Alzrius
The EN World kitten
WotC has just made Chainmail: Rules for Medieval Miniatures available in print-on-demand format over on DrivethruRPG!
Originally released in 1971 by Gary Gygax and Jeff Perren, Chainmail is miniatures wargame sourcebook that's widely considered to be "proto-D&D" thanks to its option for 1:1 rules (where one mini could represent a single individual instead of a unit) and "Fantasy Supplement" appendix. The game went through several releases, with the 3rd Edition (presumably a later printing) being the one made available on DriveThruRPG.
(EDIT: According to the PDF preview, it's the 7th printing of the 3rd Edition.)
The link given above mentions how Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson disagreed on the importance of Chainmail in the eventual formation of D&D, something that's been mentioned on EN World before. Gygax maintains that Chainmail played a pivotal role in D&D's development, while Arneson holds that it was a minor element at most. Subsequent analysis and speculation by historians such as Paul Stormberg and Shannon Appelcline have produced no consensus on this, and the topic remains a contentious one. Maybe we'll see a renewed debate now that print copies of the game are cheap and easy to legally acquire?
This is the latest book to be given a print on demand option from WotC, following L3 Deep Dwarven Delve (AD&D 1E), A Guide to the Ethereal Plane (Planescape), DLR3 Unsung Heroes (Dragonlance 2E), Dungeon Master's Guide 2 (4E), Monster Manual 3 (4E), and Monster Vault: Threats to the Nentir Vale (4E), and City of the Spider Queen (Forgotten Realms 3.5).
Other recent releases include X4 Master of the Desert Nomads (B/X), B7 Rahasia (BECMI) and DLT2 Book of Lairs (Dragonlance 2E), DLS4 Wild Elves (Dragonlance 2E), Greyhawk: The Adventure Begins (Greyhawk 2E), WGM1 Border Watch (Greyhawk 2E), The Book of Lairs (Forgotten Realms 2E), AC10 Bestiary of Dragons & Giants (BECMI), Halls of Undermountain (4E), the War Captain's Companion (Spelljammer), PC3 Creature Crucible: The Sea People (BECMI), Volo's Guide to the Sword Coast (Forgotten Realms 2E), Volo's Guide to Waterdeep (Forgotten Realms 2E), Volo's Guide to Cormyr (Forgotten Realms 2E), the Dark Sun Boxed Set (the original one for AD&D 2E), Campaign Option: Council of Wyrms, and the Planescape Campaign Setting.
Please note my use of affiliate links in this post.
Originally released in 1971 by Gary Gygax and Jeff Perren, Chainmail is miniatures wargame sourcebook that's widely considered to be "proto-D&D" thanks to its option for 1:1 rules (where one mini could represent a single individual instead of a unit) and "Fantasy Supplement" appendix. The game went through several releases, with the 3rd Edition (presumably a later printing) being the one made available on DriveThruRPG.
(EDIT: According to the PDF preview, it's the 7th printing of the 3rd Edition.)
The link given above mentions how Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson disagreed on the importance of Chainmail in the eventual formation of D&D, something that's been mentioned on EN World before. Gygax maintains that Chainmail played a pivotal role in D&D's development, while Arneson holds that it was a minor element at most. Subsequent analysis and speculation by historians such as Paul Stormberg and Shannon Appelcline have produced no consensus on this, and the topic remains a contentious one. Maybe we'll see a renewed debate now that print copies of the game are cheap and easy to legally acquire?
This is the latest book to be given a print on demand option from WotC, following L3 Deep Dwarven Delve (AD&D 1E), A Guide to the Ethereal Plane (Planescape), DLR3 Unsung Heroes (Dragonlance 2E), Dungeon Master's Guide 2 (4E), Monster Manual 3 (4E), and Monster Vault: Threats to the Nentir Vale (4E), and City of the Spider Queen (Forgotten Realms 3.5).
Other recent releases include X4 Master of the Desert Nomads (B/X), B7 Rahasia (BECMI) and DLT2 Book of Lairs (Dragonlance 2E), DLS4 Wild Elves (Dragonlance 2E), Greyhawk: The Adventure Begins (Greyhawk 2E), WGM1 Border Watch (Greyhawk 2E), The Book of Lairs (Forgotten Realms 2E), AC10 Bestiary of Dragons & Giants (BECMI), Halls of Undermountain (4E), the War Captain's Companion (Spelljammer), PC3 Creature Crucible: The Sea People (BECMI), Volo's Guide to the Sword Coast (Forgotten Realms 2E), Volo's Guide to Waterdeep (Forgotten Realms 2E), Volo's Guide to Cormyr (Forgotten Realms 2E), the Dark Sun Boxed Set (the original one for AD&D 2E), Campaign Option: Council of Wyrms, and the Planescape Campaign Setting.
Please note my use of affiliate links in this post.
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