I just finished reading this adventure today, and am looking foeward to using it in one of my campaigns soon.
Kudos to Tim Hitchcock!
I especially liked the trap (I won't say where it occurs, since it may be a spoiler for some readers) and the ettercap in sheep's clothing (as it were).
Some very nice surprises in this adventure!
Absolutely. 145 seems like a landmark issue in terms of quality adventures (at least, in my mind). My favorite aspect of "The Distraction" are the nuggets of setting and future ideas that have been woven in there. The exiled prisoners that once served with the gnolls on the frontier (great origin for a PC or a villain), the blustering overreaching Duke that gets his people into more than they can handle and the open territory represented by the frontier and what the Fort may become in the face of future events.
Tim sure packed a lot of good gaming in his adventure, and you're right about potential for future use of the setting and its denizens.
Agreed! I freaking love this adventure! The gritty details, the tactics, the awesome encounters (I too LOVED the ettercap!), make it a truly stellar piece of work. Gnolls! Nice work Tim!
This looks like a great adventure!
I am running it Saturday only Dirty Dozen style. Using the option to set the prisoners from the nearby prison loose on the gnolls.
Hoping for some neat savage species style PCs, and maybe I'll get to finally see a small playtest of the Dragons by level rules!
Good job Tim!
-c