Shadowkeep is an ambitious dungeon crawler. Your party size can consist of 9 different characters which breaks the traditional mold of this time period. There is your traditional warrior but there are also four different types of spellcasters to choose from, all with their own unique spells. This creates a lot to keep track of. The game boasts an amazing vocabulary as well as animated graphics for every single creature you encounter. It’s all pretty impressive. The unfortunate downside to all of these bells and whistles is that nothing is done quickly. Exploration is slow and combat has the feel of being mired in quicksand. You can either choose to allow the slow pace to frustrate you or you can allow yourself to go along for the ride and enjoy yourself. I’ve chosen the latter.
Spinnaker, the publisher, came up with the idea of adapting the game into a book. Alan Dean Foster, famous for media tie-in novels like The Black Hole, Clash of the Titans, The Last Starfighter, was given design documents and a copy of the source code and hired to write the novel. I purchased the book and will be starting it soon. I always feel like there is a contract of reciprocity between the player and the game and I do my best to try to immerse myself with whatever the game provides.
I spent a week in Florida on vacation and when I returned I spent the next two weeks mapping out levels 2 & 3.
The second level was a labyrinthine exercise in mapping. Many encounters later I discovered there was nothing of import on the second level. The monsters that I encountered were more difficult on this level because of the introduction of Barghests and Gargoyles. These monsters can cast spells that can decimate your weaker spellcasters.
One of the magical objects that you can purchase is an Eldritch Staff which when used allows you to cast the Perceive spell. I discovered that using the staff on each level will reward you with a clue. The clue from the 2nd level was: “Hide not from the foe; or escape will never be found.” The clue from the 3rd level was more mysterious: “Walk softly where lies the sleeping king” I’m guessing the latter is hinting that in some area of the dungeon we’ll have to move secretly or silently – we’ll see.
There were a couple of interesting areas that I found on the 3rd dungeon level. One room held an empty sword case sitting upon a shelf. I tried experimenting with it by placing our various swords in the case, closing it, then opening it again, but nothing seems to happen. I’ll have to revisit this area. The other area was a dead-end hallway with a room ensconced upon the wall. One of my Rune Mages identified it as the Rune of Death. When this particular mage cast Perceive I was awarded with the following clue: “At the second portal the phrase SAFETY will not lead you to such” So it looks as if I was given a password there.
I currently find myself exploring and mapping the 4th dungeon level. I do not know how many dungeon levels there are.
One very interesting feature of this game can occur during combat. The party can sometimes be surprised and when the party IS surprised it might happen from the rear or the side. When this is the case my party of nine pivots to face the threat. What this does from a tactical standpoint is completely change the order of my characters. You see, only the first three characters in the marching order can enter melee combat. So depending on the direction of the threat, I may find that three of my spellcasters are suddenly imperiled. This can make combat a very tricky and suspenseful affair. Once combat is over, assuming my entire party has survived, I then have to reorder the party into their proper formation.
I am going to continue to map and explore the 4th dungeon level and then the 5th level, assuming there is one, and I will again check back in.
Until next time…