
To use this adventure, a Dungeon Master also needs the Player's Handbook, the Dungeon Master's Guide, and the Monster Manual.
Plot[]
Background[]
Long ago, a great fortress built by a cult of the dragon Ashardalon sank into the earth in a forgotten cataclysm. Its ruins became known as the Sunless Citadel, and over the centuries numerous creatures made this place their home.
Twelve years ago, the druid Belak the Outcast discovered the Twilight Grove in the citadels depths. There he found the Gulthias Tree, grown from a wooden stake once used to slay an ancient vampire, and from which sprouts supernatural fruit known to cure any disease.
One month ago, four adventurers from the nearby town of Oakhurst ventured into the Sunken Citadel searching for the origin of the magical fruit. They never returned. It is up to you now, to find what is lost.
Synopsis[]
The player characters explore the Sunless Citadel, where they encounter a kobold named Meepo. His pet white dragon wyrmling was stolen by goblins who live deeper in the ruins. Meepo's tribe are eager to have their captured dragon returned.
The party battles or parleys their way through the kobolds before encountering the citadel's goblin inhabitants.
Deep in the citadel lies the Twilight Grove, wherein lives the Gulthias Tree, still tended by the druid Belak.
Development and release[]
Development[]
The Sunless Citadel was written by Bruce Cordell, who had previously written adventure modules for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition. It features art by Todd Lockwood and Dennis Cramer. It was the first official adventure module for Dungeons & Dragons 3rd edition.[2]
Release[]
The Sunless Citadel was released by Wizards of the Coast in August 2000 for $9.95 US.[1]
On January 22, 2013, it was re-released in digital format. It is currently available on DriveThruRPG and Dungeon Masters Guild for $4.99.
Reception and influence[]
Critical reception[]
As of 2023, The Sunless Citadel reached the rank of Platinum seller on DriveThruRPG.
Influence on other works[]
The Sunless Citadel was the third in a series of eight adventure modules: The Sunless Citadel (2000), The Forge of Fury (2000), The Speaker in Dreams (2001), The Standing Stone (2001), Heart of Nightfang Spire (2001), Deep Horizon (2001), Lord of the Iron Fortress (2002), and Bastion of Broken Souls (2002). The concept of a series of linked adventure modules taking a character from level 1 to 20 would be come to be known as an "adventure path", a term first used by James Wyatt to describe this series in an interview in Dragon #281 (Mar 2001). Dungeon Magazine went on to publish its own adventure paths beginning in Dungeon #97 (Mar/Apr 2003). Following Dungeon's closure in 2007, adventure paths formed a core feature of Paizo Publishing's Pathfinder product line, which at one point surpassed Dungeons & Dragons in sales.
This adventure module introduced the twig blight creature to D&D.
Meepo the Dragon Keeper, a kobold character appearing in this adventure, was popular with players. In Dragon #359 (Sep 2007), Meepo appeared as the first entry in the article 1d20 Villains: D&D's Most Wanted; Preferably Dead, a list featuring such legendary D&D opponents as Artemis Entreri, Acererak, Demogorgon, and Tiamat.
The fan-made 2003 video game Defense of the Ancients, which featured many characters named for existing popular fictional characters, features a koboldlike character named Meepo the Geomancer.
In 2017, The Sunless Citadel received a 5th edition conversion in the adventure anthology Tales from the Yawning Portal.
External links[]
References[]
| Sunless Citadel series |
|---|
| The Sunless Citadel • The Forge of Fury • The Speaker in Dreams • The Standing Stone • Heart of Nightfang Spire • Deep Horizon • Lord of the Iron Fortress • Bastion of Broken Souls |
| Dungeons & Dragons 3.0 |
|---|
| Core rules |
| Player's Handbook • Dungeon Master's Guide • Monster Manual • Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Game |
| Supplements |
| Arms and Equipment Guide • Book of Challenges • Book of Vile Darkness • Defenders of the Faith • Deities and Demigods • Enemies and Allies • Epic Level Handbook • Fiend Folio • Ghostwalk • Hero Builder's Guidebook • Living Greyhawk Gazetteer (Dungeons & Dragons Gazetteer) • Manual of the Planes • Masters of the Wild • Monster Manual II • Oriental Adventures • Psionics Handbook • Savage Species • Song and Silence • Stronghold Builder's Guidebook • Sword and Fist • Tome and Blood |
| Adventures |
| The Sunless Citadel • The Forge of Fury • The Fright at Tristor • The Speaker in Dreams • The Standing Stone • Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil • Heart of Nightfang Spire • Deep Horizon • Lord of the Iron Fortress • Bastion of Broken Souls • City of the Spider Queen |