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Message: <blockquote data-quote="(un)reason" data-source="post: 7971790" data-attributes="member: 27780">The Polyhedron Issue 7: Jul/Aug 1982part 3/4Campaign Clues: This issue's Top Secret article tackles the concept of long-term campaigns. The problem with most gamers starting off with D&D is that they bring that mindset to other RPG's, resulting in site based adventures where the PC's go in, get the information by unsubtle means and blow stuff up when they leave with no regard for the long-term geopolitical consequences of their actions. While making it too much like real spying would be pretty tedious, there's definitely something to be said for long-term adventures where the characters grow and change, and face more nuanced challenges than some cackling villain's secret lair. To make this work, you need to do more preparation than just bunging a bunch of goons in an illogical building layout. But the results will be worth it. Looks like the big push to get players out of the dungeon has started a little early here. That's pretty interesting to see. The advice is pretty decent for any modern day real world game too, emphasising the importance of doing your research and planning ahead. There's tons of adventure material prebuilt for you if you just know where to look. Definitely approve of this one. Ranch Encounters: Boot Hill gets an article. That's quite pleasing to see. They really didn't cover it very much in Dragon either, so every little helps. Despite the game change, this is very D&D, as it's a table of random encounters your ranchers might encounter while movin' steers across the plains. The law might be days or weeks away, so you'll have to be prepared to defend your livelihood. Well, that's what makes the game interesting despite the lack of supernatural elements. It's a wild frontier to be conquered, by personal strength and cunning. As long as you can accept that other humans'll be your primary adversaries and not feel guilty about killing them, there's plenty of fun to be had here. Notes for the Dungeon Master: This column tackles the thorny subject of what to do when a character dies, especially at higher levels. Starting right from first level every time is a bit much, but if the new character is exactly the same level as the old one, then what sting does dying have, and what incentive do they have to learn to play well and keep their character alive? Given the exponential nature of D&D xp tables, they'll soon catch up anyway. So they're still thinking in the mould of old school competitiveness where surviving and getting to high level is winning, and there's no do-overs if you naughty word up. Get that treasure, even if it involves a certain amount of deceiving the other players so you can get a bigger share, and therefore level up faster. The kind of thing that'll get gradually chipped away at over time, as other games become increasingly nonrandom in character generation, and save games get introduced to computer games, making people more concerned about "fairness" in terms of stats and encounter design, and less willing to start from scratch every time they lose. A long way to go on that front.</blockquote>

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