We’re a full week into the new year, but we still have something to say about 2018. It was another great year for fans of Dungeon Crawl Classics, filled with great product both new and old. To help show you what went on with us, here’s a recap of best selling DCC modules from Goodman Games for 2018. This list includes distribution channels as well as direct channels (like our online store or DriveThruRPG.com). We previously posted lists of our best selling third party products (both zines and other titles) to show you how the year went for others. Today’s list rounds out those to give you a sense of what the most popular DCC products were for the past twelve months. If you need a DCC module to play, this is a great place to start!
This list does not include DCC-compatible settings like the 2017 holiday module, New Year’s Evil, which was a DCC-compatible Xcrawl adventure. New Year’s Evil would have made the Top 20 list if we included it, but it didn’t qualify. The list below also does not include Mutant Crawl Classics. Several MCC modules would have made the Top 20 had we included them. Finally, the list does not include items that have not shipped yet, like the DCC Lankhmar Kickstarter products.
These sorts of lists are often dominated by recent releases (what we in the industry call “front list” items). It’s particularly impressive when an older item (what we call “back list”) makes the best-sellers list. Many DCC modules continue to remain popular, day after day, year after year, and you can see that in the lists below. If we extended this to top 30 or even top 50, you might be impressed how many modules that are many years old continue to sell steadily. It’s a testament to the popularity of these timeless modules!
So without further ado, here are the best selling DCC modules of 2018!
#1: DCC #97: The Queen of Elfland’s Son
Writer Michael Curtis doesn’t disguise his influence with this module, with a nod towards Lord Dunsany in both the title and the plot of this best-seller for 2018.
Strange attacks in the night plague the people of Eng. Slaughter and shadows keep the villagers inside after dark. Mighty adventurers are needed to seek out the source of these threats and stop them for good. This quest will take the heroes to the very borders of Elfland and pit them against the cruelty of the Unseelie Court of Faerie. Will the heroes overcome the machinations of the Queen of Elfland or will they fall victim to the glamours and wiles of Elfland’s malicious nobility?
#2: DCC #67: Sailors on the Starless Sea
An introductory adventure, Sailors on the Starless Sea pits a mob of 0-level adventurers against the legacy of the Chaos Lords and their corrupted hordes. Delving beneath the crumbling ruins, the characters discover ancient crypts, a starless sea, and an ancient ziggurat, where death and treasure await in equal measure!
Note that this includes all editions, such as the Atari edition released at Gen Con 2018, as well as the digest size, in addition to the standard format edition. Nonetheless, it’s impressive that it keeps selling so steadily.
#3: DCC #98: Imprisoned in the God-Skull
Sporting a fabulous new cover by the legendary Erol Otus, Imprisoned in the God-Skull puts Michael Curtis back in the top five for the second time for 2018.
Imprisoned in the God-Skull is a 6th level Dungeon Crawl Classic adventure born from the extraordinary artist genius of Erol Otus and the fantastical writings of Michael Curtis. The two have joined forces and conceived a DCC RPG adventure that is, quite literally, out of this world!
#4: DCC #96: The Tower of Faces
The Tower of Faces was selected as the winner of the Rodneys Design Award, OSR track, at Gamehole Con 2016. Goodman Games is proud to have the opportunity to publish this exciting adventure!
The adventurers have been summoned to a mysterious black tower made of glass. They are given a simple mission: protect the mage’s estate while he is distracted weaving a mighty spell. Surviving the five days of his spell casting requires quick wits and sharp blades, for the estate has mischievous guests and strange visitors. In the end, the mage demands one final task: stand by his side as he binds a great horror from beyond!
#5: The Black Heart of Thakulon the Undying (2018 Gen Con Program Guide)
Building on the immense popularity of the Dungeon Crawl Classics Team Tournament at Gen Con in 2017, the program guide this year “presents” Dungeon Crawl Classics: The Black Heart Of Thakulon the Undying. This double-sized DCC adventure comes complete with pre-generated characters and scoring instructions so fans can run their own tournament at home!
This product is the result of hundreds of people playing at Gen Con in our Open Tournament (and you can check out the results of that tournament here!), and is one of the best-selling Gen Con Program Guides we’ve ever published! You can also pick up the special version that comes without any text or branding on the cover to hide Doug Kovacs’ fantastic artwork!
#6: DCC #81: The One Who Watches From Below
The One Who Watches From Below remains one of our most popular adventures, and this year went into its second printing. This adventure is the winner of the Mystery Map Adventure Design Competition. There were many great submissions to the competition, but Jobe Bittman’s stood out above them all. This adventure has a strong Appendix N theme, unique encounters that your players will remember for a long time, many highly visual scenes that will stand out in your players’ minds, and some terrific twists and turns. It also features one of the most creative player handouts you have ever seen. Prepare for a very fun time. We think you’ll enjoy this adventure as much as we did.
The second printing includes an additional 8 pages of new content, with a complete patron description for Shigazilnizthrub plus three new spells. The cover for the second printing also has the title printed in metallic foil.
#7: DCC 2018 Halloween Module: The Corpse That Love Built
The 2018 Halloween module is a classic horror adventure steeped in appendix N and Hammer Horror references, with great visuals created by the author and beautifully depicted by the artists. This is really a great adventure all the way around, and it’s especially impressive that it made the top 20 list since it’s only been on sale for a couple months!
This level 2 adventure is a story of Gothic horror which pits the characters against monstrosities created by an ancient madman. Will the characters be able to survive the macabre horrors found in the laboratories that spawned The Corpse that Love Built!
#8: DCC 2017 Halloween Module: The Shadow Under Devil’s Reef
Everybody seems to love a Halloween adventure, as this is the second holiday module makes the list! And this Lovecraft-themed adventure continues to sell even outside of the Halloween time frame.
A raging storm has made the waters around Devil’s Reef impossible to navigate safely. The noble galleon, The Royal Dawn, has run aground and Princess Kaeko from faraway Fu-Lamia is now missing! Untold riches and glory await those who successfully find the princess and safely deliver her to Black Sand Port. As the greedy and ambitious adventurers set out to find the princess, their thoughts linger on the few Royal Dawn survivors that washed up on the beach with bodies that were corrupted by strange frog-like mutations. What kind of evil awaits the adventurers on that forbidden island?
#9 DCC #94: Neon Knights
Ten thousand flawless killers surround the city. Utterly silent in battle and in death, they seem unconquerable. They mean to choke the life out of the age-old city and leave it an empty ruin.
The city calls upon its heroes to defeat this unnatural menace. The heroes gather to ponder the question: how do you defeat an impregnable foe?
And then a wizard from a far-off world whisks the heroes away to fight battle of a very different sort, leaving them with a strange neon pink glow around their eyes…
#10 DCC #89: Chaos Rising
This compilation collects seven DCC adventures previously published in hard-to-find other editions. Each short adventure is suitable for a single session. Collectively they provide adventures for characters up to 5th level!
The compilation includes these adventures:
- Elzemon and the Blood-Drinking Box
- The Imperishable Sorceress
- Glipkerio’s Gambit
- The Tower Out of Time
- The Jeweler That Dealt in Stardust
- The Undulating Corruption
- The Infernal Crucible of Sezrekan the Mad
#11 DCC #95: Enter the Dagon
With its tournament roots (grounded in two spell duel tourneys run at Gen Con ) and homage to 1970’s kung fu culture, it’s a natural for DCC fans!
Wizards and elves will be tested to the fullest of their abilities. To triumph, parties must also survive the machinations of the other contenders and their wicked retinues. For when vying for the title of Master of Dagon, and battling against some of the most powerful sorcerers to tread the Known Worlds, you will need every advantage you can glean. Will you and your companions sit passively by, awaiting whatever fate befalls you? Or will you take the fight to your foes?
#12 DCC #80: Intrigue at the Court of Chaos
In its 2nd printing and a classic example of the dimension-spanning adventures possible in a low-level DCC adventure. This classic module is now in its 2nd printing, with awesome new cover art by Russ Nicholson. This printing also includes a new backup adventure, War Pit of the Chaos Wizards.
This module has the PCs abducted by the Court of Chaos, and the adventurers face hard choices if they want to return home. The Host of Chaos desires a legendary artifact held by the Scions of Law and need patsies to retrieve it. Faced with an eternity of servitude, the party must sneak into the Plane of Law and steal the Yokeless Egg from under its guardians’ watch. But not all is what it appears when the Court of Chaos is concerned and serving the Host may destroy the party from within. Can they survive the Intrigue At the Court of Chaos?
#13 DCC #86: Hole in the Sky
Funnels are always popular, and this is the second 0-level to make the list!
The Lady in Blue, a mysterious figure of cosmic power, enlists a band of simple peasants for a strange task. They are to follow an invisible bridge until they arrive at a hole in the sky – and then jump through. Death awaits all but the bravest, strongest, and luckiest, but the Lady offers a reward beyond all the riches of the world: the chance to change the very stars these peasants were born under, and thus change their destiny.
#14 DCC #93: Moon-Slaves of the Cannibal Kingdom
Chocked full of Appendix N references, this module pits adventurers against a king-sized challenge!
Far to the west, beyond civilized lands, lie the Tolomak Islands— volcanic peaks covered in pestilential jungle and bestriding sunken ruins. The legends say the Tolomaks are home to treacherous witches, ferocious cannibals, moon demons, and worse! Wise are those who steer well away from these accursed jungle isles, but not everyone is wise… For the legends also speak of power unimaginable and treasures beyond the limits of mortal avarice. Now, under the light of the triple moons, a band of intrepid adventurers sails ever nearer the islands. With luck, they will escape with a fortune; without it, they may not keep their souls.
#15 DCC #68: The People of the Pit
Another “modern classic” makes the list! People of the Pit is one of the very first DCC modules released, yet continues to sell steadily to this day.
It has been years since the last virgin was sacrificed: and now the pit beast awakens once more! Every generation it stumbles forth on undulating tentacles from its resting place deep below the great ravine, its towering blubbery mass ravaging the land before returning to slumber for decades. But this time is different. The Great Beast strikes with intelligence: bands of faceless gray-robed men emerge from the tenebrous depths, herding the beast’s roaming tentacles before them. The enigmatic people of the pit live despite the passage of ages! The earth shakes each night as they herd the primordial tentacles ever further, while the villagers ask: is any man brave enough to put the sword to this menace?
#16 DCC #70: Jewels of the Carnifex
In 2018 this module entered its 2nd printing, with some awesome new cover art by Peter Mullen.
Set amid the sprawling decadence of Punjar, Jewels of the Carnifex offers low-level adventurers a chance to plumb the mysteries beneath the city’s soiled streets, explore forgotten crypts lavished with weird artifacts, and – for the quick and daring – claim the lost Jewels of the Carnifex!
The second printing also includes the bonus adventure, Lost in the Briars, by Brendan LaSalle — an exciting romp through the woods. Woods controlled by an evil treant intent on completing a diabolic ritual!
#17 DCC 2014 Holiday Module: Trials of the Toy Makers
To some extent the holiday modules and Halloween modules are hard to sell in distribution channels due to their very limited selling window. And we at Goodman Games haven’t been consistent about keeping them in print, either, since we originally intended them for limited release windows. But many retailers seem to have made this an annual tradition. Several of the holiday modules were restocked by retailers this year, and the 2014 holiday module in particular was restocked extensively. (If we included Xcrawl adventures in this best sellers list, the 2017 Xcrawl holiday module, New Year’s Evil, would have made the top 20 as well.)
#18 DCC #92.5: Dread on Demon Crown Hill
This is definitely a unique entry on the list. It’s presence in the top 20 is fueled exclusively by distribution sales, since this module is only available in stores! Support your FLGS and order a copy through them today!
Long ago, Frygorix of the Thousand Lies, a foul demon, ruled with fear from atop a lonely tor, spreading death and plague across the land. Two brave siblings, one bearing an enchanted shield of great power, challenged the demon, vowing to slay it and free the land. In their climactic battle, black towers of six-sided stone arose from the hilltop, an eerie outcropping called the Demon Crown by some. Stories hold that the shield lies untouched within the Demon Crown, but who knows what else might dwell within those weird, dark pillars of unearthly rock?
#19 DCC #92: Through the Dragonwall
Embroiled in a curse from the dawn of history, you have become pawns in a cosmic struggle between the King of Elfland and the ancient dragon-god, Baphotet Kor. Will you stand with the last Empress? Will you face the dreaded Bone Dragon? Or will your bones lie bleached beneath an unchanging sky? This adventure is a test of player skill that will push characters to the edge and beyond…through the Dragonwall.
#20: DCC #91: Journey to the Center of Áereth
The stories have reached you: A world beneath our own, lit by a brilliant sun and ruled by sages beyond reproach, where magic has replaced the spoken word, the weakest slave is like unto a superman, and the domes gleam with hammered gold.
You’ve spilled enough blood to know better.
Your trek to discover the truth will take you through endless caverns, ancient causeways and along unknown rivers. An expedition worthy of true explorers, Journey to the Center of Áereth offers characters the adventure of a lifetime – or the means to a quick doom. The Journey awaits!
This adventure is supplemented with two additional modules in the series: DCC #91.1: The Lost City of Barako and DCC #91.2: Lairs of Lost Agharta.
That’s quite a list! And just a drop in the bucket, when you look at all of the options currently available from us. We encourage you to check out all of our modules at your FLGS or in our online store!
