The Sunken Shrine of Ahmenkatja[neverwintervault.org]

For those times when you're intimidated by all those epic length campaigns and just have an hour or so to spare, but you'd still like a full story with a balanced mix of well-written conversations, puzzles and combat.

A Dance With Rogues (Part 1 & 2)[neverwintervault.org]

Still the best RPG ever - great storytelling, and an excellent showcase for the Rogue class.

Erotic content - think "Game of Thrones" not "Harry Potter".

Alestorm BOTD: A long time ago,
its a team vs. team game and is fun and is worth checking out even if alone and no opponent is available, Doesn't apply to this list really but worth mentioning.
playing it alone is not as fun as against other players, but was the best in it's time, I dunno if It's currently available or what.

Originally posted by Proleric:

Erotic content - think "Game of Thrones" not "Harry Potter".

I thought it was more like "50 Shades of Grey" or something like that, as far as the level of erotic content is concerned, not just included but quite intrusive if you're not looking for that kind of entertainment. There's at least one scene in which sex is forced on the PC against her will as well. But the module is widely praised for story and gameplay, so it might pay off to just go along with it (unless one is explicitly interested in or turned off by that type of content).

Originally posted by solid_blob:

Alestorm BOTD: A long time ago

What does BOTD stand for? I can only find Alestorm LOTR[neverwintervault.org] on the Vault.

Threat of Dreams 1 & 2[neverwintervault.org]
An unfinished series, sadly, and a bit of an underdog, but worth checking out for its mysterious, dark and twisted atmosphere and setting. More Planescape Torment or Mask of the Betrayer than Baldur's Gate or Neverwinter Nights, but really its own thing. Also intended for rogue characters.

Originally posted by DrLoboto:

Originally posted by Proleric:

Erotic content - think "Game of Thrones" not "Harry Potter".

I thought it was more like "50 Shades of Grey" or something like that, as far as the level erotic content is concerned, not just included but quite intrusive if you're not looking for that kind of entertainment. There's at least one scene in which sex is forced on the PC against her will as well. But the module is widely praised for story and gameplay, so it might pay off to just go along with it (unless one is explicitly interested in or turned off by that type of content).

That scene is part of the backstory. Once you are past the intro there is no requirement for you to engage in sexual activity. There is always another way out. Yes, you will be presented with and propositioned for adult themes but one of the joys of this module is that you can usually deal with situations in a wide variety of ways: as a sneaky thief, a charming persuader, a flirt or a seductress... or ofc, if you really plan it out and employ traps and cunning and buffs, a straight up fight.

It stands alone as a module written for a female protagonist with the benefits and downsides of being a beautiful woman in a man's world. The engaging story, characters, romances and multiple solutions make it extremely replayable, and it's not just for rogue heavy characters. I have played with pure sorc, pure wiz (with pixies), W/F/Ro, BG/F/Ro, CL/Ro, W/As/SD, Ba/As/SD, M/Ro/SD, Ra/Ro and more. About the only class that makes no sense story wise is Druid.

In truth I could go on and on about how great this module is, but I have a Cl6/Ro2 who is about to go assassinate some Dhorn generals and she gets impatient when revenge is the dish of the day.

Have fun :)

Did I say Alestorm: BotD? I mean't to say Mike's: LotR.
Whatever, Same thing

Originally posted by Shia Luck:

*snip*

I found that module somewhat overrated myself - and I did try my best to get into it because of all the praise it seemed to get. It seemed confusing, extremely slow and the constant threat of your character being forced on no matter where you go and what you do was a bit much.

I ended up having to "cheese" the castle (not the beginning of the game - I mean the bandit castle) to avoid being forced upon by simply exiting the conversation before I got dragged away as the fight was absolutely impossible, despite a well built character. I then had to enter the sewers, which were all locked with a key and no hint as to how to get in - after spending hours sodding about I finally gave in and said "it's not for me".

Each to their own I suppose.

EE2 - Excrucio Eternum[neverwintervault.org]
A grand story-driven adventure in which you have to escape from a nightmarish asylum. But in order to do this, you must first help the other inmates by entering their minds and figuring out what's wrong with them. A bit dark and twisted as well, but unique and quite gripping, IIRC. I've played it more than a decade ago, so I don't remember all the details, but I do remember that it left me very impressed at the time and that it was a very satisfying story and puzzle experience, with quite a bit of combat as well. Technically, it is the sequel to EE1 - Elegia Eternum, which I found far, far inferior to the sequel, and there isn't all that much backstory that will be referred to in EE2, so you might as well skip it, but I think it's rather short, so for completeness' sake you could also get through it quickly, just remember that it's rather run-of-the-mill and nowhere near representative of the quality in EE2.

Originally posted by Shia Luck:

Have fun :)

As an expert on ADWR, have you completely played trough it with the EE? The module page comments suggest there are some issues with it.

To add to Shia Luck's post on ADwR, I'll add that it works fantastically well with the quirks of the D&D system. The incredibly weak low level character you start with fits admirably lore-wise, making you weak, highly vulnerable, and pushing you to go out of your way to avoid any kind of confrontation (apart from the intro scene, every single lewd encounter can be avoided). Late Part 1 and even more so in Part 2, once you have a proper character build after going through so much, you have a lot more options, which also feels right.

EE-wise, I had a couple mishaps, but nothing that can't be fixed with either a quick reload (some minor dialogue trees bug out) or a quick console command (things like spawning a missing NPC, respawning missing bags from your retrieved stolen equipment...). The module wiki has a Troubleshooting section with the most common problems and solutions.

Ultimately, even if a lot of the adult content is avoidable, there's no escaping the fact that it's always lurking around the corner and is extremely graphical in its writing. So it's absolutely not a module for children. It's a great rogue module, but not for everyone.

For a quality rogue experience without the lewd bits, there's Honor Among Thieves (vault link: https://neverwintervault.org/project/nwn1/module/honor-among-thieves ).

Originally posted by Fishy:

(apart from the intro scene, every single lewd encounter can be avoided).

Actually getting involved with the NPCs can be avoided, but not that almost everyone will make lewd comments and try to get in your pants, from what I've seen. Like you said, it's definitely not for everyone, and therefor I think the above is worth mentioning when recommending it.

Thanks for the comment on the EE. That doesn't sound like stuff I'd like to deal with. If these issues are EE-related, I guess I'd better try and play it with 1.69 instead.

Originally posted by DrLoboto:

EE2 - Excrucio Eternum[neverwintervault.org]
A grand story-driven adventure in which you have to escape from a nightmarish asylum. But in order to do this, you must first help the other inmates by entering their minds and figuring out what's wrong with them. A bit dark and twisted as well, but unique and quite gripping, IIRC. I've played it more than a decade ago, so I don't remember all the details, but I do remember that it left me very impressed at the time and that it was a very satisfying story and puzzle experience, with quite a bit of combat as well. Technically, it is the sequel to EE1 - Elegia Eternum, which I found far, far inferior to the sequel, and there isn't all that much backstory that will be referred to in EE2, so you might as well skip it, but I think it's rather short, so for completeness' sake you could also get through it quickly, just remember that it's rather run-of-the-mill and nowhere near representative of the quality in EE2.

Wow, I'm on different games, right now, and wish I could restart NWN. Surely the above will be my first module to play. I played it so long ago, and man, I still remember the anxious music !
Pure gem.

Originally posted by DrLoboto:

Originally posted by Shia Luck:

Have fun :)

...have you completely played trough it with the EE? The module page comments suggest there are some issues with it.

I have. There is a doorway that has somehow transformed into an area transition but there's nothing game breaking. (IF there was treasure in the room beyond I don't particularly remember it, but I haven't compared to 1.69, because it's not an issue.)

Excrucio Eternum sounds fantastic. :)

Originally posted by Fishy:

To add to Shia Luck's post on ADwR, I'll add that it works fantastically well with the quirks of the D&D system. The incredibly weak low level character you start with fits admirably lore-wise, making you weak, highly vulnerable, and pushing you to go out of your way to avoid any kind of confrontation (apart from the intro scene, every single lewd encounter can be avoided). Late Part 1 and even more so in Part 2, once you have a proper character build after going through so much, you have a lot more options, which also feels right.

That says it better than I did.

Have fun :)

EDIT: The doorway used to lead to a room where you could rest. The new transition leads you to a different room where you can rest. Soooo, functionally the same.

EDIT2: BTW, at the end of part 1 it tells you to use a gem rather than manually transferring all the gear you might have given your companions to yourself. That doesn't work as Pt2 didnt get that update so grab all the gear onto yourself and export your character.

Almraiven[neverwintervault.org]

For spellcasters, it doesn't get any better than this. Great story, with extraordinary attention to detail visually.

@Fishy - glad you mentioned Honor Among Thieves, too