TSR [Let's Read] Polyhedron/Dungeon

[(un)reason]

Polyhedron Issue 12: May/Jun 1983



part 3/6



Two Cents: With notes for the dungeon master entirely transitioned to essays, it falls to the readers to send in their own bite sized chunks of sadism to throw at players. As usual when they open it up to the floor, the suggestions are considerably more varied than when it was coming from the minds of a few staff writers, but also of lower average quality. There's a lot of people out there, playing D&D in different ways, and coming up with their own monsters and house rules. Some are good, some are bad, and some are silly. Hopefully we can take the good ones, and leave the many bad critical hit systems and other nonsense in the past where they belong.



Encounters: The trouble with dragons is that one hit from their breath weapon will completely ruin the day of an unprepared creature. Fortunately, a lancer with charge bonuses can also inflict some pretty hefty damage. So this battle essentially boils down to who can get the first hit in, as even if they don't kill the other one straight away, they'll do enough to ground them, leaving them easy pickings for further flyby attacks. It's going to be a short and tense battle unless some allies (ie, the PC's) intervene. This is considerably less open-ended than most of their cover scenarios, but is a good demonstration of AD&D maths, and how to exploit some of the less commonly used rules to your advantage. So it scratches a different itch, but it's still a valuable use of their space that teaches you more about the game. They have all these rules for situations that might come up, but don't happen that often. Make sure you remember to use them.



Convention Update: The biggest conventions may happen in the summer, but there's ones happening all year round now. So we get to find out who won at Gen Con South in Florida (sounds more southeast than south to me, but they can argue things like when they have even more spinoffs) and the Emperor's Birthday convention in Indiana. Both used the same tournament module, and members got the appropriate amount of points added to their RPGA profiles. If they step up the schedule a bit more they could make this into a column they do every issue. That would give us lots of data on who's turning up frequently and winning these things that we could use to create statistics later.

 

[(un)reason]

Polyhedron Issue 12: May/Jun 1983



part 4/6



Dispel Confusion stretches to a full 3 pages, although the increase in font and margin size means that isn't quite a 50% increase in number of questions. Still shows they're getting a lot of interest in this aspect of the newszine though.

D&D

Shouldn't a lance do more damage than an axe (Only on a horseback charge. I'll steal that rule from AD&D next edition.)

Shouldn't a dragon turtle give more XP? (oh yes)

Doesn't a strength modifier make it harder to open doors (only if you apply it to the wrong end of the roll)

Should monsters get bonuses on their initiative rolls for high dexterity if players do? (Probably. We'll use movement speed instead for now, and get round to that several editions later)

We keep getting into fights over treasure division (Muahaha. Just as intended :steeples fingers

How bright does detect evil glow? (bright enough to see, but not bright enough to see by.)

What's the point of a battle axe? (It's much lighter than a two-handed sword)

My players kept on getting crap rolls for NPC recruitment (If you really want something to happen, ignore the dice. You're the DM, you can do anything you want.)

AD&D

How big a creature can disintegrate disintegrate? (any size, as long as it's one singular creature. Ridiculously huge ones like Unicron probably have saves of all 2 though.)

Can henchmen gain levels? (Yes! You should encourage this. It's to your benefit too to give them enough pay and leave to upgrade themselves. Otherwise they might quit or try to unionise.)

What happens if two surprise modifiers conflict? turn them into additions on the base number, and add all the bonuses and penalties together. )

Why can druids use scimitars but not longswords when both are metal? (It's not the metal they object too, it's the straightness. We support our LGBTQ animals in this edition!)

Can dispel magic affect things in an extradimensional space? (Only if you're in the same extradimensional space)

How long does a druid take to shapechange? (A matter of seconds.)

How does magic resistance affect magical walls (A lot more dangerously than next edition. You can keep on making checks each round until you bring it down.)

How do I interpret a wish to exceed someone's level limits (Sadistically, like any wish)

How do I repair a flying carpet (Ooh, that's gonna cost ya guvner. :sucks teeth: It's the patterns, you see, Can't get the thread or the dyes round here. We're gonna have to send it all the way to the elemental plane of air to be properly serviced. )

Can a red dragon breathe fire for full damage while polymorphed? (Not officially, but outside tournament games, the DM is god.)

Can a low level character use an artifact (If they can handle the side effects)

Do you need to write down both the regular and reversed versions of a spell (No)

Why is there no weather in my game? (Your DM is being lazy.)

What is burning hands range (three actual feet, not minis scale feet)

Boot Hill

How do stats work (Put the modified result in to speed up play)

Dawn Patrol

How did you decide which planes to put in the game? (Ones that made for a fair fight)

Can you try and clear two jammed guns at once? (Yes)

Gangbusters

What do I do if players are getting too rich? (They might be able to beat the police and rival gangs, but the IRS? That's a different kettle of fish entirely.)

Gamma World

Why do lasers hurt unarmored things less (they punch straight through, while with a bit of resistance, a larger area gets burned.)

Gamma World is too deadly! (That's intentional. Player skill is more important than stats here. Git Gud, n00b)

Does a Mark V put a hole in anything? (If you fire it enough times)

Star Frontiers

Why can't I make my own alien races (You can. Just don't expect them to appear in the official books)

Can I mount a machine gun on a vehicle (Sure. Just watch out for local laws. A lot of places don't like that.)

Top Secret

What's the difference between fame and fortune points? (they're mechanically identical, you just earn them differently)

 

[(un)reason]

Polyhedron Issue 12: May/Jun 1983



part 5/6



Basically Speaking: This column reminds us that a big part of Basic D&D, which AD&D does less of, weirdly enough, is becoming a domain ruler at Name Level, and getting to command armies. It's somewhat of a problem, then, that they don't have a native system for mass combat yet, and won't until the Companion set is released next year. So they suggest you use the Swords & Spells miniatures combat rules (Also by TSR :teeth ting and build your army in that if you really want to do larger scale battles. If not, just abstract most of the NPC's, and use the battle as a backdrop for the actions of the characters. So this illustrates that the rules really aren't there to support some of the things they want to do yet, and also that you shouldn't use the game rules as physics of the universe, because they're not designed with enough rigour and flexibility, and will throw up stupid results or break. Give it a few more editions. They will get better, honest guv!



Knight Hawks - A New Dimension: A couple of issues ago, we had someone complaining that there were no rules for ship-to-ship combat in Star Frontiers. They said then there was a supplement coming for that, and here it is! Interestingly, it's not just a supplement, but a standalone minis game as well, that can combine with the RPG to create a greater whole, as presumably they think it'll sell better marketed that way. As usual for their core products, it's a boxed set with dice, counters, mapsheet, introductory adventure, and everything else you need to get going in one package. A fairly standard bit of promotion. They may not have paid averts in here, but this serves essentially the same purpose.



Mapping from Square One pt 3: The final part in this series is somewhat of a postscript, not giving us any new symbols for our maps, but serving to remind us that the map is not the territory. While you need to get the angles right, especially if it doesn't follow the grid precisely, you don't need to include every tiny knobbly bit in a cave system. As long as you describe things accurately enough to map, it's the players fault if they fail to do so and get lost later because they weren't paying attention. A DM should be fair, but not nice. Nothing essential here, unlike the first two, you can skip it without feeling you're missing anything.



Notes for the Dungeon Master: Gary takes this column over from Frank, and changes the topic completely. In the old days, he used to design things starting with a big dungeon, and then gradually going outwards as the players levelled up and needed new challenges. Now, he finds things work better long-term if you start with basic postulates, and then zoom in, creating details about the universe, solar system, world, continent, country, and then the first town & dungeon. It takes a bit longer that way around, but you're less likely to paint yourself into a corner and make something that falls apart when PC's start poking the physics, economics, demographics, weather patterns, etc. As with his last bit of advice, this is actually pretty good, if somewhat padded out by the verbosity of his distinctive writing style. Think big and shoot for the stars, because even if you fail you'll still get further than if you'd set a small goal in the first place.

 

[(un)reason]

Polyhedron Issue 12: May/Jun 1983



part 6/6



Roles: In Top Secret, as in many games, there are a bunch of secondary roles orthogonal to the basic character classes. Who your loyalties are too is independent of what skills you have, and can change a lot more in game. Sometimes this is willing choice by the player, sometimes they'll be blackmailed, or caught and faced with the choice of becoming a double agent or facing death & imprisonment, and sometimes the government will betray them or send them on a suicide mission, and they have to figure out how to get out alive and whether to go independent or find some other employer. All good plot hooks for an espionage game, in other words. While they might start out episodic, at some point you'll probably lose your stable paycheck and have to go on the run, or deal with some players betraying the others and splitting into multiple groups operating in the same world. Just got to figure out how to make those transitions in a way that doesn't kill the campaign. Definitely approve of this one, as it helps both the DM and players think of new ways they might play the game long-term.



White Rabbits: While the number of members is growing exponentially worldwide at the moment, getting enough of them together in one place to form an official club remains tricky. Only 5 places have managed the organisational feats needed to apply for a club membership, and only one of those is big enough to be a guild. There are none at all at the society tier yet. If more people don't take these offers up they might wind up dropping them. That would be a shame. Hopefully network externalities will work more in their favour as they grow, and hopefully I'll get to see what progress they make on this in future issues.



Tournament Scoring System pt 3: This part of setting up a tournament is less forms and regulations and more about the soft skills of social organising. You still need to gather enough groups to make multiple round tournaments feasible, and enough DM's to put the groups through their paces, a place for them to meet, what the rules for internal scoring are, and what prizes the winners get. They're still allowing you a fair bit of leeway in exactly how you run your games and still have it count for their ranking systems, which is nice. Let's hope they don't have to add too many more petty rules because people are abusing that freedom in quick succession.



Miniature Open: Another amusing single page advert here, as they try to get more entries to their minis competition. Who can paint the most impressive single figure, who can assemble the best military unit, and who can put together the best diorama? If you think you've got what it takes, here's the rules. Get your ass to Gen Con, and figure out how to transport your painstakingly created stuff there and back without it getting damaged. I strongly suspect we'll be seeing the winners of this in a few issues time.



The basicness of the last few issues continues to ebb, and the many small format changes this issue keep it interesting to read, even if they are slightly reducing the amount of content. Have they got all the format changes out of their system now? Guess I'd better see what they put in the next one.

 

[(un)reason]

Polyhedron Issue 13: Jul/Aug 1983



part 1/6



34 pages. Oooh, a big transdimensional crossover on the cover. That should be interesting in the Encounters column. What, they're skipping that this time? Well, that sucks. Obviously not ready to go full Avengers on us. They need to set their ambitions a little higher. Oh well, let's see what they've actually included instead, and if it's any good.



From the publisher: This is again used as a Coming Soon. A fair number of modules, but few outright classics, they appear to be hitting the point of diminishing returns on some of these series. Gary's not just one, but two riffs on Alice in Wonderland, the one-on-one gamebooks, the Tomb of Martek? Meh. Six endless quest books, more than any of the other lines is getting. Huh. They barely talk about those in Dragon or Polyhedron. They must actually be quite big sellers to get that many releases. X5, the first basic D&D module that has any continuity with previous ones? Now that's a bit more exciting. As is their first non-module bit of setting building, World of Greyhawk, courtesy of Elminster's distant relation Pluffet Smedger. They can't resist building up a little depth, even if it is still pretty silly. It is nice to have choices.



From the editor: Looks like my intuition was right. The rules questions are one of the most demanded things in the newszine. They're so important to them in fact that they're putting just those pages on tougher cardstock so they last longer. Bold of you to assume they won't be invalidated by edition changes in a few years. I guess that shows just how important a good system actually is to gaming. I guess it's like saying being rich won't make you happy. No, but it sure does remove a lot of the more obvious impediments.



Letters: As with last issue, we have someone wanting to submit their stuff. Another thing they get a lot, but your odds of success are not great. Here's the new address if you want to try anyway.

Then we have to deal with a particularly arcane little bureaucratic naughty word-up. Human error will always creep in somewhere.

Someone asking why they haven't done a D&D movie. They're trying. Hollywood is a tough market to sell too. They have managed to do a cartoon, which will be starting shortly. Watch it when it comes out, increase the odds of more multimedia licences in the future.

Someone asking why the new Gamma World modules don't have map co-ordinates. Do you really want your setting tied down that much? Put them where it makes sense in your campaign.

Someone wondering why they gave us stats for deities if they're just going to turn around and tell us not to use them. Let's just say opinions within the company are divided and ever-evolving.

 

[(un)reason]

Polyhedron Issue 13: Jul/Aug 1983



part 2/6



Dispel Confusion:

D&D

What is finger of death (the reverse of raise dead. It has a longer range, because it's much easier to kill things than bring them back. )

What are the most important parts of D&D ( That the players have free will, and that they face logical consequences for their choices. The story is something that happens in play, not something the DM writes before and railroads the party through.)

What do I do with a player carrying 200 torches (figure out how much that weighs, and apply encumbrance, duh!)

What happens if a lightning bolt bounces and hits the same thing twice? (They have to save multiple times or take full damage.)

Do you have to start again when you switch to AD&D? (Yes. Maybe. Depends how nice your DM is. It's a lot easier to convert that way than the other way around.)

How much XP does a minotaur need to advance levels? (Oh, we won't have rules for that for many years. You're outta luck for the moment.)

How many spells should a magic-user have in their book? (not much more than they can cast unless they really work at it)

How do I keep players interested? (variety is the spice of life. Mix up your combat, exploration, and roleplaying and don't go too slow)

When do characters eat? (unless you're in a state of constant emergency, assume they found time to do it offscreen)

AD&D

Why do demihumans have lower level limits. (To balance out their being more powerful when they started out. )

Can a magic-user memorise the same spell twice (yes, but it's generally a better idea to have variety. You never know when an enemy is going to be immune to an energy type.)

I just found out elves can't be raised when mine already has been repeatedly (We'll let you off this time. Don't do it again.)

Can I have more than one familiar? (Not without custom spells from Dragon that haven't been published yet)

Can a ranger have a familiar (Effectively, although they'd prefer different types of animals)

Can a ranger cast spells in metal armor (yes)

Does wishing people back to life need a resurrection check? (no)

Can you wish people back to life if you tried to raise them the regular way and failed (yes)

Your indian mythos sucks! (You obviously read different primary sources to us. We did our best to keep it accurate to the ones we read, but reality is under no obligation to be consistent.)

Boot Hill

If you hit someone twice in the same hit location, are penalties cumulative (no, but overall damage is)

Why do rifles have a faster rate of fire than other guns (That's just how good they could make them back then)

Dawn Patrol

What happens if multiple pilots go into the same square at different altitudes? (It can get messy. Remember there's no air-to-air radio in WWI, so people on the same side have to guess how best to co-operate without direct communication)

Gamma World

Where did you get all those weird names for things from? (partly pure imagination, partly terrible puns)

How do I use the weirder Cryptic Alliances? (even the strangest ones will help members out with basic needs like food and plot hooks. They'll just be strange missions and meals.)

Gangbusters

How much does a camera cost (about the same as today, which means much more expensive in real terms)

How do I stop my player's characters from arresting and interrogating everyone? (If they mess with the wrong people, their higher-ups will get pressure put on them over police brutality. This seems like a good plot hook. )

Star Frontiers

How do gas masks work for aliens? (Often very differently. This may also make them more expensive, especially where they're a minority.)

Once again you've listed the same equipment twice in the same book with different prices! Which is right? (the cheaper one)

Can I make a jack-of-all-trades? (yes, but they'll be weaker than a specialised class until very high experience)

Top Secret

Which table do I use for improvised weapons? (the closest shape to an actual weapon. )

Are poison penalties are flat subtraction, or a percentage of your stats? (a percentage)

 

[(un)reason]

Polyhedron Issue 13: Jul/Aug 1983



part 3/6



Under Construction: This article is a sequel, showing what happens next if you take the obvious route out of the room of roses in issue 10. As with that, it's the kind of puzzle where your stats are meaningless, and the obvious solution is the wrong one, which will only get you in further trouble. The kind of thing tailor made to piss players off, in other words. For those of you who want prefab bits for your very own tomb of horrors, which is a pretty small part of the gaming market these days. Definitely not my favourite kind of sample encounter, and hopefully we won't have more sequels to it.



Gods, Demigods and DMs: Roger Moore weighs in on the debate about if you should use gods in your game. While somewhat more diplomatic in his phrasing than Frank, the ultimate upshot is much the same. Use them with caution, and remember they are ridiculously more powerful than the PC's, and can do whatever they like to them, so players should tread carefully, and not even use their name in vain. If they think they can put one over them, they're wrong, and if it looks like they did, you can let the other shoe drop in sadistic fashion somewhere down the line and reveal their efforts were futile or all part of a larger scheme. It's all somewhat disempowering. That they're devoting so much page count to saying no repeatedly in multitudinous and verbose ways irritates me. As with the last article, I have to conclude that this is an attitude that should be left in the past, since we do now have better rules technology that can handle this stuff decently. I hope they don't keep on repeating themselves on this for years to come.



Spelling Bee: This column turns it's attention to a very D&D specific spell. Continual Light. Not the most obviously impressive of spells, but easily the most world-changing simply because it's the lowest level spell that you can cast once, and then it works indefinitely. Even if wizards are rare in your campaign world, all it takes is one 3rd level+ caster casting it once a day to make a huge difference to the surrounding civilisation over the years. It's reverse has a ton of cool uses as well, working as a good adjunct to other tricks to make them harder to spot and counter. Having them in your arsenal makes dungeon-delving a lot easier, as you no longer have to worry about torch supplies, and you can make a comfortable living between adventures. It's just a great all-rounder that any spellcaster with a brain will add to their list as soon as possible. Yeah, this is one that a lot of people figured out on their own, and it's not at all surprising they'd comment on it here. Definitely one worth referring back too every now and then to help you find nonobvious solutions to problems with common spells.

 

[(un)reason]

Polyhedron Issue 13: Jul/Aug 1983



part 4/6



The Hive Master: Our largest article this month is a 4 page adventure for Gangbusters, which kinda puts the lie to their statement a few issues back that they don't have the page count for it. Push the envelope a little more, and you'll be able to squeeze a full-sized scenario in. This pushes the envelope in another way as well, stretching the setting from straight historical crime drama to pulp mad science. Someone's been genetically engineering bees - TO COMMIT CRIME!!! Your players need to investigate, find out who's responsible, and foil them. Sounds like an entertaining premise. Unfortunately, it's designed as a complete railroad, simply giving a list of scenes, and expecting you to go from one to the next with no regard for what happens if the players make different choices or the dice don't co-operate. This is the problem with trying to game in a modern day or historical setting. It's harder to write good adventures where the players have free will than site-based dungeons, and there's so much less you can do before stretching the bounds of credulity. It's not surprising that they don't sell as much.



Ecosystem: The Ecology series has made it's debut in Dragon Magazine recently, and proved quite the breakout hit, rapidly getting enough submissions to keep them going for years. Even Jim Ward seems to approve of the idea, and sets out to incorporate it into Gamma World, even though it's not very well suited to it. But despite all the gonzo things thrown into the books with no thought their relative frequencies or how they interact with one another, you can still generate plot hooks by thinking about the motivations of creatures and what might happen when they're put together in your own campaign. Some of those combinations will produce very silly results. So this hasn't completely abandoned the ridiculous and humorous spirit of the 1st edition, but like the anti-god article this issue, it shows the designers are starting to regret their youthful excesses and think about how they can walk things back a bit, set a good example for the next generation of gamers, and create longer-term campaigns. We'll definitely be seeing more of this stuff in the near future.

 

[(un)reason]

Polyhedron Issue 13: Jul/Aug 1983



part 5/6



Go West, Young Gamer: Boot Hill's article this issue is easily the most dramatic one ruleswise. Sometimes articles have introduced a new stat or class before, but 4 in one go? That's nearly doubling the mechanical complexity of characters. I guess the system as it is doesn't handle noncombat stuff very well, so they want to make it more comprehensive and able to handle long-term campaigns. So say hello to Co-ordination, for running, climbing, jumping, etc; Observation, for perception stuff, obviously; Stature, basically charisma and reputation rolled into one; and Luck, which makes trick shots more viable and gives you better odds of surviving when dropped to 0 strength. Basically, the kind of overhaul that really ought to be a new edition of the game, given how extensively it changes things. Are they planning a new edition? :checks: Not until 1990, although it did include some of the ideas introduced here. I guess that makes this a lost gem, and one of the most significant things I've seen in the newszine so far in the overall scheme of things. Very interesting indeed. Did any of you actually play the game with these add-ons, and just how big a difference did it make?



Raid on Theseus: Like Dawn Patrol, Knight Hawks scenarios require relatively little space to describe mechanically, so they can easily fit one into a single page, and still sprinkle a little setting-building in there too. The war between the UPF and the Sathar has kicked up a gear, and things aren't going well for the humans. They're outnumbered and outgunned, and their only chance of winning is to take advantage of their superior maneuverability and use hit and run tactics. Since this is a game, the odds are actually more even than they seem at first, but one side will have to think a little harder for their victory. Fairly interesting, even if it's one I'm unlikely to ever get the chance to use. At least they're keeping the wargaming stuff alive a little longer than they did in Dragon.



Psionic Pspells: Not content with one article on the ramifications of magic, they decide to do one on psionic powers that have obvious or not so obvious analogs with spells, to see how they compare, and which is better. This takes a lot longer than analyzing a single spell, and stretches over 4 pages, yet somehow is a lot less useful in terms of actual play. Taxonomy certainly has it's value, but it doesn't usually give you clever ways to use your powers and break the game. Like the lengthy lists of how spells work differently on another plane, it can be a pain to keep in your head and remember to apply it all. I think they might be overdoing it a bit on this topic. Hopefully they'll have got it out of their system and move onto something else next issue.

 

[(un)reason]

Polyhedron Issue 13: Jul/Aug 1983



part 6/6



The Knight-Error gets things right for a change, pointing out that stethoscopes are great both for hearing noise on the other side of a door, and avoiding ear seekers burrowing into your brain. Anachronate to win.



The Condor Assignment: Our Top Secret article this month is a grab-bag of little bits and pieces. A brief review of the new James Bond novel Icebreaker (which still hasn't got a cinematic adaption, despite evidently being written with that in mind). Some slightly longer commentary on the recent TV movie Return of the Man From U.N.C.L.E. It's rather cheesy, but still has some fun elements to it. And some errata for their latest module. Basic map labelling error anyone could have made. All much more current events focussed than most articles, this reminds us that the spy genre was very much alive and developing back then. (unlike westerns, which were already well into decline by the start of the 80's) It's not until the end of the Cold War that it'll really start to run into problems. In the meantime, we get to enjoy the RPG's based on it changing to fit with the fashions in the same way.



Treasure Chest: Three new RPGA exclusive modules are added to this section. These are all parts of larger series, as they compile multiple tournament rounds into one module, to create something that'll last the players more than one session. Black Opal Eye, the somewhat less well-known sequel to Rahasia. And from the UK branch, the first four instalments of the Prophecy of Brie. Just how cheesy will the plot get over those missions, and how many groups will survive that far?



With plenty of continuity with previous issues, and easily the most material that's actually useful for gaming with now, rather than just interesting as a matter of historical record, this sets another high point for the newszine. They've got over their first round of growing pains and are now going full steam ahead. Let's hope they can keep it up for a good long while. To the next issue!