Im getting OD&D on friday..What can I expect?

Im fishing for a explanation of how THACO and Ac works (vrs attacks) Any one care to clue me in?

---Rusty

PS: Where is a good place to get supplements as well. Im hoping for PDFs for cheap that I can print off.
 

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DungeonMaester said:
Im fishing for a explanation of how THACO and Ac works (vrs attacks) Any one care to clue me in?
The original set has a chart (two charts, actually -- one for men attacking (based on levels) and one for monsters attacking (based on hit dice)) with 8 armor classes, numbered 9 (worst = no armor) to 2 (best = plate & shield). The tables are arranged so that hitting an AC one step better requires a roll 1 higher on a d20, so that a 1st level character who requires a 10+ on 1d20 to hit an AC 9 opponent requires an 11+ to hit an AC 8 opponent, down to 17+ to hit an AC 2 opponent. However, no particular mention of this mathematical relationship appears anywhere in the rules. Magic armor (which is always magic plate mail, btw; there were no suits of magic leather armor or chain-mail until AD&D) and shields do not decrease the character's AC; rather they subtract from the attacker's die roll -- so a character wearing leather armor and a +2 shield is still AC 6 (leather & shield) but his opponents must make their attack rolls at -2. A character in +2 armor with a +3 shield (the best possible in the original rules) is AC 2, but opponents' attacks are made at -5. There is an ambiguous reference in the rules that suggests that if a character doesn't have magic armor, a magic shield only adds its bonus 1/3 of the time.

Supplement I changed this system, making it so that magic shields and armor (and Dexterity bonus, which was introduced in this Supplement) does not affect the attackers' die rolls but rather changes the character's AC. So a character with leather armor, +2 shield, and Dex 16 (+2 defense bonus) is AC 2 (base AC 6 +2 for magic shield +2 for Dex). For this reason, the AC scale was also extended below 2, so that, for instance, a character with +5 armor and +5 shield (the best possible in Supplement I) would have AC -8 (base AC 2 +5 for magic armor +5 for magic shield). To determine the die roll needed to hit AC -8, a chart instructs the attacker to add 10 to his score required to hit AC 2 (so if you're a 13th level fighter who requires an 8+ to hit AC 2, you'd need an 18+ to hit AC -8.

Although the possibility of doing so is never mentioned anywhere in the OD&D rules, clever fans soon realized that if you extrapolate the to hit table two places to determine the character's score required to hit AC 0 (i.e. the score required to hit AC 2 +2 per the chart in Supplement I) that that value can be used in a formula to take the place of the tables: THAC0 - target AC = die roll required to hit (also, die roll required for hit + target AC = THAC0).

So, to summarize all that, if you're already familiar with THAC0, that's the same system found in OD&D, but it's never described in those terms -- the assumption is that you'll use the tables.
 


DungeonMaester said:
Oh, well that seems like a below the belt shot if I ever heard one. Guess I'll have to wait till tomorrow to find out.

---Rusty :D

Yes, but see you are making my point! You have already started coming up with an "OD&D" that won't be exactly like (or maybe much like) those other "OD&Ds". But thats not a bad thing.

In terms of supplements, I always really liked Best of Dragon I. Don't know where you could find it.

And, it probably goes without saying, the suplements are about ideas and maybe a few specific mechanics, not about balance, consitency, etc.
 

Women.....

She didn't come through for me.

Apparently, her ex husband has the OD&D book, and the one she has is titled AD&D 1st ed

What exactly is the differnece? Where can I get a cheap pdf to print out?

Thanks the sites as well, they rocked. (I liked the Blackmoor one the most.)

Thanks.

---Rusty
 

Hmm, 1st ed. AD&D is cool in its own way, but is very different from OD&D (to the point that Gary Gygax insisted they were and should be considered as entirely separate games -- and not just as a legal defense for denying Dave Arneson royalties on AD&D products ;)). If you already know AD&D from 2nd edition, the rules for 1st ed. AD&D will seem pretty familiar, as the differences between them are fairly minor. The "flavor" of 1st ed is very different from 2nd ed. -- "grittier," more "swords & sorcery" than "high fantasy" with more "adult" or politically-incorrect elements (assassins, demons & devils, nudity in the artwork, etc.). The language of the rules is also much more verbose and arcane, and also more conversational and rambling, less like a text-book and more like someone sitting down and chatting over drinks and cigars. Some people (myself included) like this tone and style, others find it extremely frustrating (and it does make finding actual rules harder). 1st edition AD&D has a very distinct set of charms, and I highly recommend at least reading the books, but it's a very different beast from OD&D, and one is in no way a substitute for the other.
 


Alas, nobody sells PDFs of the core OD&D rules. The only way to get a legal copy of these rules is to buy one off ebay (which will be likely to cost you somewhere in the neighborhood of $100). All hope is not quite lost, though. The D&D Basic Rulebook is available for purchase as a PDF:

http://enworld.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=1203&

and its rules are mostly the same as OD&D. The main drawback is that this book only covers levels 1-3 and for higher levels you'll need to supplement it with another book (either OD&D, AD&D, or one of the Classic D&D Expert Sets -- whatever you choose you'll have to do some conversion, because none of these, not even OD&D, are completely compatible with this edition of the Basic rulebook). Better than nothing, though (at least possibly...).
 

T. Foster said:
Alas, nobody sells PDFs of the core OD&D rules. The only way to get a legal copy of these rules is to buy one off ebay (which will be likely to cost you somewhere in the neighborhood of $100).
You might also ask around in the Classic D&D forum at Dragonsfoot; someone there may have a copy for sale or other arrangements (e.g. trade, etc).

All hope is not quite lost, though. The D&D Basic Rulebook is available for purchase as a PDF: http://enworld.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?products_id=1203&
That's the aforementioned "Holmes" rules. I'm currently running a Holmes game, and I'm liking it very much. T. Foster is correct: the Holmes rules are pretty much OD&D, with a few minor differences, and limited to 3rd level. Another option for addressing levels beyond 3rd is to ask about some of the house rules people are using. See here, in particular.

The Knights n Knaves Alehouse has forums dedicated to OD&D, AD&D, and Holmes. You might check it out.

(If these links are duplicates of stuff you've already been pointed to, I apologize.)
 

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