In the initial act, Popara, a powerful Hutt lord, hires the heroes to perform a mission of mercy. Of course, when dealing with the Hutts, there is usually a catch or two. In this case, the catch is that in addition to delivering badly needed medicinal spice to a plague-stricken planet, the heroes must break through a Corporate Sector Authority blockade and find Popara's missing offspring, Mika.
In the process of finding and rescuing Mika, the heroes run afoul of space pirates, tangle with the blockading units of the CSA and possibly join a caravan to locate Mika's hiding place. They also become aware that someone doesn't want them to succeed in their mission—someone who would be quite thrilled if Mika didn't survive his ordeal.
The preliminary cover art to this supplement is the same Ralph McQuarrie concept art from Return of the Jedi used for the cover of Galaxy Guide 11: Criminal Organizations, a West End Games supplement for their role-playing game. A large number of titles were proposed for the adventure, including A Night on Nar Shaddaa, but the final title was suggested by the Wizards of the Coast product manager Thomas M. Reid, as a play on the Latin phrase tempus fugit, or "time marches on."
Tempest Feud is advertised as an adventure that can take place in any era, a concept that is reinforced throughout the material. The majority of the characters presented in the material are new characters that appear only in Tempest Feud. The adventure's introduction is intentionally ambiguous, indicating that the adventure can be introduced by any faction that the players' party is aligned with: CIS, Galactic Republic, Galactic Empire, Rebellion, New Republic, or any similarly well-funded organization. An alternate introduction is provided for freelance adventurers with no affiliations. However, several elements within the story provide qualifying timeline elements:
- Act II of Tempest Feud occurs on a Nar Shaddaa controlled by the Hutts. The sourcebook specifically indicates that the adventure cannot take place during the years Nar Shaddaa is occupied by the Yuuzhan Vong, without changing the setting location.
- During that Act II, the adventurers are introduced to representatives of Nirama of Cularin, a crimelord that controls the Cularin system during the course of Wizards of the Coast's Living Force campaign. According to Living Force supplements published after the release of Tempest Feud, Nirama was removed from power by the end of the Clone Wars.
- During Act I, Zonnos Anjiliac Priare and his Wookiee retinue make a number of derisive comments about the characters of the adventuring party. One possible comment is, "...along the lines of...'It's like asking three Jawas and a power droid to build a Death Star.'"
The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia established that Mika Anjiliac Chiera produced tempest spice during the early years of the New Order. The events of Tempest Feud were later worked into the 2012 novel Scourge, which is set in 19 ABY.