TSR Q&A with Gary Gygax

Aeolius · Sep 26, 2003

Col_Pladoh said:
Blibdoolpoolp was an onomatopoeic name I came up with for a lobstress deity of theirs. The sound is to call to mind the sound of large drops of water falling into a pool, and splashing in general

That's exactly the way I envisioned the kuo-toan language. One day, while practicing silly voices in the car, I decided to try kuo-toan. So, I began...

blip...blip...blip...blip..dool...blip..dool...pool-p (kinda ended up like poo-lip, water dripping and splashing)

Once I chanted that for several minutes, I improvised the rest of a dialogue.

Yes, I was alone in the car.

Col_Pladoh · Sep 26, 2003

fusangite said:
Gary,

I'm curious: in your vision of D&D, do all the various species of monsters in the Fiend Folio, Monster Manual, etc. all exist concurrently in the same world or was it expected that most campaign worlds would have a subset of these?

An excellent question. the plethora of critters offered is a game device meant to keep the DM supplied with as large a roster of strange beasts to throw at his players as was needed. For dungeon adventuring and really wild wilderness, such a broad variety makes sense.

For a defined world that is less magic-heavy, then a narrower range of creatures is more logical. In my Greyhawk campaign something over half as many monsters as were included in the three bestiary books were in play, the vast majority of those in dungeons or other planes.

I confess to creating new creatures in many a module just to have something confront the PCs that they didn't recognize and know how to deal with...

Cheers,
Gary

Col_Pladoh · Sep 26, 2003

grodog said:
Hi Gary---

Do you recall how many copies of Warriors of Mars were printed and sold, and whether or not there was a "recall" as a recent eBay seller seemed to imply:

To view images for the curious, see
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=2545&item=3145950195

Whoa, and that's going back a good ways!

I think we printed 5,000 copies, but it might have been only 3,000. I feel more comfortable with 5K, though. Anyway, the WoM booklet stock was running pretty low when the ERB Estate folks hollered at us. To the best of my recollection there was no recall, we just didn't reprint the work. I am pleased to say I do have a copy around here somewhere, likely stored in the attic.

We didn't ever recall the BATTLE OF FIVE ARMIES boxed game when the Saul Zaents organization got onto to TSR about infringing on the JRRT Estate rights.

Cheers,
gary

Col_Pladoh · Sep 26, 2003

Joseph Elric Smith said:
OMG some one paid 199.00 to buy it too.
ken

Ken, that's a reasonable collector's price for a work that is likely limited to a only a few hundred copies floating around now--if the book was in good or better condition

Gary

Col_Pladoh · Sep 26, 2003

Aeolius said:
That's exactly the way I envisioned the kuo-toan language. One day, while practicing silly voices in the car, I decided to try kuo-toan. So, I began...

blip...blip...blip...blip..dool...blip..dool...pool-p (kinda ended up like poo-lip, water dripping and splashing)

Once I chanted that for several minutes, I improvised the rest of a dialogue.

Yes, I was alone in the car.

Now there's an amusing post, LOL!

Oddly enough, in the "Gygaxian Fantasy Worlds" series of reference books, the next title soming is THE BOOK OF EXTRAORDINARY NAMES authored by Malcolm Bowers. In one of the many chapters therein he gives syllables for creating various strange names for races of various sort--avian, bovine, etc. For the picine sort he includes mainly the original and derrivatives of "Blibdoolpoolp," and I was delighted to see that, of course. Bs and Ps are very liquid-sounding, but there's not much else other than vowels to include in the mix.

Cheers,
Gary

Welverin · Sep 26, 2003

Col_Pladoh said:
The Futurama episode I appeared in is now in syndication, BTW, but they aren't running it much, only once that I know of, so the quote you have is likely to go into obscurity all too soon

No fear, Gary. The whole series is going to end up on DVD (seasons 1&2 are out already), so it will live on forever.

Pielorinho · Sep 26, 2003

So I guess this is the obvious question, but have you had a look-see yet at a certain computer game? Did the developers consult with you at all during its making?

Oh, but it's bringing back fond memories for me of being thirteen and staying up gaming until sunrise....

Daniel

Geoffrey · Sep 26, 2003

One of my favorite things in AD&D is the Cthulhu Mythos in the early printings of Deities & Demigods. This, by the way, got me started being a Lovecraft nut. I have a three-foot shelf packed with stories by Lovecraft and by his literary disciples.

Gary, what are your thoughts on a campaign (whether D&D, AD&D, Mythus, or LA) set in early 14th-century England in which all the monsters and gods are Lovecraftian beasties, and all the spells and magic-items are Lovecraft-related? Could it work, or would it be stretching the game systems too far?

Col_Pladoh · Sep 26, 2003

Pielorinho said:
So I guess this is the obvious question, but have you had a look-see yet at a certain computer game? Did the developers consult with you at all during its making?

Oh, but it's bringing back fond memories for me of being thirteen and staying up gaming until sunrise....

Daniel

Hah!

If I took advantage of the opportunity to play the computer ToEE game, soon all of you would be wondering, What has happened to Gary? We haven't heard from him in months, and no game products by him appear in upcoming release schedules...

Yes, Troika consulted with me, but i had precious little to add, for their deisgners knew the matierial, and the spirit behind it, perfectly.

Now I had better hurry on to manage a few more posts before returning to creative writing

Cheers,
Gary

Col_Pladoh · Sep 26, 2003

Geoffrey said:
One of my favorite things in AD&D is the Cthulhu Mythos in the early printings of Deities & Demigods. This, by the way, got me started being a Lovecraft nut. I have a three-foot shelf packed with stories by Lovecraft and by his literary disciples.

Gary, what are your thoughts on a campaign (whether D&D, AD&D, Mythus, or LA) set in early 14th-century England in which all the monsters and gods are Lovecraftian beasties, and all the spells and magic-items are Lovecraft-related? Could it work, or would it be stretching the game systems too far?

Indeed, and we agreed to remove the material from a second printing because we respected what Arkam House wished to do, retain the Cthulhu Mythos intact. I too am a big fan of HPL and the associated authors writing in his mythos.

As for the suggested setting and scenario, I do believe that the LA game system could handle it, but the whole of Theurgy as written would have to be scrapped, and a new Ability and activations based on the actual religions of this world be written to replace it. A lot of undies would get bunched up over that, and not without some cause, I believe.

Setting it in a more contemporary period using a horror or even cyberpunk system would likely be a lot easier

Cheers,
Gary

TSR Q&A with Gary Gygax

Aeolius

Adventurer

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax

Welverin

First Post

Pielorinho

Iron Fist of Pelor

Geoffrey

First Post

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax

Col_Pladoh

Gary Gygax

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