Playing Oldschool - White Plume Mountain with 1e

[Orius]

That's right... each GP is worth 1 XP, and there's also XP for magic items.

Here's a question: what does a PC do with all that gold? Well, there's training (if you used the rule - I never did). After that? Not that much. Eventually a castle?

There's a purpose for gold in 3e: to buy magic items. It really doesn't have any purpose beyond XP in 1e.

Did 1e have any of those upkeep rules where the PC had to spend monthly amounts of gold that represented the lifestyle the character was living? Usually, this is one of the ways a DM can suck excess money out of the PCs, and also gives them motivation to keep dungeon crawling, as the expense soemtimes increases with level. I know these rules are in 2e and 3e, but I don't know if it's a hold over from the game's roots (my guess is that it is).

 

[Orius]

Is it my imagination, or are wandering monsters less used today? They do exist in wilderness travel. (Oh, the boredom of eight straight guaranteed wandering monsters in Encounter at Blackwall Keep as the PCs travelled to the Lizardfolk lair... please, let a 1 in 6 chance return to adventures!)

Oh, I certainly enjoy sticking the random encounters in my own adventures. Usually when the players want to rest in a bad part of the dungeon and I'm feeling bored. They usually hate it, but hell, this is D&D!

Adam, needing to go to a Christmas Party and not caring too much, threw a fireball at the Stalker. Yes, this is at ground zero. Ben runs the other way very quickly, and is the only one not in the blast area. Result: Everyone is still up... except Adam. Yes, he killed himself with his own fireball. (For unknown reasons, nobody tried to stabilize him!)

Unknown? I would conveniently "forget" to stabilize a mage that dumped a fireball on me too.

Ben then decides to even the odds with a haste spell. He's used to how it works in 3e. It looks pretty similar in 1e, doesn't it?

Har har. Who wants to live forever anyway?

Though doesn't haste last longer in pre-3e than it does now? I don't really feel like dragging out my books to check the 2e version (which itself might differ from 1e).

 

[Orius]

So, a +2 set of platemail, a ring of mirror images, a ring of protection +3, and Blackrazor! A +3 sword. What type of sword? I don't know. Look, it says in the module, "sword".

Usually, I count such undubbed swords as longswords, since they're rated as 1d8 damage.

 

[Orius]

Well, ALMOST unplayable. Depending on who you listen to (ScottyG or Rogue Attorney, I think?) there's two different ways to interpret it - it's kind of like decontstructing obscure religious text.

Amusing considering how some grognards seem to treat 1e like some obscure religious text.

And of course, diaglo comes from the ultra-orthodox sect which considers even 1e heretical.

 

[MerricB]

Har har. Who wants to live forever anyway?

Though doesn't haste last longer in pre-3e than it does now? I don't really feel like dragging out my books to check the 2e version (which itself might differ from 1e).

Slightly longer: 1E & 2E: 3 rounds + 1 round/level

Cheers!

 

[MPA]

Why couldn't PCs buy magic in 1e? The DMG listed the gp value with each item, just like in 3e. And the the DMG specifically said that PCs could sell magic items, even to fellow PCs. So is surely follows that PCs can buy magic items from NPCs, no?

Many don't allow it. I do, but at very, very high prices.

 

[MPA]

Did 1e have any of those upkeep rules where the PC had to spend monthly amounts of gold that represented the lifestyle the character was living?

Yes, and it has also training rules where you have to pay a certain amount of money to gain a new level.

 

[JRRNeiklot]

Many don't allow it. I do, but at very, very high prices.

Heh, even in 3e, I STILL don't allow magic items to be bought, other than a few potions or scrolls, an an occasional unscrupulous magic item vendor.

 

[dcollins]

Why couldn't PCs buy magic in 1e? The DMG listed the gp value with each item, just like in 3e. And the the DMG specifically said that PCs could sell magic items, even to fellow PCs. So is surely follows that PCs can buy magic items from NPCs, no?

No. The prices are specifically listed "G.P. Sale Value". (Not "purchase" or 3E "market price"). DMG p. 121 says "Gold piece sale values are the usual sums which characters will be paid for magic items". So, this says to me "Intent: Sell but no Buying".

Also DMG p. 136, re: Miscellaneous Magic: "The number of such items is great in order to make it improbable that there will be duplicates in a campaign". Allowing purchase of any type on demand would break this design goal.

Re: Player Character Expenses, DMG p. 25:

Each player character will automatically expend not less than 100 gold pieces per level of experience per month. This is simply support, upkeep, equipment, and entertainment expense...

 

[Orius]

Slightly longer: 1E & 2E: 3 rounds + 1 round/level

Note the 2e round and I'm guessing from your comments the 1e round are a full minute, so spell duration for haste in the older versions of the game is a little more than 10 times longer than it is now.