We end our Let's Read with
Dungeon Mastering as a Fine Art, Moldvay's final advice to novice DMs. The title is taken from Holmes, but whereas it was merely the title of the sample dungeon section in Holmes Basic, here Moldvay uses it to provide explanation of six axioms of DMing, and ten optional suggestions "which the DM may or may not wish to use."
I want to quote the introduction in full. All emphasis is in the original.
The success of an adventure depends on the DM and his or her creation, the dungeon. The DM should have the dungeon carefully mapped out before play begins. Even so, a DM will quickly find that it is impossible to predict every possibility. After all, there are several players, and only one DM! It is not unusual for players to find a solution, or pose a new problem, that the DM has not even thought of. It is very important for a DM to be flexible.
It is important that the DM be fair, judging everything without favoring one side or the other. The DM is there to see that the adventure is interesting and that everyone enjoys the game. D&D is not a contest between the DM and the players! The DM should do his or her best to act impartially when taking the part of monsters or handling dispute between characters.
The axioms are:
"That's not in the rules!" Moldvay notes that DMs will often be surprised by players doing something unexpected, and that when it happens, to just make sure things are done in order, and make up details as needed to keep the game moving. At the very least, he should provide a percentage chance for success. He provides an example, which I think has been intentionally made extreme, of a player deciding his character will jump into a chasm to escape a combat he doesn't think he can survive. Moldvay's hypothetical DM, after considering the environment, comes up with a 2% chance of survival, and informs the player, asking if he still wants to do it. I think the example has been intentionally made extreme to illustrate Moldvay's advice that "there should always be a chance to do something impossible." But I fear that his example is undercut by the extremity - a 2% chance is indeed a chance, but it's
functionally the same as no chance.
"There's always a chance." Interestingly, this is not the same idea as expressed above, but rather Moldvay's suggestion to use "roll under ability score on a 1d20" as a mechanic for ability checks.
"The DM is the Boss." Moldvay is not at all about the viking hat. I think this is worth quoting in full:
The DM decides how these rules will be used in the game. A good DM talks about problem areas with the players and considers reasonable requests by them. The players should realize, however, that the final decision is the DM's: not theirs, and not this booklet's! If a disagreement holds up play, the DM may make a temporary decision and talk it over with the players when the adventure is over. If a player disagrees strongly enough, he or she may quit the game. It is up to the DM to create an adventure the players can enjoy.
In retrospect, it seems remarkable to me how these words, along with the intro, the first I read about running a role-playing game, imprinted on me this image of an ideal DM, to the point that even when I'd long forgotten the words, the image remained.
"Everyone is here to have fun." This one is about avoiding rules discussions, maintaining immersion ("The DM should make the adventure seem as 'real' to the players as possible,") and keeping the game moving "with humor as well as excitement."
"Everything is balanced."Balance here does not mean "encounter balance," but rather risk vs reward. Great rewards should come with commensurate challenge. Interestingly, Moldvay draws a parallel between games focused on fast advancement, with great treasures and tougher monsters, and games focused on character development, where advancement is slower.
"Your character doesn't know that." A warning against allowing players to act on information their characters don't have. He suggests making this clear to the players before the adventure begins, indicating that this advice is specifically made for novice DMs running games for novice players.
The "optional suggestions" are:
MAPPING: using squares instead of feet for easier mapping, and the DM drawing an outline or even drawing in complex rooms for the mapper to save time.
MONSTER DESCRIPTIONS: providing only descriptions of monsters to characters, rather than names.
MONSTER HIT POINTS: This seems more general advice than a suggestion, but DMs should never reveal monster HP, and not knowing the level of NPC until they have adventured together.
SURPRISE: when the players are surprised, describing only the attack rather than the monster.
MAGIC ITEMS: describing magic items only in general terms and letting characters experiment to find out what they do.
DIVIDING MAGICAL TREASURE: generally left to the players, but the DM can offer suggestions, including dividing non-magical treasure equally, magical treasure decided by choice, or by high roll on percentile dice.
PLAYER ADVANCEMENT: Moldvay suggests that players should reach 2nd level in three or four adventures, or cutting back on treasure if they reach 3rd level in this amount of time. I find this quite interesting, given the current editions idea of advancement to 2nd level after 1 or 2 sessions, and about the same amount for level 3. My recollection from back in the was that it took us a while to level up, but this rate does not seem long at all.
GRUDGES: Okay, Moldvay goes a little viking hat here. This is about PvP. Moldvay thinks a small grudge between
characters can make the game interesting, but if it starts to get out of hand, the DM should subtly warn the players. But if it gets to the point of ruining the adventure, Moldvay suggests having a powerful creature intervene, and as a last resort, killing off the offending characters. I find it interesting that the suggestion is that the problem be handled in-game.
MINIATURE FIGURES: A recommendation to use minis. At first I thought this was going to be plug for TSR-approved minis, but while it mentions in passing that metal minis are available from TSR, Moldvay actually says you can get inexpensive plastic minis from many companies, and they don't even have to be fantasy miniatures.
PLAYING SURFACE: Moldvay suggests using large sheets of graph paper covered with plexiglass or contact paper to put the figures on. He suggests paper with 1" squares, with 1" = 5'. He also says to use water-based markers or grease pencils to draw on the surface, which can then be wiped away after the battle is over.
AFTERWORD - Moldvay says that the Expert Set is coming with rules for levels 4-14, followed by the Companion Supplement for levels up to 36th level. He ends with a plug for B1: In Search of the Unknown and B2: The Keep on the Borderlands.
And that's it! Wow, that's a load off my mind. When I started this thread 9(!) years ago, I certainly didn't expect it would take this long to finish it! I mean, I've switched jobs twice and had a daughter in that time! I'm like a completely different person!
In that time, of course the D&D world has changed much, too. In 2013 we were in the middle of the D&D Next playtest, and now the One D&D playtest has begun. In 2013, Labyrinth Lord was the B/X clone of choice, but I think Swords & Wizardry was the most popular retroclone, but the "themed" clones of B/X were ascendant. Now OSE is on top of the heap.
The genius of Moldvay Basic lies in distillation. The "design" itself is still essentially OD&D/Holmes Basic Rules. There's not much
innovative when looked at from that point of view. But Moldvay had a keen eye for cruft, and he cut away so much that, while interesting, was not needed. The Order of Events in One Game Turn, the Combat Sequence, I'm sure they seem passe when viewed from the perspective of today. But for an 11 year old, learning how to play and run the game just from reading the book, they broke everything into easily manageable chunks. While the effects of the sensational Egbert case cannot be discounted, I do think this is much of the reason B/X sold so well at that time.