I love AD&D

[Mallus]

Beek Gwenders?...

... of Croodle.

I'm partial to Gleep Wurp the Eyebiter and St. Cuthbert of the Cudgel. Frankly, I dig a lot of the (nutty) iconic AD&D names.

 

[ExploderWizard]

So, quick question about D123 I'll ask here, since sadly Gary isn't around to ask anymore...

What gives with those hilariously bad PC names? (No offense intended to the ENWorld posters Philotomy Jurament - the best name among them, fwiw - or Fonkin Hoddypeak. But Fage the Kexy? Beek Gwenders? Really?) My own theory is that they were random keypresses with extra letters added in for pronunciation.

-O

I don't know If I would give Frush O'Suggil any grief about his name. An AD&D pregen fighter with 104 hp is sewious business.

 

[Herschel]

AD&D is still my true RPG love, but I like a mixture of 1E/2E stuff. THAC0 is THE greatest gaming term ever. The Haunted Halls of Eveningstar started more than a couple of campaigns (although came after Keep on the Borderlands a couple of times) that somehow led to the Assassin's Knot and running away, only to be stranded on The Isle of Dread and experiencing the Dwellers of the Forbidden City before finding the way back to civilization only to be recruited to go Against The Giants. Later, they even discovered the nefarious Drow.

 

[The Shaman]

Curses! Foiled by the site being blocked at work!

Still, thanks! I'll check that out when I get home.

Oops!

Let me 'splain . . . no, let me sum up: many Gygaxian names are anagrams, or based on actual people, but some, like Beek Gwenders, are derived from old English or (actual) thieves' cant.

 

[Corathon]

AD&D is my game of choice. I've been running it for over 25 years, with the few interruptions.

 

[TerraDave]

I agree with just about everyting the Delver has said. Yet I am not sure I agree.

The style, including writting and art. Yes.

The adventures. Yes.

The default world of the first three books. Yes. Best implied (or explicit) setting ever. Except for the ones I made myself. But it is still a little different (and bettre) then Greyhawk as would be published seperately at the the time. And of course different as it would evolve.

Rules reference. Hmmm.

And this leads to the problem. The rules as actually written. Just not that user friendly. Of course, you work around it, knowing what to ignore, what the problems will be (if you don't have training, find some other way to deal with all that treasure), how to play over the gaps. Its fine. But it lessons the love a little.

 

[Philotomy Jurament]

What gives with those hilariously bad PC names? (No offense intended to the ENWorld posters Philotomy Jurament - the best name among them, fwiw - or Fonkin Hoddypeak. But Fage the Kexy? Beek Gwenders? Really?) My own theory is that they were random keypresses with extra letters added in for pronunciation.

Those names are drawn from archaic words that were once in use, and they all have actual meanings. [ame=http://www.amazon.com/Poplollies-Bellibones-Celebration-Tenderfeet-Ladyfingers/dp/1568525214]This book[/ame] will shed glorious illumination on them. (This was Gary's source when he created the names.)

 

[Mallus]

Those names are drawn from archaic words that were once in use, and they all have actual meanings.

It doesn't make them any less silly.

Note: I'm not using 'silly' in the pejorative sense.

 

[Obryn]

Oops!

Let me 'splain . . . no, let me sum up: many Gygaxian names are anagrams, or based on actual people, but some, like Beek Gwenders, are derived from old English or (actual) thieves' cant.

Those names are drawn from archaic words that were once in use, and they all have actual meanings. This book will shed glorious illumination on them. (This was Gary's source when he created the names.)

While I appreciate this, neither of these explanations makes the names less hilarious.

Thank you both for the explanations, though. That's one more question that's wracked my brain for two decades that I can cross off my lists!

-O

 

[Nikosandros]

And this leads to the problem. The rules as actually written. Just not that user friendly. Of course, you work around it, knowing what to ignore, what the problems will be (if you don't have training, find some other way to deal with all that treasure), how to play over the gaps. Its fine. But it lessons the love a little.

That's actually very true. On the other hand, this was partially countered by the fact that most folks "graduated" to AD&D coming from some version of the basic game... all the rules that I didn't fully understand in AD&D, I substituted with those from BD&D and I think that it was a rather common thing to do.