General RPG DiscussionDiscussion of all RPGs and non-system-specific topics. DM/GM/player issues, settings, etc. Rules discussion belongs in one the forums below.
I can still feel the AD&D love too. I would still play or run it if I could find a local group. I offered to run OD&D/BD&D/AD&D or any retro-clone on our gameshop messageboard, and no luck. I have enough BD&D/AD&D gamebooks to supply a table of 5 players too.
Oh man, I totally missed this. Why don't you offer up over at TheDelversDungeon and see if anyone will do a pbp? I'll give you the forum for it.
Parenthetically, photostat copies of the manuscript rules were made, and when the commercial game was published, fans not willing or financially unable to expend the princely sum of $10 for the product did likewise, copying the material on school (mainly college/university) machines. We were well aware of this, and many gamers who had spent their hard-earned money to buy the game were more irate than we were. In all, though, the 'pirate' material was more helpful that not. Many new fans were made by DMs who were using such copies to run their games. - Gary Gygax
I love AD&D 1e Psionics. I really do. I loved how my players could never quite understand what the deal was with them and so it was always weird and mysterious. OK, it is weird and mysterious to me to, but that's why I love it.
I never quite ran it by the book, cause my other players would riot while they waited. But I'll never forget those times when Sheards character would get that far off glazed look and every one else just KNEW mind flayers were afoot. (even if they were way not high enough level yet)
I'm currently running Swords & Wizardry in the Wilderlands, but after showing off my new printed copy of OSRIC the other day, we're talking about a marathon AD&D one-off of ToEE's moathouse.
__________________ "There are few problems a well-placed fireball cannot solve. Now, tell us more about this... orphanage?" - Balfour Grimstaff
----------
T1-4 is good, but honestly, for in your face ass-kicking unstoppable AD&D awesome, you cannot beat G123 AGAINST THE GIANTS. Yes, it takes seasoned characters to play (and win!), but leveling them slowly through N1 AGAINST THE CULT OF THE REPTILE GOD, then a truncated SLAVERS campaign (A1,A2 and A3) plus emphasizing that they need some handy men at arms, and the GIANTS series is really, really top of the heap.
Parenthetically, photostat copies of the manuscript rules were made, and when the commercial game was published, fans not willing or financially unable to expend the princely sum of $10 for the product did likewise, copying the material on school (mainly college/university) machines. We were well aware of this, and many gamers who had spent their hard-earned money to buy the game were more irate than we were. In all, though, the 'pirate' material was more helpful that not. Many new fans were made by DMs who were using such copies to run their games. - Gary Gygax
T1-4 is good, but honestly, for in your face ass-kicking unstoppable AD&D awesome, you cannot beat G123 AGAINST THE GIANTS. Yes, it takes seasoned characters to play (and win!), but leveling them slowly through N1 AGAINST THE CULT OF THE REPTILE GOD, then a truncated SLAVERS campaign (A1,A2 and A3) plus emphasizing that they need some handy men at arms, and the GIANTS series is really, really top of the heap.
What you suggest is fine for a blast-through 1-2 year campaign, but if you slow down the level advancement a bit (say, cut the ExP-for-treasure in half) there's room for tons more fun in there and a fine long-lasting campaign.
A side trip, for example, to Lost Caverns of (unspellable) and-or Forgotten Temple of Tharizdun could fit in between Slavers and Giants. And any number of enjoyable low-level adventures (Rahasia leaps to mind as one) could slip between N1 and the start of Slavers...
Not to mention whatever homebrew adventures you write or 3rd-party adventures you find (there are quite a lot out there, both old and new) that catch your eye as ways to kill...er, I mean challenge, your stalwart party.
I love 1st edition AD&D. I do. I think it's a fantastic game system. It is the best D&D I've ever played, and I've played them all. Gary's writing is awesome. The default assumption of GREYHAWK throughout the mainstay of the system's publication is awesome, too.
Once you get the flow of the rules organization, finding things in the rulebooks (on the occasions they're needed) is a snap.
The modules are great, and I really like the artwork.
1st edition AD&D is my favorite RPG. It isn't the only one I play, nor is it the only one I like, but it's the one I like the most, and the D&D I'll play given the chance.
1st edition AD&D rocks.
I love my house ruled AD&D!
__________________ It is the spirit of the game, not the letter of the rules, which is important. NEVER hold to the letter written, nor allow some barracks room lawyer to force quotations from the rule book upon you, IF it goes against the obvious intent of the game. As you hew the line with respect to conformity to major systems and uniformity of play in general, also be certain the game is mastered by you and not by your players. Within the broad parameters give in the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons Volumes, YOU are creator and final arbiter. By ordering things as they should be, the game as a WHOLE first, your CAMPAIGN next, and your participants thereafter, you will be playing Advanced Dungeons and Dragons as it was meant to be. May you find as much pleasure in so doing as the rest of us do.
What you suggest is fine for a blast-through 1-2 year campaign, but if you slow down the level advancement a bit (say, cut the ExP-for-treasure in half) there's room for tons more fun in there and a fine long-lasting campaign.
A side trip, for example, to Lost Caverns of (unspellable) and-or Forgotten Temple of Tharizdun could fit in between Slavers and Giants. And any number of enjoyable low-level adventures (Rahasia leaps to mind as one) could slip between N1 and the start of Slavers...
Not to mention whatever homebrew adventures you write or 3rd-party adventures you find (there are quite a lot out there, both old and new) that catch your eye as ways to kill...er, I mean challenge, your stalwart party.
Lanefan
A Hickman module? In MY AD&D? Don't make me bring the Pimp Hand, lanefan!
No, that's a good track too, and offers equal amounts of awesome. I'm just so enamored of G123 that I want people to play it right now!
Parenthetically, photostat copies of the manuscript rules were made, and when the commercial game was published, fans not willing or financially unable to expend the princely sum of $10 for the product did likewise, copying the material on school (mainly college/university) machines. We were well aware of this, and many gamers who had spent their hard-earned money to buy the game were more irate than we were. In all, though, the 'pirate' material was more helpful that not. Many new fans were made by DMs who were using such copies to run their games. - Gary Gygax
In the last few years, I've (very slowly) started to add to my old HR some more substantial changes, like a revision of the ability modifiers tables and the addition of an extra save category.
__________________ 'Can a magician kill a man by magic?' Lord Wellington asked Strange. Strange frowned. He seemed to dislike the question. 'I suppose a magician might,' he admitted, 'but a gentleman never could.'
Oh man, I totally missed this. Why don't you offer up over at TheDelversDungeon and see if anyone will do a pbp? I'll give you the forum for it.
Thanks for the offer, but for me it can't be memorex, it's gotta be live.
Too much is missing to feel like a D&D game, even if it uses an awesome set of rules. Shared junkfood, spontaneous dialogue, that moment of pure awesome when everyone at the table cracks the same joke. This is the stuff you can only get FTF.
A live old school game WILL happen one of these days. I will be patient and accept no substitutes.
Thanks for the offer, but for me it can't be memorex, it's gotta be live.
Too much is missing to feel like a D&D game, even if it uses an awesome set of rules. Shared junkfood, spontaneous dialogue, that moment of pure awesome when everyone at the table cracks the same joke. This is the stuff you can only get FTF.
A live old school game WILL happen one of these days. I will be patient and accept no substitutes.
I understand completely; it pains me that our remote player can't be here with us and I'd find it maddening to try and herd that many people over a connection. PbP is kind of like that - you as the DM want the action right now (and other players do, too), so the slow response time is...well...slow!
Parenthetically, photostat copies of the manuscript rules were made, and when the commercial game was published, fans not willing or financially unable to expend the princely sum of $10 for the product did likewise, copying the material on school (mainly college/university) machines. We were well aware of this, and many gamers who had spent their hard-earned money to buy the game were more irate than we were. In all, though, the 'pirate' material was more helpful that not. Many new fans were made by DMs who were using such copies to run their games. - Gary Gygax
T1-4 is good, but honestly, for in your face ass-kicking unstoppable AD&D awesome, you cannot beat G123 AGAINST THE GIANTS. Yes, it takes seasoned characters to play (and win!), but leveling them slowly through N1 AGAINST THE CULT OF THE REPTILE GOD, then a truncated SLAVERS campaign (A1,A2 and A3) plus emphasizing that they need some handy men at arms, and the GIANTS series is really, really top of the heap.
I get where you're going with this, delver. I think it really depends on what the DM, in particular, is searching for. If the DM wants a clear "adventure path" of sorts, your suggestion N1/A1-3/G1-3 absolutely makes sense. If the DM wants a loose frame on which to build his own adventures/campaign, however, it's hard to beat T1-4.
I get where you're going with this, delver. I think it really depends on what the DM, in particular, is searching for. If the DM wants a clear "adventure path" of sorts, your suggestion N1/A1-3/G1-3 absolutely makes sense. If the DM wants a loose frame on which to build his own adventures/campaign, however, it's hard to beat T1-4.
Well, I think we could go back and forth; both have an equal amount of adventure pathyness to them. Ultimately what's needed for either is a good Dungeon Master and four to eight folks willing to have a blast, regardless.
I think T1-4 is the folk music end of the spectrum, whereas G123 is the full on in your face death metal.
Although Gary would probably have eschewed either description.
Parenthetically, photostat copies of the manuscript rules were made, and when the commercial game was published, fans not willing or financially unable to expend the princely sum of $10 for the product did likewise, copying the material on school (mainly college/university) machines. We were well aware of this, and many gamers who had spent their hard-earned money to buy the game were more irate than we were. In all, though, the 'pirate' material was more helpful that not. Many new fans were made by DMs who were using such copies to run their games. - Gary Gygax
Just figured I'd add my voice. I love 1e so much I'm still actively working on several print projects for it.
__________________ Old School style artist. Got a project? Looking for an old school style artist? Check out my artwork at: www.johnathanbinghamart.coml
The one thing that I do very much miss from the 1e (and possibly early 2e days) is how the writers rarely took the game too seriously. There were all sorts of jokes and whatnot going on in just about every published book or module. From the cartoons in the 1e DMG (One false step and the familiar gets it!) to the pictures in the Monster Manual (the blank pic for the invisible stalker always made me giggle) to all sorts of whacky weirdness like Earthshaker (Communist gnomes driving a mountain sized robot).
That's one thing that I do think is missing from later era D&D is a willingness to laugh at ourselves. Reading those old books, I always got the sense that the writers were very much tongue in cheek almost all the time.
I miss the goofy.
__________________ Currently running: Sufficiently Advanced over Maptool. Soon to change. If you'd like to join in a short 3-8 session campaign for various systems, drop by our forums.
I double-dog-dare you to make your game sound super cool without comparing it to other editions. - paraphrased from Umbran.
Parenthetically, photostat copies of the manuscript rules were made, and when the commercial game was published, fans not willing or financially unable to expend the princely sum of $10 for the product did likewise, copying the material on school (mainly college/university) machines. We were well aware of this, and many gamers who had spent their hard-earned money to buy the game were more irate than we were. In all, though, the 'pirate' material was more helpful that not. Many new fans were made by DMs who were using such copies to run their games. - Gary Gygax
A curious thing happened to me today. My group and I had just finished up a session of 4th edition, and we were talking about what we liked and didn't like about the game. And then, much to my surprise, my World of Warcraft addict said he liked 1st edition the best. We had never played AD&D, actually--it was a Rules Cyclopedia game--but he stated that he felt it was the best in terms of roleplaying and storytelling, and that the newer editions' game aspects were just too obvious. It really surprised and amused me, and it makes me want to run an AD&D game. He's the kind of guy who would probably love the assassin.
__________________ IF IT EXISTS, NERDS WILL ARGUE ABOUT IT
A curious thing happened to me today. My group and I had just finished up a session of 4th edition, and we were talking about what we liked and didn't like about the game. And then, much to my surprise, my World of Warcraft addict said he liked 1st edition the best. We had never played AD&D, actually--it was a Rules Cyclopedia game--but he stated that he felt it was the best in terms of roleplaying and storytelling, and that the newer editions' game aspects were just too obvious. It really surprised and amused me, and it makes me want to run an AD&D game. He's the kind of guy who would probably love the assassin.
I say: give it a spin. You can pick the books up for a couple of bucks from amazon resellers.
Parenthetically, photostat copies of the manuscript rules were made, and when the commercial game was published, fans not willing or financially unable to expend the princely sum of $10 for the product did likewise, copying the material on school (mainly college/university) machines. We were well aware of this, and many gamers who had spent their hard-earned money to buy the game were more irate than we were. In all, though, the 'pirate' material was more helpful that not. Many new fans were made by DMs who were using such copies to run their games. - Gary Gygax
Linear Mode
And yet another word from our sponsors
