Pool of Radiance ( game ) Pool of Radiance was the first of a long series of computer role - playing games that shared a common engine that came to be known as the " Gold Box Engine " after the gold boxes in which most games of the series were sold . Summary . The game takes place in the " Forgotten Realms " setting , in and around the Moonsea region and the city of Phlan , which has been overrun by forces of evil . The city had originally held off many attacks , but the forces were marshaled by a bronze dragon which was believed to be possessed by a powerful spirit named Tyranthraxus . The object of the game is to have the party clear the old city of its marauding inhabitants , so the people of Phlan can rebuild and repopulate the areas . Civilized ( New ) Phlan . The party begins in the civilized section of " New Phlan " governed by the city council . Here , the party buys equipment at the shops , rest up in the inns , listen to rumors at the pub , and make contracts with the clerk of the city council for various commissions . The party can also go to the training hall and hire an experienced adventurer to accompany the party . Slums ( Old Phlan ) . Beyond this region the party enters the area of the slums , which have been overrun with monsters such as kobold s , goblin s , and orc s . While obtaining a magical potion for Ohlo in the Old Rope Guild , the heroes will encounter a group of marauding ogre s and troll s . Sokol Keep . The next commission is to clear out Sokol Keep , a fortified area located on an island and is filled with skeletons and zombie . Inside the keep , the specter of Ferran Martinez suffers under a curse . When you remove this curse , the keep is cleared and the shipping lanes to Phlan are finally opened . Other locations . There are a variety of other locations encountered as the party ventures further into the city . Outside Phlan . Eventually the party ventures outside the city by boat , where they encounter a silver dragon named Diogenes in the Dragonspine Mountains . The adventurers visit an encampment of the Zhentarim , stop the polluting of Stojanow on Sorcerer ' s Island caused by Yarash , and learn the dark plans of one known only as the " Boss " . They also work with the Nomads so they don ' t work with the kobolds , help an old lizardman kill Drythfi , and have to save Lord Bivant ' s heir from the Buccaneer Base . Stojanow Gate . After the encounter at the Zhent outpost , the heroes reveal Porphyrys as a traitor of Phlan and the city council commissions the party to hunt him down . The trail leads to the Stojanow Gate , which is guarded by an army of bugbear s and giant s . Valjevo Castle . The party enters Valjevo Castle , pass through a poisonous hedge maze , and battle a false Boss . They descend a stairwell to find the pool of radiance guarded by a bronze dragon , possessed by the daemon Tyranthraxus . Here , the Possessing Spirit offers the adventurers to join his side and after a titanic battle , the heroes of Phlan succeed in saving the town . History . Released in 1988 , Pool of Radiance became a huge success , which led to a book and an " AD & D " module based on the game ' s plot called Ruins of Adventure . It is the first in a four - part series of " Forgotten Realms " Dungeons & Dragons adventure computer games published by ( SSI ) . In 1992 , the game was ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System under the name of " Advanced Dungeons and Dragons : Pool of Radiance " . Sequel . The game was followed by the Curse of the Azure Bonds ( game ) , which was based on the Jeff Grubb and Kate Novak ' s novel : Azure Bonds . It was developed by Strategic Simulations , Inc and released in 1989 . Appendix . Notes . As the first game in the series , Pool of Radiance was to be surpassed in terms of features by later Gold Box games . Party characters could only be selected from among the classes of fighter , cleric , wizard , or thief , and the maximum class level was restricted to level 6 ( 9 for thieves , 8 for fighters ) . However , no subsequent Gold Box game featured player selectable character portraits , like Pool of Radiance did . " Pool of Radiance " won the Origins Award for " Best Fantasy or Science Fiction Computer Game of 1988 " . Differences between versions of Pool Of Radiance . Pool Of Radiance was released for several computers / game consoles , so there are differences between the versions . Difficulty . Pool of Radiance is considered to be very unbalanced with regard to difficulty , especially by today ' s standards . The frequent random encounters were often more challenging than the set - piece battles and tended to be very time consuming .