I got my first D&D book from a Target. I begged my stepmother to buy it for me until she finally relented. It had to have been early 80s because it was the 1st edition Monster Manual with the wrap around David Sutherland art. I didn't even know what D&D was at the time, but as I browsed thorough the book I saw that it had mythological monsters. Eventually after reading it a few times I figured out that it was for a game. I asked for & received the Moldavy red box on my following birthday, so this must have been around 82-83.I saw a starter box at Target yesterday in Lexington, Kentucky.
But are they as plentiful as Waffle Houses? When I was stationed in Biloxi it seemed like there was one at every intersection.(im in MS so wal-mart is as plentiful as churches and I don't mean churches chicken, I mean our town is small and we have two Wal-marts, but I digress).
I got my old red box out of the Sears mail order catalog.
That reminds me of when I was in elementary school & I'd look at the Sears, Best Products, Service Merchandise & J.C. Penny holiday catalogs to see all the toys I wanted. Thanks for the memories.More from the Retroist.
I remember buying 1st Edition hardcovers & dice at the local mall B. Dalton & Waldenbooks back in the mid to late 80s.Most of the major chain bookstores carried more than just the boxed basics; Borders, B. Dalton, Waldenbooks, Barnes & Noble all carried both the BECMI boxes and the 2E hardcovers.
Mmm. That box wasn't Thunderift; if I remember correctly it was basically Dragonlance without being Dragonlance. I could easily be wrong though, but that box is how I started.
I still have it, the map in it is definitely a toned down version of Thunder rift, though it doesn't mention it. Has all the normal landmarks.