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This is a false dichotomy in old-school D&D. When you had time-traveling paladin-cowboys, space-travel to Barsoom, and dungeon levels like the "Living Room" (where the furniture comes alive), gonzo is the rule, not the exception in old-school thinking, at least at Gygax's table.

Ever since the 2e days of the Complete Munchkin series of splatbooks and the battles I had with players wanting to bring in this or that min/maxed combo, I've been a core rulebooks only DM. As a player and DM I also prefer 'character building' to be something that is done in-game during play...

You leveled up and gained a point of Wisdom.

It should be noted that it wasn't Conan who killed the soldier. He just wouldn't rat out the young man who fled and refused to be thrown into the dungeon until he betrayed his friend. Obviously, only madmen would punish such silence with imprisonment.

Han Solo is such an under optimized character. He must have min/maxed his Pilot skill and neglected his Bluff and Move Silently.

Yeah, the comparison isn't perfect due to the nature of war and roles in it. During the knight's time, his armor and steed made him nearly invincible to anything except another knight (until tech and tactics caught up and dethroned him as supreme on the battlefield). I guess my point is that...

Probably more inspired by Napoleonic armies. The knight certainly trained longer than conscripts, but his real counterpart in modern warfare are special ops units, like Delta Force or Navy Seals, if we're talking about years of training and experience. Even in his day, the knight was...

My conception of roles in D&D: Caller Mapper

Role-playing games, like many games, are a social activity, so yes, it is fine for charismatic players to have an 'advantage.' Furthermore, because RPGs are a mental and social activity, the prowess of the players in these categories should permit them better chances to succeed, regardless of...

Put me in the Chaotic Neutral (good tendencies), with alignment shifting to Chaotic Good (neutral tendencies) when older camp. Here's an excerpt from 'Queen of the Black Coast' that not only illustrates the barbarian mindset but also Chaotic Neutral alignment (in my opinion): "Why do the...

For war consisteth not in battle only, or the act of fighting, but in a tract of time, wherein the will to contend by battle is sufficiently known: and therefore the notion of time is to be considered in the nature of war, as it is in the nature of weather. For as the nature of foul weather...

The bug in D&D was the invention of the thief class.

A TPK. You lost. And yet, you remember this episode so distinctly. As I've said, sometimes the most fun you have is when you lose. I think Tomb of Horrors ought to be evaluated with this in mind. :D

Dungeons & Dragons (Collector's Set - "little brown books") Dungeons & Dragons, Basic Set (Holmes) Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Dungeons & Dragons, B/X (Moldvay, Cook) Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, 2nd Edition Dungeons & Dragons, Basic Set (big black box) Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia...

For a way to look at such things, try G. K. Chesterton's The Everlasting Man, particularly the chapter "The Antiquity of Civilization." The modern man looking at the most ancient origins has been like a man watching for daybreak in a strange land; and expecting to see that dawn breaking behind...

Or, it could be seen as the dragon eating its tail. :p

Meepo!

There was a change in the combat "to-hit" progression of all classes and monsters from 1e combat tables to 2e THAC0 tables. In particular, low hit dice monsters were nerfed in combat ability, while 1st level Wizards and Rogues (class groups) had a slight improvement. The optional 5% increase in...

More and more, it seems Mearls is describing Castles & Crusades . . .

I guess that wouldn't be the spot to do it, but someone needs to get as complete an account as possible of Robilar's adventure in the Tomb of Horrors, and how he went about facing the challenges (assuming that hasn't been done elsewhere that I don't know about).