Do we really need another campaign where heroes push back the darkness and save a cursed kingdom from the forces of the Abyss? If that campaign is Hellwatch: Infernal Oath by Lion Banner Games then the answer is – if you’ll pardon the pun – a resounding Hell Yeah! This is the concept done in epic, lavish, and inspired form. It’s a masterpiece.

Long ago, a king entered a pact with a succubus to gain the throne through the murder of his brother, the rightful monarch. The demon was true to her word, the deed was done, a new king was crowned, but in recompense for the succubus’ assistance the kingdom fell under the sway of darkness. Crimson red consumed the sky, witchcraft flourished in every village, monsters emerged from hiding, and demons are attempting to enter from the infernal realms. This is the land of the PCs. This is the Accursed Kingdom.

Now the king grows weary with age. With no heir and an ailing kingdom, with the gates of Infernus unsealed, with death threatening to consume the land, things look bleak. But there is a glimmer of hope, and chance for salvation and perhaps even redemption. The PCs represent that hope for a brighter future. Will they succeed?

Hellwatch is a massive undertaking, at 320 pages. Its also ambitious. There is a web of plots to unwind and the scale is epic, taking characters from first level to 15th as the campaign culminates with a thrilling descend into Infernus. Along the way they will face a diverse range of threats and set pieces and journey from one end of the kingdom to another.

In some ways, Hellwatch reminds me of the classic Enemy Within campaign for Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (which, if you’re of a certain age, you know is high praise indeed). PCs are able to explore largely as they wish and yet there is a tightly woven chronology; no small feat, but one author Richard T. Carroll manages with aplomb. He also manages to develop a host of characters – some recurring, some perhaps less so – into people players will care for, which raise the stakes and make the set-pieces more dramatic. That said, Hellwatch can be tricky to run at times simply because of its scope and open nature. This campaign is best run in the hands of an experienced GM.

Supporting the campaign are a variety of specially crafted sub-rules. Kingdom Under Siege, for example, is a generation system to combat the infernal forces besieging and destroying the kingdom’s villages, towns, and cities. There will be battles to fight, lots of them. There are Nuisance rules, designed to allow higher level characters fight and kill lowly opponents in droves. Later, as characters descend into Infernus, Materia Obscura comes into play - they will be tainted by the essence of the Abyss, which can grant them new powers, but at the cost of corrupting their body and soul.

Hellwatch: Infernal Oath presents a host of new options to enable players to create characters thematically suitable for the campaign. These include several background, a bunch of new spells, and sic fantastic, well-balanced new classes: War Marshall (commander on the battlefield), Delver of the Abyss (wielder of magic that comes from infernal realms), Judge of Absolution (inquisitor), Lightbringer (cleric of the God of Light, shedding light on the darkness of the world), Convict (a n’er-do-well that exists on the fringes of society), and Magi (latest in a long line of magic wielders).

There is some stunning artwork and the book’s cartography is formidable and evocative. The formatting is crystal clear, praise should be heaped on the layout because, for the most part, things are where you need them to be.

Bonus content that comes with the digital download includes a well-designed character sheet, world map, STL miniatures, soundtrack, and an extensive bestiary. In this light, the price tag is more than a steal.

Hellwatch: Infernal Oath summons up a whole glove of abyssal awesome and slaps you in the face with it. Its an excellent campaign, delivering the epic storyline that you’d expect, but also with a remarkable level of player agency that you might not.

I enjoyed the storyline and the ending made me think about how to achieve it.

The outside maps are really nice, but the inside maps are slightly tilted so the walls can't line up with a grid if you are using a VTT without some work. Also, all of the files are greater than 20 mb, so you can't use them on roll20.

Beautiful maps!

However, advertises FoundyVTT support, but there are no wall and lightning files included and the perspective makes it very hard to make real VTT battlemaps (including vision and cover) out of it.

Beautiful maps!

However, advertises FoundyVTT support, but there are no wall and lightning files included and the perspective makes it very hard to make real VTT battlemaps (including vision and cover) out of it.

Beautiful maps!

However, advertises FoundyVTT support, but there are no wall and lightning files included and the perspective makes it very hard to make real VTT battlemaps (including vision and cover) out of it.

Beautiful maps!

However, advertises FoundyVTT support, but there are no wall and lightning files included and the perspective makes it very hard to make real VTT battlemaps (including vision and cover) out of it.

Beautiful maps!

However, advertises FoundyVTT support, but there are no wall and lightning files included and the perspective makes it very hard to make real VTT battlemaps (including vision and cover) out of it.

Beautiful maps!

However, advertises FoundyVTT support, but there are no wall and lightning files included and the perspective makes it very hard to make real VTT battlemaps (including vision and cover) out of it.

Beautiful maps!

However, advertises FoundyVTT support, but there are no wall and lightning files included and the perspective makes it very hard to make real VTT battlemaps (including vision and cover) out of it.

Beautiful maps!

However, advertises FoundyVTT support, but there are no wall and lightning files included and the perspective makes it very hard to make real VTT battlemaps (including vision and cover) out of it.

I bought this as a complete Foundry module. From the description I thought it would be a ready-to-play adventure, but it really is not. There is a ton of lore, which is great. But the maps (I count 84, not the 100+ advertised) are disappointing. The majority of them are single room battle arenas, formed from a background image with simple boundary walls. I don't see a single door on any of the maps. Or roofs, etc. The background images are cool, but very busy and I suspect they would be difficult to use because it would be hard to see tokens. There is one more complicated multi-level-looking scene of a mine, that has only the map exterior wall and nothing else set. The scenes do not have enemies placed except a few bosses, and there are no journal entries linked/marked on the maps. There is one world overview map, and there are multiple locations apparent on the background image, but again no journal entries linked and no labels, so the DM apparently needs to figure it out from the text somehow. This would probably be good as a book. However, it feels to me like the maps and VTT integration were an afterthought.

As a backer of this project, the book's paper quality, artwork, and writing merit a five-star rating.

Here's what I'm looking for in a VTT map, and here's how this piece measures up.

• No margins or borders: Check
• Exact square dimensions in the product description (so it can easily be aligned to grid): Check
• Easily discernible terrain & feature: Check
• Low file size (so I don't have to mess with it to import): Check
• Attractive: Check

I used this a few times in my Cyberpunk RED actual play campaign, Red Sky City, and it worked really well. Recommended.

High quality map, easy to import into VTT (no annoying borders or margins). Clean but evocative art. I used this in my Cyberpunk RED actual play campaign, Red Sky City, and it worked extremely well. Easy buy at a great price.