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<blockquote data-quote="AbdulAlhazred" data-source="post: 5310590" data-attributes="member: 82106"><p>Eh, I think it is hard to say that OD&D was or wasn't simulationist. Given that there were no other RPGs around at the time it was the most gamist and the most simulationist system in existence at the time <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite2" alt=";)" title="Wink ;)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=";)" /></p><p></p><p>I think at heart it WAS somewhat simulationist though. Remember, it was built out of a wargame, which was aimed at providing rules that allowed you to simulate a battle. TT wargames were definitely on the far simulationist end of gaming in general, being practically unplayable without a huge amount of preparation, space, and time. They certainly made no concerted attempt at playability beyond the very bare minimum. I think OD&D started out conceiving of itself as being as realistic a game as was feasible at the time. Obviously with any game there will trade offs and OD&D was quite playable (maybe more so than any later edition). </p><p></p><p>Looking at the 'classic' type of D&D spells you also see that there was a lot of simulationism involved. One of my favorite examples is the Spider Climb spell, which made the target's hands sticky so he could climb walls like a spider. The spell actually has rules in it that detail what happens if you cast it on someone (they can't cast spells anymore for the duration because their hands are too sticky to handle components, etc). A LARGE portion of the standard wizardly tactics in AD&D/OD&D revolved around standard interpretations of the results of various spell effects (casting Rock to Mud in order to make people sink into the ground for instance).</p><p></p><p>So, I would say D&D progressed in a more and more detailed simulationist direction from OD&D to 3.5. 4e has veered into totally new territory with its explicitly gamist agenda and such. I don't think that is going back in the direction of the original game, I think it is going in a totally new direction. That being said it hasn't gone as far as many people would like us to believe.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="AbdulAlhazred, post: 5310590, member: 82106"] Eh, I think it is hard to say that OD&D was or wasn't simulationist. Given that there were no other RPGs around at the time it was the most gamist and the most simulationist system in existence at the time ;) I think at heart it WAS somewhat simulationist though. Remember, it was built out of a wargame, which was aimed at providing rules that allowed you to simulate a battle. TT wargames were definitely on the far simulationist end of gaming in general, being practically unplayable without a huge amount of preparation, space, and time. They certainly made no concerted attempt at playability beyond the very bare minimum. I think OD&D started out conceiving of itself as being as realistic a game as was feasible at the time. Obviously with any game there will trade offs and OD&D was quite playable (maybe more so than any later edition). Looking at the 'classic' type of D&D spells you also see that there was a lot of simulationism involved. One of my favorite examples is the Spider Climb spell, which made the target's hands sticky so he could climb walls like a spider. The spell actually has rules in it that detail what happens if you cast it on someone (they can't cast spells anymore for the duration because their hands are too sticky to handle components, etc). A LARGE portion of the standard wizardly tactics in AD&D/OD&D revolved around standard interpretations of the results of various spell effects (casting Rock to Mud in order to make people sink into the ground for instance). So, I would say D&D progressed in a more and more detailed simulationist direction from OD&D to 3.5. 4e has veered into totally new territory with its explicitly gamist agenda and such. I don't think that is going back in the direction of the original game, I think it is going in a totally new direction. That being said it hasn't gone as far as many people would like us to believe. [/QUOTE]
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