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I think your misinterpreting my point that 2E initiative is the best—from a game perspective. I really don’t care if it’s simulationist. If that’s the case, PO:C&T is probably much better as it was the first time we saw the combat round drop to a reasonable 6-15sec versus 1min. That’s been...

I think the initiative roll is the same, it just depends on if it’s individual or group. The initiative modifiers in the PHB and DMG are core; weapon speed, item and innate ability speed, and casting times are optional. Individual initiative is also an option. The writer in the PHB actually...

It is written in the core books somewhere, but I can’t remember where it is. It may be clarified in a Sage Advice post or in Tome of Magic or Book or Artifacts as well. However, in the example of individual initiative options on pg 95 in the PHB, Rath rolls a 2, has modified weapon speed of 0...

If that’s how a fighter with multiple attacks worked in 1E, that’s broken AF. 2E rules for multiple attacks was the first was in order of initiative plus modifiers, subsequent attacks after all others were done, and in order of initiative if more than one character had multiple attacks. That...

I don’t think that anyone used 1E initiative RAW. It was probably the worst mechanic of the entire game.1E initiative was so bad, it alone could have warranted a 2nd edition. To that end, weapon mastery rules and fight style specialization did boost initiative for fighters in 2E so, they would...

Which to bring it back to 2E, I say that a 2E single-class human fighter with a fairly standard set of optional rules—specifically weapon mastery from the Fighters’ handbook or Players’ Option: Combat & Tactics—is the best martial class out of every edition at every level of play. Add in the...

As far as the “tone” goes, one of the best things about 2E compared with 1E, was the lack of “tone”. Having never read the 1E books until really this year, there is a lot more explicit, “this is how you play” in Gary’s writing than Zeb’s. 2E left the table flavor out of the ruleset beyond a...

Oh, when I first found out about 1E I decided I hated it. I’ve warmed slightly, but I’ve never really enjoyed the Gygaxian prose.

I wonder what the demographics of this thread are then. I’m 45, so basically too young to even remember 1E. I started with a part of a Basic boxed set booklet around 90 or 91, then found a DM who had the RC, but pretty quickly moved into 2E around 1993 and started DMing my own group. That...

Anticlimactic is the perfect description of T1-4 after how well received T1 Village of Hommlet was.

If I was ever going to play 1E AD&D I'd just use 2E's base initiative rules as they were simple but also extensible if you wanted to add more fiddly bits like weapon speeds and casting times.

I’m 45 and started playing in 1990 or so. Very big Satanic Panic vibe in my hometown. I literally just got a 1E DMG last week for the first time. I’ve heard about it for decades, but actually reading is a very weird experience. From what I can tell, there is zero resemblance to anything that...

OD&D, Holmes, B/X, or BECMI are “real”. AD&D was never really a separate entity, and likely would have never forked had Gary not tried to create a legally implied distinction. AD&D was effectively going over Uncle Gary’s D&D house rules in a very long winded session zero.

I’m sure there’s some Boot Hill scenario somewhere where you’re fighting off Pinkertons after you upset some rich rail baron. If not, it would be an interesting twist on the persistent gang of LE mooks that seem to exist in most AD&D campaigns. On that note, would importing Gamma World or...

Cure spells seems like one of those things that should be available at every level with some sort of stacking bonuses to provide equivalent consummate with the spell economy of the slot, just cure wounds I thru VII. It would take too much time in Excel for me to build the dice out to do it...

One of the really good things from PO:S&M was the inclusion of more cure XXX wounds spells.

According to Gary in the DMG, it’s not until 6-7th level spells do they actually come from the deity. 1-2nd are innate, 3-5th are via an escalator of intermediaries. One of those things that was less generic than it probably should have been in a core book, but whatever.

I feel personally attacked by “Spelljammer in the Forgotten Realms.”

There was also a cast off reference to a suicide as well some, I suppose problematic but not completely inaccurate POV from Dawn regarding a guy preferring shoving and hitting to talking as a motivator from the opposite sex. Again, it’s definitely as you said in many ways more modern feeling...

The former. I let them free cast from their allowed spheres (again, I’m starting with 2E AD&D). They are still required to pray for their slots and whatnot. IIRC this was sort of implemented in 3/3.5 but only allowing substitution of memorized spells with equivalent level healing spells. I...