How to Choose Your Next 5e Dungeons and Dragons Campaign: Out of the Abyss

 I've been DMing, playing, and reading fifth edition adventures since the launch of the edition. I decided to write some guides that DMs can use to can use to choose their next adventure. I'll post one at a time, then tackle them as a whole at the end. 

Out of the Abyss

Summary

Out of the Abyss is a Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition adventure published by Wizards of the Coast in September 2015. Designed for characters of levels 1-15, the adventure takes players on a journey through the treacherous Underdark. The story begins with the player characters captured by drow slavers, who must then escape and find their way through the Underdark. As they navigate the perils of this dark realm, they'll encounter a variety of iconic creatures from the D&D universe, such as mind flayers and beholders. The overarching plot revolves around the rise of demonic forces, led by the Demon Lords, who have been unleashed upon the Underdark, and it is up to the players to stop their chaotic rampage and save the world from utter destruction.

My Experience

Out of the Abyss was my first fifth edition adventure as a player. I played Zaecharr Xolarrin, an amoral drow necromancer. After playing it, I read the adventure. 

Why You Should Run It

• If you like demon lords and/or the Underdark, this is the adventure for you. 
• There are a lot of interesting locations and locales. The Underdark setting makes it feel different than a lot of DnD campaigns. 
• It hits many of the "must see" Underdark sites: Menzobarranzon, Gracklstugh, Blingdenstone, and the less known but still very cool Neverlight Grove. 
• Some great set pieces involving evading or fighting demon lords. 

Why You Should Skip It

• As written it saddles the party with too many NPCs to manage that feel cumbersome. As a DM, you are better off only focusing on a few NPCs. The myconid Stool was a favorite of our group. 
• You fight a lot of demon lords, and by and large they are pushovers for experienced and relatively optimized groups. My wizard dropped over half the demon lords we faced in the campaign with upcast magic missiles.  
• The opening involves the characters being captured by drow slavers. Some groups will not like that framing. Its a good open to the adventure, but you need to make sure your group is comfortable with including slavery in their game, or change the opening. 
• There is an interesting halfway point where its very possible for a party to opt out of the second part of the campaign, after their initial escape from the Underdark. Think hard about this adventure if you have a contrarian who is more interested in following their interests than the story laid in front of them.  

What You Should Repurpose From It

Neverlight Grove and the Fetid Wedding were favorites for our group, but I am not sure how easy it is to reuse them. If you are running some flavor of an Underdark campaign, there is plenty of useful stuff here, but for the average overland Forgotten Realms campaign, this adventure is less flexible from a reusability standpoint.