The 24 Best Dungeons & Dragons Adventures In D&D History, Ranked
Summary
- The Light of Xaryxis offers a unique space-opera twist to traditional medieval D&D adventures in an episodic format.
- Critical Role: Call of the Netherdeep provides lore-rich gameplay and fun fantasy-horror elements set underwater.
- The Isle of Dread offers freedom of exploration in a vast tropical island, diverging from typical dungeon crawls.
Dungeons & Dragons has been around since 1974 when Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson created it as an alternative to traditional tabletop wargames. Each player made a fantasy character and then the dungeon master guided them through a story, testing their mettle against monsters and NPCs.
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PostsSome DMs built their own stories from the ground up, but D&D also has a long history of releasing pre-stories and settings for characters to explore. These adventures vary wildly in theme, tone, and sometimes quality, but can prove fantastic for any table. Here are some of the best D&D adventures of all time.
Updated February 24, 2025 by Jack Filsinger: There's never been a better time to run a module for your Dungeons & Dragons table. From old classics to revamped modern takes on timeless adventures, there are so many fantastic DND modules for you to choose from. We've updated this list to include some additional options, as well as updated some information on adventures like Curse of Strahd to make sure you know just which modules are the best of all time.
24 The Light Of Xaryxis
Light of Xaryxis by Ekaterina BurmakPublished
Written By
Levels
August 16th, 2022
Jeff Grubb
5-8
The whole Spelljammer anthology uses a space-opera aesthetic to put a new twist on the old style of medieval European D&D adventures. Add some pirate intrigue to that, and you have The Light of Xaryxis module.
This unique adventure is designed to take characters through an episodic storyline as their characters progress, with each exciting chapter ending on a cliffhanger. It's part of a much larger boxed set that contains even more options for the sci-fi-minded hero, Spelljammer: Adventures in Space. These adventures have been in circulation since the late '80s, but only recently were they released as part of a boxed set that also included a bestiary and an Astral Adventurers Guide.
23 Critical Role: Call Of The Netherdeep
Published
Written By
Levels
March 15, 2022
James J. Haeck, Makenzie De Armas, LaTia Jacquise, Cassandra Khaw, and Sadie Lowry
3-12
The most recent entry in the D&D adventure library, Critical Role: Call of the Netherdeep stands alone as its own adventure, as the Dungeon Master decides, but it's also intended to tie in with the second season of the web series Critical Role. There's a ticking clock as well, with a rival party after the same goal as the main characters.
There's a lot of story and lore to discover here, and the D&D module is an extensive one that's intended to take an average character from 3rd to 12th level. Part of what makes this module great is the sheer amount of fun things to do in this unique setting, which mixes fantasy and horror with an underwater theme.
22 The Isle Of Dread
Reality Break Spell by Brian ValezaPublished
Written By
Levels
1981
David Cook and Tom Moldvay
4-14
This classic D&D module is probably one of the most widely circulated D&D adventures in history. This is because a copy of the adventure was included in the D&D Expert Set. Along with this new scope, The Isle of Dread gives players and dungeon masters a completely new type of gameplay focus: wilderness exploration.
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PostsMost D&D adventures up to this point were of the dungeon-crawling variety. The Isle of Dread, however, was a vast tropical island for characters to explore. The overall plot isn't very deep, but what sets this module apart is the freedom players have. They're welcome to go anywhere on the island, encounter several civilizations (of human and nonhuman races), and battle against new monsters like "kopru," and even dinosaurs.
21 Book Of The Raven
Candlekeep Mysteries Cover Art by Clint CearleyPublished
Written By
Levels
March 16th, 2021
Christopher Perkins
3
One of the many adventures included in the Candlekeep Mysteries anthology, this is one of the modules intended for lower-level players. To add to the creative intrigue of this unique module, you can only find it while researching the Vistani. other planar travelers, and possible routes into and out of the Shadowfell. A raven could also bring the book to you, and should the party choose, they can use the treasure map hidden within to create their own adventure instead of using the existing one.
The Book of the Raven doesn't have a title, but the backstory about how it arrived in the Candlekeep library involves a raven, hence the obvious name. The book is written like a diary, detailing the story of a young woman, how she broke her leg, and her rescue by a kind group of passing Visanti. The story comes to a mysterious ending outside of a dark castle.
20 Expedition To The Barrier Peaks
Dragonlance - Shadow of the Dragon by Wizards of the CoastPublished
Written By
Levels
1980
Gary Gygax
8-12
When you picture a Dungeons & Dragons game, you probably have a very specific aesthetic in mind. Classic sword and sorcery fare, complete with pseudo-medieval European vibes. What made Expedition to the Barrier Peaks so special was it took that classic feeling and threw it headfirst into a science fiction setting.
Characters in this D&D module set off into the mountains to find the source of the monsters plaguing a nearby duchy. Instead of a cave, what they find is the entrance to a crashed spaceship, still full of semi-functional robots and other alien creatures. This makes for such a unique and memorable adventure that many old-school players still count it among their favorites.
19 Tomb Of Annihilation
Dungeons & Dragons Tomb of Annihilation Illustration By Jedd ChevrierPublished
Written By
Levels
September 8, 2017
Chris Perkins, Will Doyle, Steve Winter
1-11
Centered around a magical contagion that causes anyone who dies to be brought back from the dead, Tomb of Annihilation is an exploration-based module set in the ancient jungles of Chult. This module has plenty to offer new and seasoned players alike. Between hack-and-slash jungle exploration and some of the best dungeon crawls in the history of the franchise, there's plenty to enjoy here.
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PostsThere are some caveats worth highlighting in this adventure. If you and your table are not so big on random encounters, this might be one to skip. Most of the gameplay involves moving across a hexagonal map very slowly, dealing with random encounter after random encounter.
18 Castle Amber
City of Splendors: Waterdeep by Scott M. FischerPublished
Written By
Levels
1981
Tom Moldvay
3-6
The second adventure to be designed for use with the Expert Set, this module embroils characters in the drama of the Amber family. The party is drawn to a castle surrounded by a thick, deadly mist. The mist is the result of a curse laid by the dead wizard Stephen Amber, as a punishment for his family for murdering him. Of course, it also traps the players' characters. The only way to escape is to explore the castle, frequently encountering the rest of the Amber family, who seem to be a few scrolls short of a spellbook.
The chaotic nature of the module didn't appeal to everyone. Some players considered it too random, where a literal roll of the dice could be deadly for the entire party. The D&D module has been described as similar to the work of both Edgar Allen Poe and Lovecraft. Despite the brutal difficulty, many still love the adventure for the atmosphere of the setting.
17 The Sunless Citadel
Sunless Citadel, D&D module 3e cover art by Todd LockwoodPublished
Written By
Levels
2000
Bruce Cordell
1st and up
Players more interested in a traditional D&D experience will enjoy The Sunless Citadel, especially if they're getting used to the myriad of changes that came with the 3rd edition. The game is straightforward to keep the learning curve less traumatic, which is ideal for players not only new to this edition but to the game entirely.
Experienced players might get bored, but the underlying story is fairly interesting, a step up from the usual generic fantasy adventure. That being said, however, this module has a generic dungeon with a not-so-generic dragon at the end.
16 The Sinister Secret Of Saltmarsh
Ghosts of Saltmarsh cover art via Wizards Of The CoastPublished
Written By
Levels
1981
Dave J. Browne and Don Turnbull
1-3
The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh was an introduction to a brand-new underwater campaign. Players explore the sinister haunted mansion on the outskirts of a town called Saltmarsh and learn the secrets of the evil alchemist that lived there.
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Posts 1The D&D module incorporated horror elements but framed it as more of a mystery that players were trying to solve. It placed a lot of focus on investigation and problem-solving instead of run-of-the-mill dungeon crawling.
15 The Wild Beyond The Witchlight
Witchlight Carnival by Tyler JacobsonPublished
Written By
Levels
September 21, 2021
Chris Perkins, Stacey Allan, Will Doyle, and Ari Levitch
1-8
The first D&D adventure to take place in the various planes of reality that make up the Feywild, the players are tasked with defeating the evil hags as Dungeon Masters take them through various planes of altered reality on their journey.
It's not just the unique adventure and setting that make this one of the best D&D adventures, but also the new additions to the D&D lore in the form of two new playable races; the Fairy and the Harengon. Other new additions include the ability to resolve virtually every conflict with a non-violent solution.
