Freelance Traveller

In the Name of the Dawn

reviewed by Jeff Zeitlin

This article originally appeared in the January/February 2026 issue.

In the Name of the Dawn. Stephen J. Ellis
March Harrier Publishing https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/browse?keyword=march%20harrier%20publishing
32pp., PDF
US$5.99/UK£4.47

Reviewer’s Note: The publisher provided a complimentary copy of this product for review.

Mr Ellis has built a reputation for creating good adventures for TravCon (UK); several after-action reports from that convention over the years have spotlighted his work.

In the Name of the Dawn is written with four player-characters in mind, but includes a note about running this adventure with fewer, noting that it loses something if run with only two, but concedes that it’s possible. It is designed to fill a session at a convention such as TravCon (UK) or TravellerCON/USA (it was written for TravCon (UK) 2018).

The module is set on Dawnworld, a garden world near the borders of both the Third Imperium and the Sword Worlds Confederation. It is uncolonizable and uninhabited except for a monastery of the Church of the Stellar Divinity, but there are rumors – or perhaps legends – of great treasure hidden on the world. The residents of the monastery, including the player-characters, will suddenly find their lives disrupted by a shipful of Vargr pirates looking for the rumored treasure.

The author provides guidance on running this scenario; it’s not one that can be run ‘off the cuff’ after a casual read-through – the referee needs to be familiar with both the characters and the locations to be able to run this smoothly, and to encourage the player-characters to work effectively toward the goals of the scenario. The themes of secrecy, choice, and faith are specifically called out in this module; each of the player-characters – and the non-player-character Abbot in charge of the monastery – has an important secret, and how, when, and whether they choose to reveal their secrets can have significant implications for the outcome of the adventure, and for the personal stories of each of the player-characters.

Act I is mostly scene-setting; the referee is encouraged to have each player-character describe their activity during a typical day in the monastery. Once this has been established, the events that actually start the adventures occur. This act is in many ways a ‘railroad’, in that the player-characters have very little agency in the events that occur. However, there is opportunity for the player-characters to begin to out-think their opponents, and gain some freedom of movement that will allow them to discover the key secret of Act II.

Act II begins with the planning of an escape. The player-characters are outgunned, and the non-player-character monks of the monastery will be of little if any help. The best bet for the player-characters is to come up with a way to get apart from the rest of the monks, with one or two guards, and then dispose of said guard(s). This will give the player-characters freedom to act. It is during this part of the adventure that the player-characters might find it appropriate to reveal their respective secrets and take advantage of the knowledge thus revealed. Here, it is suggested that the referee guide the player-characters toward the desired actions, using veiled reminders of their respective secrets, without actively railroading them. Once they’ve found the key secret to the adventure, they will be in a position to move on to Act III and removing the pirates.

Act III is, in essence, wide-open for the player-characters. The module offers the referee no specific guidance; it is up to the player-characters to decide how they want to proceed and come up with ideas for dealing with the Vargr pirates. Some ideas are presented, but the player-characters should be left to come up with their own lines of action. In any case, once the player-characters have defeated the pirates (or paid them off to leave the world), the module encourages the referee to have them write their own epilogues; the player-characters’ reactions to the revelation of their own and others’ secrets will undoubtedly represent a personal test of faith for each.

Overall, this is an interesting module that incorporates themes not usually seen in Traveller. While player agency is limited at the beginning of the module, the final denouement is almost entirely up to the players, and the revelation of secrets along the way also serves to keep interest high. This is definitely a good ‘one-shot’ adventure; I would recommend that any referee keep it available for use.