Play Report: Castle Amber

  Every Halloween we pick a classic module and run through it as a one-off, non-campaign adventure (usually - I fit the Hidden Shrine into the campaign). The players make holograms (i.e., 'above first level characters') and off we go.
  This year the selection was Castle Amber.
  Castle Amber is one odd module: the opening might as well have been made by CSX because it is railroad all the way. Then after a castle/dungeon crawl opening it turns into an overland sandbox where the party could spend months looking for items that allow them to return to a dungeon and finally escape the railroad open.
  You have really high level NPCs doing odd things for no clear motive and random encounters include a Shape Changed gold dragon as set dressing. There are two new intelligent humanoid raced. No, three. No, maybe four. Are the creatures made in vats golems? Are they a new race? Does each version count separately?
  It is set in the real world but in a fictional part of France during the Medieval Period, sorta'.

  Castle Amber is very famously based on some of the short stories of Clark Ashton Smith and Zelazny's Amber series. The comet, beast, colossus, fictional French region, and more are Smith. The pattern, magical cards, odd family, and more are Zelazny.

Spoilers for books and the module Castle Amber follow!