This is really interesting and I'd love to run it, but is there any more info anywhere on what the players actually do and how the module is supposed to be run? Like, is killing Bakto a good or bad thing? How much do they know about the ingredients, items and layout before they start? Do they know the allergies but not which one is in play at the moment? I realize there's a lot left up to the GM and the party, but what kinds of rails need to be on this thing, if any?
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The guidance for the adventure is on the mad lib portion of the pamphlet. It says that players will have 20 turns to gather ingredients and return to the main arena, these are the terms of the challenge. Think of it as a cooking show, If they don't have a dish done by then, death awaits them.
Whether players think killing Bakto is a good or bad thing is up to them, there are rewards in the adventure for simply surviving. About allergies, as it is stated in the pamphlet, "Bakto will not willingly inform players about it". On room 6. one of the NPCs may inform players about his weakness.
Fair question! I ran it last night and we all had a great time. Since it's only two pages, it definitely requires a lot of GM improvising. All of the important stuff is there, but it's up to you to decide how they get to the dungeon, how to present their challenge, and add personalities to a lot of the characters they'll run into...and also how to deal with players doing things not accounted for (for example, my players murdered the insane chef trader, so they only got the item he was showing them when he died).
I also added a a panel of goblin "judges" who tried the food before Bakto, to illustrate the graphic, lethal effects of many of the ingredients (which Bakto of course would be immune to). Conveniently, my group just happened to make the same number of dishes as there were players, so each was judged individually. Instead of just the chicken, I gave prizes for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place, with 2nd and 3rd being magic items from the dungeon that they didn't come across.
But at the end, they traded in their prizes for the mystery box, which contained...invitations to season two!