Humans throughout editions, throughout games

[pawsplay]

You know something....

With regard to the traditional rolling methods (3d6 or 4d6 drop lowest) in previous editions and ability scores, how does that work in conjunction with the following statement from the 1st edition PHB.

Well, for one thing it means a medium-sized number of 4d6, drop lowest characters need to be rerolled to meet these criteria. As this approch, and this statement, appears in 1e but is not found in OD&D or Basic D&D, and is not the default option in 2e, I think we may assume this was EGG's preference, but other authors found this approach unappealing in some way.

I don't have the "blue" AD&D 2e, just the red and black 2.5 version. I have a vague memory of one of the books, probably the blue version, discussing the everyman vs. superman controversy.

 

[kaomera]

With regard to the traditional rolling methods (3d6 or 4d6 drop lowest) in previous editions and ability scores, how does that work in conjunction with the following statement from the 1st edition PHB.

This, along with the ability score requirements for various sub-classes led to one of two PoVs, IME: One was "roll well or go home", the other was to shrug and accept that many characters would have lower ability scores and few would qualify for Paladin, Ranger, etc.

Personally, under Method I, I saw a lot of players re-roll their characters, often several times. I'm still conflicted by this: it "rewards" the player who refuses to play anything without an 18, two "15+"s, and nothing below an 11, and "penalizes" the player who just rolls and is done with it. Or maybe it just rewards both players, in that they get to play the character / the way they want, I don't know.

 

[AllisterH]

Well, for one thing it means a medium-sized number of 4d6, drop lowest characters need to be rerolled to meet these criteria. As this approch, and this statement, appears in 1e but is not found in OD&D or Basic D&D, and is not the default option in 2e, I think we may assume this was EGG's preference, but other authors found this approach unappealing in some way.

.

Ok, but given that this was Gygax's belief that player characters were supposed to be exceptional, why didn't they make one of the latter rolling methods like say from UA, the default method

 

[pawsplay]

Ok, but given that this was Gygax's belief that player characters were supposed to be exceptional, why didn't they make one of the latter rolling methods like say from UA, the default method

Apparently, between 1e and 2e "they" decided they didn't agree with Gygax's original preference.