TSR Q&A with Gary Gygax

Psion · Feb 21, 2003

Question

Greetings Gary. I have a question:

How do you pronounce "bullette"?

Col_Pladoh · Feb 21, 2003

JohnBrown said:
Mr. Gygax,

I have a question (or three depending on your point of view ) concerning the final encounter areas in each of the “D” series modules. I have owned them for years and years, but I am finally getting my first chance to DM them. My question deals with how you envisioned the encounters to unfold. For example, did you envision the caverns and warrens area at the end of D1 to “behave” like a classic dungeon exploration where the creatures stay more or less in place until they are “triggered”, or did you see it as more of an encampment where the creatures there will try to actively repel any intruders that don’t belong there, or perhaps just as a merchant checkpoint where the party is actually intended to bypass most of the encounters there. I can see the potential for any of the three. I also see great potential for a TPK (regardless of which edition you are playing )

When I DMed NPCs and monsters tended to stay where they were unless something drew their attention and brought them out. Thus, and of the options you note above might come into play. It was up to the PC team to manage. If they crept about and attacked with relative stealth, the adversaries would noy act in concert. Likewise, they could bypass most of the opposition. The groups I DMed through the module tended to seek bypassing, although one very strong party made a point of wiping out all the enemy that they could find.

I have similar questions involving the temple area in D2 and my questions about what you exactly intended for the Vault of the Drow are numerous, but my main question involving D3 is how did you envision that the players are supposed to ferret out that the temple of Lolth is final encounter? Perhaps, I am overlooking the obvious, but I just didn’t see a lot of information available to the players that would indicate that this would be the final destination.

I have my own ideas on how to run these encounters, of course, but since I have an indirect conduit to the author, I thought I would ask.

It never hurts to check with the source.

Thank you for your time,

John

To discover the temple the party was meant to do some big-time roleplay by entering the city of Erelheicindlu and mixing in with all the Evil NPCS and monsters there, ask questions, mabe even take a prisoner and question that one. Of course, mant of the inhabitants of the Vault would know where the fane was located, so the DM could decide how to manage the matter--bribery, threat, whatever.

One thing I didn't do was direct the DM in how he should manage an adventure, or force a play style. What I attempted to do was set forth a template for accommodating whatever the general situation might allow.

Hope that's sufficiently cogent...

Cheers,
Gary

Col_Pladoh · Feb 21, 2003

Gun Ownershop

One final observation:

When Adolph Hitler came to power in Germany he seized all privately owned firearms. american citizens are guaranteed the right to won firearms by the Constitution, not the Bill of Rights.

Cheers,
Gary

Henry · Feb 21, 2003

Um, Gary - I don't mean to disrespect, but are you SURE about that? (2nd amendment and all that) - In fact, it's why the Bill was added - because the ten amendments were not explicitly spelled out, and needed to be added.

Datt · Feb 21, 2003

Hello Gary,

Are you currently working on any projects for Dungeons & Dragons that you are allowed to talk about? If not would you ever be willing to work for D&D again?

Col_Pladoh · Feb 21, 2003

Henry said:
Um, Gary - I don't mean to disrespect, but are you SURE about that? (2nd amendment and all that) - In fact, it's why the Bill was added - because the ten amendments were not explicitly spelled out, and needed to be added.

Hi Henry

Yuppers, I am quite sure. The Constitution gives the Federal Government only those Powers specifically enumerated as yielded by the People to it. All others are retained by the People. nowhere in the enumerated Powers is there one that allows the government to limit the ownership of firearms.

All firearms cases filed in court by the Federal Government have been done under Interstate Commerce laws, IIRR.

The Second Amendment business was unnecessary and now used as a canard by those seeking to deprive people of their freedom.

Cheers,
Gary

Col_Pladoh · Feb 21, 2003

Datt said:
Hello Gary,

Are you currently working on any projects for Dungeons & Dragons that you are allowed to talk about? If not would you ever be willing to work for D&D again?

If you mean by that doing work for WotC, the answer is no. I do have some number of d20 works in process of publication. anthough the advent of 3.5E is likely to mess that up a good deal.

My ability to be creative using 3E is limited, for I find the rules inhibiting. so it is not easy for me to write for the system. I prefer to do my creative work using my new system, and thereafter something akin to OAD&D, as I can think and be innovative in those game terms freely.

Cheers,
Gary

D-rock · Feb 21, 2003

I don't want to get into a political debate because this would be one of the worst threads to close down, but i will be happy to express my oppinion and answer question over e-mail about my oppinions on the second amendment. I will say though that the second amendment doesn't actually give people anything, it only reaffirms the rights that the founders thought where god given and bestowed by nature. So they where the rights that everybody already had and will always have. Even if in some places and times in history they are denined.

Col_Pladoh · Feb 21, 2003

D-rock,

There we are of one mind in regards to rights of the People

Politics aren't allowed on my games list, so I have a seconf one for such subjects. Seems that there's usually some cross-over despite that. Better to cut it out here, so as to keep the thread going.

Pardon me for getting it started on the wrong track by responding to a post that questioned firearm ownership. I won't respond to any further posts of that nature, and please don't any others carry on with the off-topic discussion.

Ciao,
Gary

Geoffrey · Feb 21, 2003

Hi, Gary.

Your D-trilogy of modules are my favorite AD&D modules. Legalities aside, do you have any interest in finishing detailing all the encounter areas on the large-scale map? It should only take a dozen or so more modules.

It would be doubly cool to have them printed in the same font as the D trilogy, and have monochrome/pastel covers.

Shifting gears to your latest love, when is Hall of Many Panes scheduled for release? It sounds intriguing!

TSR Q&A with Gary Gygax

Psion

Adventurer

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax

Henry

Autoexreginated

Datt

First Post

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax

D-rock

First Post

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax

Geoffrey

First Post

Similar Threads

Related Articles

Latest threads

AD6_gamerati_skyscraper

Upcoming Releases