This is the multi-year Q&A sessions held by D&D co-creator Gary Gygax here at EN World, beginning in 2002 and running up until his sad pasing in 2008. Gary's username in the thread below is Col_Pladoh, and his first post in this long thread is Post #39.
TSR Q&A with Gary Gygax
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This is the multi-year Q&A sessions held by D&D co-creator Gary Gygax here at EN World...
Col_Pladoh
Gary Gygax
:\Treebore said:My Troll order hasn't arrived yet. So no LA: Essentials, no EGGsburgh, no World Builder, no second copy of M&T, and No Hall of Many Planes. Bummer!
Being an impatient sort, I truly can empathise...
Rather like waiting for a birthday or Christmas to come, eh?
Cheers,
Gary
Col_Pladoh
Gary Gygax
ROTFColonelHardisson said:
Sorry, but your comments were accurate IMO, even as they struck my funny bone. For shame! I should not laugh at another's disillusionment and righteous indignation
Cheers,
Gary
Col_Pladoh
Gary Gygax
Hi Elfdart,Elfdart said:Colonel, did you ever run a "reverse" dungeon where the players had to play the monsters and the DM played the band of adventurers who ruthlessly hunted them down, invaded their lair, killed them and took their treasure?
I'm about to do just that to my group in a mini-campaign. Part One will be a hobgoblin chieftain, a bugbear, a shaman, a witchdoctor and assorted groups of goblinkind bowmen, slingers, and footmen -all given the goal of taking a tower manned by human men-at-arms.
Part two is where the typical band of adventurers comes to do to the goblinoids well, what they usually do. The monsters who kill the most of their enemies, loot the most from their victims and actually survive the assault from the human and demi-human party win the game. Yes, this will encourage the monsters to stab one another in the back as well as their foes.![:]](http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png "Devious :]")
One part of this is a change of pace. Instead of cooperation we have cutthroat competition. The other is for my own education as a DM, since I plan to take note of any clever defenses the players use against the forces of Good and keep them for future reference for this group and others. I've learned some of my best stuff from players, who always come up with things even the smartest DMs never thought of. Turnabout is fair play, after all.
The answer to role-reversal is a qualified no, I have never had my players take on the role of monsters, save in the test of the Hall of Many Panes module. The group had to assume a variety of different forms in that demi-campaign.
Mining the player group for ideas is certainly a good idea, as many heads are often better than one when looking for new and innovative approaches. Of course, that is one of the uses of well-designed modules...fresh ideas slip into one's own campaign.
My group always castigates a fellow that mentions something I might do, for they know if it is demanding and I hadn't thought of it, the mention will assure the appearance of whatever was spoken of at some point...
Cheers,
Gary
Deuce Traveler
Adventurer
For humorous games, I liked to throw the old 'Toons' or 'Paranoia' games at experienced players to lighten the atmosphere every blue moon. The one time I tried to throw humor into a fantasy game involved creating a necromancer villian who was way too effeminate and skeletons and zombies that liked to sing and dance. It didn't go too well, something I blame myself for more than the players. It was like watching that train wreck, 'Cable Guy' with Jim Carrie... it couldn't figure out if it was going for macabre/creepy or comedic.
Besides, a normal RPG session has its fair share of humor without forcing any in. Like today, when our thief decided to walk in while under disguise to the secret cultist meeting. This after the paladin (my character) and cleric (my friend) warned him that it was a bad idea, since we had just set off the alarm. He decides to go in anyway, and we ended up having a good laugh as the screaming, wounded thief ran down the tunnel back towards us, being chased by a bunch of cult members. After the cleric, monk, and paladin set-up a defensive line, the thief hid behind us and continued to pluck away at the massed enemy crowd, counting off wounds as he tried to deal out as much as he had taken. Tough battle, but entertaining.
Besides, a normal RPG session has its fair share of humor without forcing any in. Like today, when our thief decided to walk in while under disguise to the secret cultist meeting. This after the paladin (my character) and cleric (my friend) warned him that it was a bad idea, since we had just set off the alarm. He decides to go in anyway, and we ended up having a good laugh as the screaming, wounded thief ran down the tunnel back towards us, being chased by a bunch of cult members. After the cleric, monk, and paladin set-up a defensive line, the thief hid behind us and continued to pluck away at the massed enemy crowd, counting off wounds as he tried to deal out as much as he had taken. Tough battle, but entertaining.
ColonelHardisson
What? Me Worry?
Col_Pladoh said:Sorry, but your comments were accurate IMO, even as they struck my funny bone. For shame! I should not laugh at another's disillusionment and righteous indignation
Naw, that's alright. It was all a long time ago. I do remember the anticipation people had for a couple of modules - one being Castle Greyhawk, and the other being whatever was going to follow up the Village of Hommlet. I remember being in bookstores like Waldenbooks in the early 80s, looking at the game section, and watching as strangers searched through it muttering "T2...T2...T2..."
Mark
CreativeMountainGames.com
Remember, less than three weeks until the B-Day of E. Gary Gygax.
Col_Pladoh
Gary Gygax
ColonelHardisson said:
I hope Rob isn't too slow in getting the parts of Castle Zagyg to me for development. He has a full outline with all the special encounters I think should be in the work keyed to dungeon level. Of curse he has the headache of making the new maps based on the old ones, and this time actually having all the the stairs and other means of moving to other levels actually match up...
Cheers,
Gary
Col_Pladoh
Gary Gygax
Shhhh!Mark said:Remember, less than three weeks until the B-Day of E. Gary Gygax.
At my age things such as birthday anniversaries are better forgotten
Gary
Col_Pladoh
Gary Gygax
Treebore said:
Speaking of birthdays...
Have a great natal day anniversary, Treebore
Here's hoping that the goodies arrive today!
Cheers,
Gary
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