Expedition To The Barrier Peaks - Publication History

Publication History

While D&D is a fantasy roleplaying game, Expedition to the Barrier Peaks introduces science fiction elements into the game. Work on the adventure began in 1976, when TSR was considering publishing a science fantasy role playing game. James M. Ward had shown them his rough notes on Metamorphosis Alpha. Gary Gygax thought it would be a good idea to introduce science fiction/science fantasy concepts to D&D players through the use of a tournament scenario at the 1976 Origins II gaming convention in Baltimore, Maryland. Gygax started with his old Greyhawk Castle campaign material and added a spaceship, which Rob Kuntz helped him populate with monsters. Kuntz is further credited for "inspiration" for the module; his "Machine Level" having been incorporated into Greyhawk Castle and Tim Kask having played in a D&D game with science fantasy content run by Kuntz at GenCon VII in 1974.

According to Gygax, both the scenario that became Expedition to the Barrier Peaks and Metamorphosis Alpha were successful at the convention. Although Metamorphosis Alpha became available to the general public in mid-1976, only a few copies of the Expedition to the Barrier Peaks tournament adventure survived after the convention.

When Metamorphosis Alpha was updated and expanded into Gamma World, it seemed the right time for Gygax to reintroduce Expedition to the Barrier Peaks to the public. Said Gygax, "What could be more logical than to make available a scenario which blends the two role playing approaches into a single form?" Gygax updated the scenario to Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (AD&D) rules, hoping it could serve as a primer on how to integrate science into one's fantasy role playing game. In 1980, the updated version was published as Expedition to the Barrier Peaks. At the time of Expedition to the Barrier Peaks's release, each Dungeons & Dragons module was marked with an alphanumeric code indicating the series to which it belonged. The 32-page adventure bears the code S3 ("S" for "special"). The module included a 36-page book and a 32-page book, with two outer folders; it was one of the first deluxe scenario modules, and included a book of illustrations intended to be shown to the players during the game, including four color paintings. This module was included as part of the Realms of Horror abridged compilation produced in 1987. Although an article on the Wizards.com web site did provide a conversion to Future Tech, the adventure never received an official sequel and was not updated for the D&D version 3.5 rules (Wizards of the Coast periodically alters the rules of Dungeons & Dragons and releases a new version). It was made into a novel of the same name by Roland J. Green for the Greyhawk Classics series. The adventure has also been referenced in the Nodwick comic series. Unlike the other S series adventures, Expedition to the Barrier Peaks was not included in the Dungeon Survival Guide by author Bill Slavicsek because to him it was a "wonderful adventure", but not "a D&D adventure. Once you add ray guns and power armor to the game, you have a fundamentally different experience." Other products that have introduced futuristic elements into D&D include the adventure City of the Gods (1987) and the novel Tale of the Comet (1997).