D&D 1E Favorite Obscure Rules from TSR-era D&D

[CapnZapp]

The negative effects on her physical stats were basically immaterial to playing her.

As every good minmaxer knows, D&D is about making your strengths as strong as possible, and have your party members cover for your weaknesses.

This is why we don't use age modifiers in any rpg. Far far too easy to exploit.

Plus: after a while you'd start wondering where all these very old powerful spellcasters come from. Where did they spend their youth?

Also: isn't it a smidge icky that they always choose these easily-manipulatable (plain-looking gullible hare-brained) young people with perfect bodies to body-guard them?

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Also: isn't it a smidge icky that they always choose these easily-manipulatable (plain-looking gullible hare-brained) young people with perfect bodies to body-guard them?

 

[Lanefan]

As every good minmaxer knows, D&D is about making your strengths as strong as possible, and have your party members cover for your weaknesses.

This is why we don't use age modifiers in any rpg. Far far too easy to exploit.

Not that anyone's ever tried exploiting age modifiers here that I know of, but the easiest way to beat said exploits is to have starting age be randomly rolled within a range of about 17-30 years old (Human equivalent).

For starting Human age we use 2d8+15, on top of which goes your class modifier (if any); and while a max roll plus class modifier could conceivably see someone start as middle-aged (41+ for a Human), the maximum possible is 43 and that only for an Illusionist due to their 12-year class modifier.

 

[Lanefan]

I so have to use that as a theme song for a character someday...provided someone else doesn't beat me to it.

 

[Orius]

I mean, come on, we can't let players figure out what their magic items do! They might be able to avoid the cursed/intelligent/mimics in disguise!

There are better ways of doing that than by making identify more trouble than it's worth
though. I go for the simple expedient of cursed items failing to identify properly and misidentifying as something beneficial until used in a critical situation like combat.

As every good minmaxer knows, D&D is about making your strengths as strong as possible, and have your party members cover for your weaknesses.

This is why we don't use age modifiers in any rpg. Far far too easy to exploit.

Plus: after a while you'd start wondering where all these very old powerful spellcasters come from. Where did they spend their youth?

Also: isn't it a smidge icky that they always choose these easily-manipulatable (plain-looking gullible hare-brained) young people with perfect bodies to body-guard them?

Just use more ghosts.

 

[James Gasik]

There are better ways of doing that than by making identify more trouble than it's worth
though. I go for the simple expedient of cursed items failing to identify properly and misidentifying as something beneficial until used in a critical situation like combat.

Well yeah, obviously. I don't know why the spell that's designed to identify magic items is usually lackluster at it's job. But this a larger issue when it comes to the school of Divination in general. Either the spells are too niche (locate object), don't really provide useful information (find traps), have hoops to jump through (contact other plane), or just effing work (commune) and cause DM's a whole host of headaches.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

Some day, I might devote an actual post to how messed up 1e psionics are ...

Instead, I will just post this little gem today!

Contrast this passage from the PHB-
Psychic Crush is a massive assault upon all neurons in the brain, attempting to destroy all by a massive overload of signals. This mode of attack affects but one defender If it is used the user may defend with only mode G, Thought Shield, or have no defense at all.

With the psionic combat table in the DMG (p. 76), showing that all defenses can work against Psychic Crush, and that Thought Shield is the second-least effective defense you can use!

In other words, if the player believes what is in the PHB, he will likely use on the absolute worst defenses to the attack.

ETA- Sometimes, I am a moron (as some of you will immediately note, "For large values of sometimes!"). See comments below. I blame society. Society made me do it.

 

[billd91]

Some day, I might devote an actual post to how messed up 1e psionics are ...

Instead, I will just post this little gem today!

Contrast this passage from the PHB-
Psychic Crush is a massive assault upon all neurons in the brain, attempting to destroy all by a massive overload of signals. This mode of attack affects but one defender If it is used the user may defend with only mode G, Thought Shield, or have no defense at all.

With the psionic combat table in the DMG (p. 76), showing that all defenses can work against Psychic Crush, and that Thought Shield is the second-least effective defense you can use!

In other words, if the player believes what is in the PHB, he will likely use on the absolute worst defenses to the attack.

I think what it means is the user - the ATTACKER - can only put up Thought Shield as a defense while he's using Psychic Crush.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

I think what it means is the user - the ATTACKER - can only put up Thought Shield as a defense while he's using Psychic Crush.

DOH!

You are 100% correct. I blame myself for looking over the mess of the psionics rules this morning, and somehow doing a feat I thought was impossible ... making them even worse than they already are.

 

[Mannahnin]

Well yeah, obviously. I don't know why the spell that's designed to identify magic items is usually lackluster at it's job. But this a larger issue when it comes to the school of Divination in general. Either the spells are too niche (locate object), don't really provide useful information (find traps), have hoops to jump through (contact other plane), or just effing work (commune) and cause DM's a whole host of headaches.

Some of these come down to just screwjob wording with excessive restrictions (as we saw with Identify). Most of these spells are great if they're allowed to be.

Find Traps is fine in 1E- it reveals any hidden traps in the area viewed.

Locate Object kind of sucks in 1E if you interpret that the object need be "known or familiar" means you have to already be aware of the specific target, rather than just being able to locate, say, a set of stairs or a necklace as long as you are familiar with stairs or necklaces in general. The wording in 1981 Basic is better.