How did D&D survive its early years?

[Quasqueton]

I was looking through some of my old D&D stuff this week and this really struck me.

1st-level magic-users (the term of the time) had one 1st-level spell. That’s *1* spell. And they needed 2500 xp to get second level, where they could get a second 1st-level spell.

All characters had to roll their 1st-level hit points. Fighters could have 3 or 4 hit points. And death came at 0 hit points, not -10!

Thieves (the term of the time) had like a 25% chance to find and remove traps.

Poison killed, flat out dead, with a failed save.

The average *expected* party size (as suggested in published adventure modules) was 4-8. Sometimes 5-10!

I read an example of handling experience points. The surviving 3 characters (2 fighters, 1 magic-user) had killed 8 kobolds, 5 orcs, and a giant spider. (They also hauled away lots of treasure, including a +1 ring and a +1 sword.) These characters earned about 400 xp each (including treasure xp). That’s 1/5th what the fighters needed for 2nd-level. Less than 1/6th what the MU needed. (Compare this to what a D&D3 group would get - 483 each - about 1/2 needed for next level.) And note that two magic items at first level was used as an example.

This all makes me ask the same question for two different subjects:

1) How did our 1st-level characters survive?

2) How did the D&D game survive?


1- I don’t really remember seeing a BD&D/AD&D character EVER raise from 1st level without major DM intervention. After playing/DMing with 1st-level characters constantly for a while, I (when DMing) started PCs out at 3rd level.

Did anyone *really* survive 1st (and 2nd) level by "legal" play? Most PCs could be killed with a single arrow shot. MUs were useless after casting their one and only sleep spell. Theives died at their first treasure chest. And in BD&D, clerics didn’t even get spells at 1st level! No healing for beginning characters, at all!

2- Considering how hard it was to play the game and have a character survive to high ("fun") levels, how did D&D survive? Most players play(ed) the game to run up and get into fights; to slay trolls and dragons. Considering how lame 1st-level characters were in "the old days", there was a 50/50 chance of surviving the first encounter with 4 orcs. And PCs had to defeat hundreds of orcs to make just 2nd level. So, playing by the rules, it took forever to gain levels (read: power and fun), *if* your character survived. So why was the game so fun that it became a BIG hit even with the aggravation and lameness of low levels?

My friends and I played through the Caves of Chaos with about 20 characters before we got tired of running in and dying. And even when you tried tactics, PCs fell dead in droves at 1st level. What other game could be this much fun, yet so damn hard to succeed at?

Although there are plenty of things that can kill 1st-level D&D3 characters (even orcs), at least now beginning PCs start with max hit points, mages get 4 or 5 spells, and it is generally easier to survive the game with intelligent play. (No more open the treasure chest and die.) And the powerful and "fun" (from a young/new player’s perspective) levels are closer and more attainable (rules legally).

Quasqueton

 

[Mark]

1) How did our 1st-level characters survive?

Teamwork.

2) How did the D&D game survive?

First and only game in town through its infancy.

 

[Nifft]

D&D survived because it has a KICK-BUTT NAME! C'mon, Dungeons and Dragons -- what could be more exciting?

-- Nifft

 

[Mark]

D&D survived because it has a KICK-BUTT NAME! C'mon, Dungeons and Dragons -- what could be more exciting?

-- Nifft

I (dungeon) crawl corrected...

 

[Ranes]

My first experience with D&D was the then brand new 1st edition AD&D. I was still at school, fourteen years old and only a couple of my peers played. In my quest for a gaming group, I was directed by my local games store (a newly opened branch of Games Workshop, back in the days when the variety of games they sold was phenomenal) to my local university.

Long live the University of Manchester Institute of Science & Technology D&D Society! Ok, I doubt it still goes by that name but they were happy to accept a kid into the fold and practically every Tuesday night for the next couple of years, I went along to participate in or just watch games of D&D and Traveller.

There were great DMs, roleplaying opportunities and experience rewards. That helped. There were fairly frequent deaths. That actually helped breed a smarter first level player character. There was the shared wisdom of the ten-foot pole and there was a lower level of expectation among players of what their characters could achieve, attain or acquire in a given period of time than I believe exists today. There was fanatical enthusaism (some things never change). On top of it all, there was less competition.

But I don't know if any of this really bears on your question. By the time I'm talking about, D&D had already survived its first few years. Okay, pick on someone older.

Edit: Apologies for the rant.

 

[Mercule]

1) How did our 1st-level characters survive?

2) How did the D&D game survive?

...Considering how hard it was to play the game and have a character survive to high ("fun") levels, how did D&D survive?...

1) We actually thought about what we were doing. Plus, I usually let fighters re-roll their hps if needed at 1st level.

2) Because it was (and is) a fun game.

There was also a different outlook back then. Levels meant a lot more -- and we were expected to gain fewer of them. Look at the demi-human level limits in the 1E PH.

"Name" level (10th) was retirement. You'd seen everything and done it all. I never saw any characters make it that high from 1st, but I didn't much care. For me, anything above 6th or so was Monty-Hauling, so that's where my campaigns ended, after the PCs saved the world.

I loosened up a bit with 2E. That pretty much doubled my threshold for power. 10th was my cap, and I looked at the "name" levels in about the same way I look at epic levels now. One (1) character in my campaign actually advanced to 19th level or so from 1st level (he did start in 1E, but didn't pass 8th until 2E). He saved the world from a mad god and then ascended to divine ranks -- he was that extraordinary.

3E doubled the threshold, again, IMHO. Only now would I dream of having a party of 15th+ level characters in a normal game. Finally, 10th+ looks fun.

Honestly, I think it's all a matter of perception. If you think from a 3E point of view, then older editions look pretty stiffling. But if I were to go back to 2E, 10th level would be high level, with most of the action happenning at 5-6th levels. If I were to go back to 1E, 5th would be high level.

The best gauge of power between the editions is the dragons. Figure out what level a fighter could probably take one out single-handedly and that's the point where the characters become little gods walking the earth. Go above that at your own risk.

 

[WayneLigon]

How did the character survive? With great difficulty It wasn't unusual to spend a couple months of regular games at level 1 and 2, because leveling came so slowly.

One thing that helped PC's in the original D&D was that you also got XP for every gold peice you brought out, but I can't remember ever playing with a GM that used that rule, even in the very beginning.

One thing that helped survival was, of course, house rules (many of which are standard these days). I cannot say that I ever played a completely straight-by-the-book game of D&D until 2nd Edition came along, and even then optional rules arose.

 

[Crothian]

Back in those days people didn't seem to mind if their character died. It meant you got to try something new and different. WE used to go through a few characters in a week sometimes, other times they'd actually survive and gain a few levels. WE'd have parties of one or two characters that lived a long time (6th level) with 4 or 5 characters of 1st or second level. IT was all fun and everyone seemed to enjoy it. And balance was never an issue.

 

[Henry]

Quasqueton -

For an adventurous time, ask this same question over at www.dragonsfoot.org in the Edition Wars Forum.

I firmly believe a combination of factors:

1) It was the first - there was nothing to compare it to.

2) The first players played it very frequently - we assume 4-hour sessions are the norm, but in the early days 4 hours was considered quite short. (I still do, now. )

3) Players were expected to make new characters frequently, and it was a serious boast to maintain you had had a character that made it to 4th or higher level.

4) Characters above 9th level really were never statted out well. The original players (Gary, the Gygaxes, Jim Ward, Len Lakofka, etc. ) were making it up as they went along.

In the early 80's, the major shift from adventures to stories began, and as the shift increased, more emphasis was on making the character unique expressed through rules rather than play alone. As more customization was desired, new classes appeared, multiclassing became more varied, and other rules were added to facilitate this.

So, in summary, a combination of factors.

 

[Kriskrafts]

How did it survive? Easy, a good group of imaginations and some easy house rules to clean up the bugs. For example:I

1st-level magic-users had one 1st-level spell.

Our house rule was to give MU's the same bonus spells for high intelligence that clerics got for having high wisdom

All characters had to roll their 1st-level hit points. Fighters could have 3 or 4 hit points.

Our house rule for that was you kept your best of three rolls (which could still sometimes came out low) .

And death came at 0 hit points, not -10!

Most groups I know used the -10 rule even back then

Poison killed, flat out dead, with a failed save.

Most groups I know came up some less lethal poisons as well.

The average *expected* party size (as suggested in published adventure modules) was 4-8. Sometimes 5-10!

That somehow seemed to work. We once had 14 active players in the group.

This all makes me ask the same question for two different subjects:

1) How did our 1st-level characters survive?

2) How did the D&D game survive?

As other posters have already pointed out, it was fun to play! (And still is, I don't care what edition you are using, it's all still D&D.) Fun will always prevail!