"White Plume Mountain" was well received by critics. "Dungeon Master for Dummies" lists "White Plume Mountain" as one of the ten best classic adventures, referring to it as a "classic dungeon crawl." It was ranked the 9th greatest "Dungeons & Dragons" adventure of all time by "Dungeon" magazine in 2004, on the 30th anniversary of the Dungeons & Dragons game. Judge Mike Mearls commented on the ingenuity required to complete the adventure, describing it as "the puzzle dungeon to end all puzzle dungeons". Further, when speaking to why it is one of the top adventures ever, he said that while it lacked the "sheer brutality" of "Tomb of Horrors", it made up for it with "crazy, over the top, pure fun". Another Judge, Clark Peterson, said that he liked the three magical weapons: Wave, Whelm, and Blackrazor. To Peterson, just the inclusion of Blackrazor makes "White Plume Mountain" a "classic". The editors of "Dungeon" felt that the adventure was defined by the ziggurat and its monsters.