View source for Combat Shield and Mini-adventure

{{short description|Tabletop role-playing game supplement for Dungeons & Dragons}}
{{DnDmodule| module_title = ''Combat Shield and Mini Adventure''
|module_image =[[File:Combat Shield and Mini-adventure.jpg]]
|image_caption = The cover of The Combat Shield and Mini Adventure (Accessory AC2) shows three monsters gathered together (art by [[Jeff Easley]]).
|module_code = AC2
|tsr_product_code = 9099
|module_rules = ''[[Dungeons & Dragons Expert Set]]'' or Basic Set
|module_character_levels = 4-7
|module_campaign = Generic
|module_authors = [[David Cook (game designer)|David Cook]]
|module_first_published = 1984
|series = [[The Shady Dragon Inn|AC1]], '''AC2''', [[The Kidnapping of Princess Arelina|AC3]], [[The Book of Marvelous Magic|AC4]], [[Player Character Record Sheets|AC5]], [[Player Character Record Sheets|AC6]], [[Master Player Screen|AC7]], [[The Revenge of Rusak|AC8]], [[Creature Catalogue|AC9]], [[Bestiary of Dragons and Giants|AC10]], [[The Book of Wondrous Inventions|AC11]], [[Poor Wizard's Almanac and Book of Facts|AC1010]], [[Poor Wizard's Almanac and Book of Facts Vol.2|AC1011]]
}}

'''''AC2 Combat Shield and Mini-Adventure''''' is a 14-page [[Adventure (Dungeons & Dragons)|accessory]] designed for the Basic Set and Expert Set of the ''[[Dungeons & Dragons]]'' [[fantasy]] [[role-playing game]]. It was published in 1984 by [[TSR, Inc.]] and written by David Cook.

==Contents==
[[David Cook (game designer)|David Cook]] wrote ''Combat Shield and Mini-Adventure'' as a supplement with two purposes in mind. First it included a screen to hide a [[Gamemaster]]'s material and [[dice]] rolls during the course of play and provide useful tables for quick reference. Secondly, a small adventure, ''The Treasure of the Hideous One'', came in the same supplement.<ref name="HW">{{cite book
 | last = Schick
 | first = Lawrence
 | author-link = Lawrence Schick
 | title = Heroic Worlds
 | publisher = [[Prometheus Books]]
 | location = Buffalo, NY
 | year = 1991
 | isbn = 0-87975-653-5
 | page = 134 }}</ref>

===Combat Shield===
This DM's screen contains tables for the Basic and Expert ''D&D'' rules.<ref name="HW"/> The Combat Shield in this supplement is a precursor to far more elaborate [[GM screen]]s used today. It can be used with either/or the Basic or Expert set. It included tables for saving throws, [[rogue (Dungeons & Dragons)|thief abilities]], [[undead (Dungeons & Dragons)|undead]] turning, to-hit rolls, the combat sequence, monster experience tables, and player experience tables among other items.

===The Treasure of the Hideous One===

====Plot summary====
This adventure follows along relatively traditional paths. The group of [[player characters]] finds a message that indicates a long hidden treasure lies somewhere in a swampy region. An expedition led by an intrepid explorer attempted to find the treasure but came to an untimely end.

The group eventually fights their way through various enemies to secure the treasure and learn the fate of the original expedition. The module lists several possible treasures to choose as the final reward.

Despite the shortness of the adventure it requires a fairly advanced party because of the presence of Rosentos the [[Vampire (Dungeons & Dragons)|Vampire]].

==Publication history==
AC2 ''Combat Shield and Mini-Adventure'' was designed by [[David Cook (game designer)|David Cook]], with cover art by [[Jeff Easley]], and was published by TSR in 1984 as a cardstock screen with an 8-page pamphlet.<ref name="HW"/>

The ''10th Anniversary Dungeons & Dragons Collector's Set'' [[boxed set]], published by TSR in 1984, included the rulebooks from the [[Dungeons & Dragons Basic Set|Basic]], [[Dungeons & Dragons Expert Set|Expert]], and [[Dungeons & Dragons Companion Set|Companion]] sets; modules AC2, [[The Kidnapping of Princess Arelina|AC3]], [[In Search of the Unknown|B1]], [[The Keep on the Borderlands|B2]], and [[Blizzard Pass|M1, Blizzard Pass]]; [[Player Character Record Sheets]]; and dice; this set was limited to 1,000 copies, and was sold by mail and at [[GenCon]] 17.<ref name="HW"/>{{rp|147}}

==Reception==
Doug Cowie reviewed AC2 for ''[[Imagine (AD&D magazine)|Imagine]]'' magazine, giving it a positive review.<ref name="Imagine16a">{{cite journal  | last = Cowie| first = Doug| title =Game Reviews | type = review  | journal = [[Imagine (AD&D magazine)|Imagine]]  | issue = 16  | pages =40–41  | publisher = TSR Hobbies (UK), Ltd.  |date=July 1984  }}</ref> He particularly praised the looks of the product, singling out the cover art as finally offering a credible visual of the game's monsters. Cowie liked the functionality of the referee screen, noting the sensible choice of tables and the effort to create a single "to-hit" table for all character classes. However, he found the latter "quite difficult to read".<ref name="Imagine16a"/> Cowie also faulted the screen's three-page player side for containing not just the excellent cover and one page worth of information but also one page of "hype".<ref name="Imagine16a"/> Cowie thought the mini-adventure "rather good", "original and carefully thought out".<ref name="Imagine16a"/> According to him, the adventure alone was worth the price of the product, with the screen a "reasonably useful" bonus.<ref name="Imagine16a"/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{cite web|url=http://pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showbook&bookid=2482|archive-date=February 26, 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050226065429/http://www.pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showbook&bookid=2482|title=AC2 Combat Shield and Mini-Adventure|url-status=dead|publisher=Pen & Paper|access-date=July 26, 2020}}
* [http://www.tsrinfo.net/archive/dd/dd-ac2.htm AC2 Combat Shield] and [http://www.tsrinfo.net/archive/dd/dd-ac2-a.htm Mini-Adventure] at the TSR Archive.

{{D&D topics}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Combat Shield And Mini-Adventure}}
[[Category:Dungeons & Dragons modules]]
[[Category:Mystara]]
[[Category:Role-playing game supplements introduced in 1984]]