(un)reason
Legend
That, sir, is a thing of beauty. I thank you.
Let's read the entire run
- Thread starter (un)reason
- Start date
cildarith
Explorer
You are welcome!
Looking at the average yearly circulation totals so far:
1977: 6,000
1978: 7,120
1979: 10,636
1980: 15,616
1981: 44,994
1982: 71,666
amysrevenge
First Post
Zowie, I have all of these on my bookshelf right now (haven't read the Dick or von Vogt ones yet)!
I quite liked the Hogan one. Just read it about 3 months ago.
(un)reason
Legend
Dragon Issue 69: January 1983
part 1/2
103 pages. Looks like Gary's recent outbursts have once again provoked a rash of critical responses. And once again, they proclaim their independence. The reason they're covering D&D more is because it's popularity relative to everything else has increased so much, so they're going where the money is. Which is a bit depressing in itself, but that's the nature of an expanding outlier. It takes a while for that success to trickle down to the rest of the industry, if it ever does. Economics sucks. Lets try and get back to the escapism.
In this issue:
Out on a limb: A letter calling out the idiocy of making thieves cant an actual language, rather than a set of jargon, like it is in reality. Frankly, if you can accept the concept of alignment languages, you can accept the concept that thieves and druids have their own language that's the same all over the world. But of course so many people couldn't, which is why they got rid of them in 3e.
A letter saying that read illusionist magic contradicts earlier statements that illusionists don't need spells to read their books. They reply that yes, that was the case, but newest rules supercede earlier ones. It's their game, and they can change the rules any time they want. And then you have to change them too, otherwise you are no longer playing an Official AD&Dtm Game. So there.
Two more letter pointing out errors. Again, they reply. Some of them were indeed errors, but others were actual changes to the rules. But how can we be sure which is which, when it seems like every few issues, we have gary apologizing for an error that was in a previous one.
A letter saying that Nystuls magic aura should be an illusionist spell, because, y'know, it makes an illusion. A valid point.
A letter engaging in lots of quibbling about the language articles a few issues ago, with a particular focus on the prevailance of literacy in D&D's world. Yes, not being able to read has quite a few drawbacks. But even now, there are big chunks of the world where a substantial percentage of the population can't read. Still, I suppose modern D&D is even more unrealistic in that respect.
Another letter quibbling about the amount of psychosomatic effect illusion spells can have. They quote real life examples of hypnotism and placebo effects. This can't end well. We also get yet more comments on the language articles. They really are proving surprisingly controversial.
And finally a bit of errata. Seems like David Megarry was left out of the credits for the Dungeon computer game. Guess he'll just have to settle for a mention here.
Runes: Ancient languages. Now there's a fitting topic for a D&D game. Lots of real world history, plus some advice on how to incorporate it into your game. Which mainly amounts to window dressing on the current system. Not the most spectacular starter feature ever. But it's too early in the morning for a whole new magic system anyway.
Runestones: Hello again Elminster. What are you talking about this time? Dethlek, the dwarven rune language. What a co-incidence. This is of course a good example of how to apply a real world idea to the game, changing it just enough that it doesn't feel like a total rip-off. Of course, he slips in more realms setting details along the way, and we get more of an idea of elminsters personal voice as contrasted with Ed's. Actually, the framing is more interesting than the subject. I'm not sure that's such a good thing. Oh well, it's more entertaining than the previous article anyway.
Fiction: Be Quest by Atanielle Annyn Noel. Vaguely connected to first two articles in that it's set in a kinda scandinavian mileu, this is basically a little story of overcoming your own fears. No real supernatural element, very little setting, only two pages long. Feels a bit insubstantial really.
From the Sorceror's scroll: Anotther official class introduced this month. The thief-acrobat. Another proto-prestige class like the bard, this allows you to specialize in certain functions of your class at the expense of the others. Which is certainly a development. Albeit one with some precedent, in the illusionist. Now, if only they could apply that principle in an organized fashion to all the classes. Anyway, back to the subject at hand. This seems to be designed for people who want more cinematic, mobile combats. While certainly not at wuxia levels of jumping ability, they are substantially better than most characters. Course, someone buffed with fly and haste'll beat even that no trouble, just as knock beats any lockpicker. This certainly isn't as problematic as the barbarian, in any case. A fairly middle of the road article in terms of quality.
Ha. Despite economic downturns, TSR is hiring 160 new staff. Is that really wise? S'not a good idea to expand beyond your limits and get into debt.
Fiction: Everybody eats everybody on sunday's planet by Jeff Swycaffer. Yay. After a load of mediocre articles, we finally have a kickass bit of sci-fi, setting up a story, an ecology and a fairly convincing alien psychology and using it to make a sociopolitical point, all in three pages. Very nice indeed. And to think some authors would take multi-hundred page trilogy to get to the same point.
Deities and demigods of greyhawk: This month's addition to the pantheon are Istus and Obad-hai. Plus we get stats for time elementals, which are a lot smarter than regular elementals, and get time manipulation powers that make them a pain in the ass to deal with. Bow down and worship, because the alternative is not a good one. No great surprises here.
Charting the classes: Roger Moore gets all statistical on us. Mmm. Just how I like it baby. He analyses relative power level at various XP levels. And we discover that druids and bards rock, monks suck, and illusionists are surprisingly well balanced. Gee, that's a surprise. He then suggests a bunch of stuff to fix these problems. He also turns his eye to Gary's new introductions, and is distinctly critical of them. He obviously put in rather more thought, particularly in terms of mathematical rigour, than the original writer. This is why it's good to have a mathematician on the team. If you don't the game you design will have substantial imbalances, no matter how hard you try. Okay, so it won't be perfect even with one, but you can get a lot closer.
part 1/2
103 pages. Looks like Gary's recent outbursts have once again provoked a rash of critical responses. And once again, they proclaim their independence. The reason they're covering D&D more is because it's popularity relative to everything else has increased so much, so they're going where the money is. Which is a bit depressing in itself, but that's the nature of an expanding outlier. It takes a while for that success to trickle down to the rest of the industry, if it ever does. Economics sucks. Lets try and get back to the escapism.
In this issue:
Out on a limb: A letter calling out the idiocy of making thieves cant an actual language, rather than a set of jargon, like it is in reality. Frankly, if you can accept the concept of alignment languages, you can accept the concept that thieves and druids have their own language that's the same all over the world. But of course so many people couldn't, which is why they got rid of them in 3e.
A letter saying that read illusionist magic contradicts earlier statements that illusionists don't need spells to read their books. They reply that yes, that was the case, but newest rules supercede earlier ones. It's their game, and they can change the rules any time they want. And then you have to change them too, otherwise you are no longer playing an Official AD&Dtm Game. So there.
Two more letter pointing out errors. Again, they reply. Some of them were indeed errors, but others were actual changes to the rules. But how can we be sure which is which, when it seems like every few issues, we have gary apologizing for an error that was in a previous one.
A letter saying that Nystuls magic aura should be an illusionist spell, because, y'know, it makes an illusion. A valid point.
A letter engaging in lots of quibbling about the language articles a few issues ago, with a particular focus on the prevailance of literacy in D&D's world. Yes, not being able to read has quite a few drawbacks. But even now, there are big chunks of the world where a substantial percentage of the population can't read. Still, I suppose modern D&D is even more unrealistic in that respect.
Another letter quibbling about the amount of psychosomatic effect illusion spells can have. They quote real life examples of hypnotism and placebo effects. This can't end well. We also get yet more comments on the language articles. They really are proving surprisingly controversial.
And finally a bit of errata. Seems like David Megarry was left out of the credits for the Dungeon computer game. Guess he'll just have to settle for a mention here.
Runes: Ancient languages. Now there's a fitting topic for a D&D game. Lots of real world history, plus some advice on how to incorporate it into your game. Which mainly amounts to window dressing on the current system. Not the most spectacular starter feature ever. But it's too early in the morning for a whole new magic system anyway.
Runestones: Hello again Elminster. What are you talking about this time? Dethlek, the dwarven rune language. What a co-incidence. This is of course a good example of how to apply a real world idea to the game, changing it just enough that it doesn't feel like a total rip-off. Of course, he slips in more realms setting details along the way, and we get more of an idea of elminsters personal voice as contrasted with Ed's. Actually, the framing is more interesting than the subject. I'm not sure that's such a good thing. Oh well, it's more entertaining than the previous article anyway.
Fiction: Be Quest by Atanielle Annyn Noel. Vaguely connected to first two articles in that it's set in a kinda scandinavian mileu, this is basically a little story of overcoming your own fears. No real supernatural element, very little setting, only two pages long. Feels a bit insubstantial really.
From the Sorceror's scroll: Anotther official class introduced this month. The thief-acrobat. Another proto-prestige class like the bard, this allows you to specialize in certain functions of your class at the expense of the others. Which is certainly a development. Albeit one with some precedent, in the illusionist. Now, if only they could apply that principle in an organized fashion to all the classes. Anyway, back to the subject at hand. This seems to be designed for people who want more cinematic, mobile combats. While certainly not at wuxia levels of jumping ability, they are substantially better than most characters. Course, someone buffed with fly and haste'll beat even that no trouble, just as knock beats any lockpicker. This certainly isn't as problematic as the barbarian, in any case. A fairly middle of the road article in terms of quality.
Ha. Despite economic downturns, TSR is hiring 160 new staff. Is that really wise? S'not a good idea to expand beyond your limits and get into debt.
Fiction: Everybody eats everybody on sunday's planet by Jeff Swycaffer. Yay. After a load of mediocre articles, we finally have a kickass bit of sci-fi, setting up a story, an ecology and a fairly convincing alien psychology and using it to make a sociopolitical point, all in three pages. Very nice indeed. And to think some authors would take multi-hundred page trilogy to get to the same point.
Deities and demigods of greyhawk: This month's addition to the pantheon are Istus and Obad-hai. Plus we get stats for time elementals, which are a lot smarter than regular elementals, and get time manipulation powers that make them a pain in the ass to deal with. Bow down and worship, because the alternative is not a good one. No great surprises here.
Charting the classes: Roger Moore gets all statistical on us. Mmm. Just how I like it baby. He analyses relative power level at various XP levels. And we discover that druids and bards rock, monks suck, and illusionists are surprisingly well balanced. Gee, that's a surprise. He then suggests a bunch of stuff to fix these problems. He also turns his eye to Gary's new introductions, and is distinctly critical of them. He obviously put in rather more thought, particularly in terms of mathematical rigour, than the original writer. This is why it's good to have a mathematician on the team. If you don't the game you design will have substantial imbalances, no matter how hard you try. Okay, so it won't be perfect even with one, but you can get a lot closer.
(un)reason
Legend
Dragon Issue 69: January 1983
part 2/2
Featured Creatures is still in a fungible mood, with the ustilagor and zygom. Psychic fungus that promotes paranoia, and parasitic fungus that grows inside you and takes you over. Both are pretty gross, and should make for interesting conflicts that go beyond straight-up battles. Especially when they turn PC's against one another. That's always fun.
Caped crusaders and masked Marvels: More analytical stuff from Roger. He turns his attention to the superhero genre and the innate problems that making a game for them presents. Killing is not de rigeur and the rules need to support this, because damage systems where characters are fragile (yes, you aberrant) will result in people dying a lot even if you try and play nice. Physics are exceedingly loose, and the range of powers characters can have very wide. Keeping a team together and following the adventure you had planned may be a problem. All of which are surmountable problems, but it does mean the games are easier to break than D&D. While this points out the problems, it doesn't do a lot to solve them, particularly on the mechanical side. You'll still have to convince your players to play along with the genre conventions, which might not be easy. This is definitely an area that needs improving.
Of course there is some themed advertising adjacent to the above article.
Arakhar's Wand: Another complete boardgame. We are building up quite a substantial selection of these. The good guys hunt for the wand before the evil side can amass enough monsters to take over the world (Muahahahaha!) Some very dry point by point rules make the system pretty clear, but feel rather mechanical to read. The number of variations it has should make for a reasonable amount of replay value. Another solid bit of design.
We get another food fight illustration, apropos of nothing.
Leomund's tiny hut: Len gives us another unofficial class, the Entertainer. Are bards and jesters not enough for you? This seems to be designed to make their progression a whole new gamestyle in itself, with an incredibly idiosyncratic advancement structure with multiple forking advanced class paths. Given their variety, I could easily imagine a whole party comprised mainly of entertainers working as a troupe. This is almost as big a departure from the original mileu as the attempt to twist D&D into boys own adventure in the professor ludlow module. I have to applaud him for the bravery of his attempt. On the other hand, I have no idea how well these guys would work out in actual play with a normal team. Does anyone have any actual play experiences to supply, because I'm really rather curious. This doesn't quite top carnivorous flying squirrels for sheer entertainment, but it comes pretty close. I guess they'll have to train some and use them in their act if they want to reach that elusive 12th level.
Ready for anything: Lew reminds us that you should be prepared for anything when dungeoneering. Which of course means big heavy packs full of just in case
like wolfsbane, holy water, and climbing equipment. They don't have those encumbrance rules for nothing, you know. This is solid advice for anyone engaged in old skool dungeoneering, because you know the DM won't pull punches, and if you forgot to pack something, chances are you'll wind up wishing you had it. Another solid article from him, that's still useful today. Hell, the basic principles are applicable to real life, if you change the specifics. Fill your jacket or handbag with things you've needed in the past, and probably will again in the future, and you'll avoid so many crises and become the envy of all your friends. (Which means they'll be constantly coming to you for help, but that's a price I'm willing to pay. )
Buy the Fantasia strategy game now! No comment needed.
More pages from the mages: Ha. We get the first hint as to the extent of Elminsters wizardry (and letchery) skills. Well, he is capable of interplanar travel fairly easily, so he can't be a slouch at magical knowledge. We get four spellbooks, and seven new spells, six of them named, plus 16 poisons, 4 new glyphs of warding, and tons of realms tidbits. We're starting to see place names and people show up more than once. It still isn't nearly enough to piece the world behind the hints together, but it is more than enough to intrigue. Before you know it, people'll be bombarding him with questions, and he'll have to reveal ever more. It's a nice way to build a world really. Make up whatever stuff seems fun at the time, and then figure out how to piece it together afterwards. He's certainly doing a better job of it than Gary at the moment.
Words of wisdom about weapon statistics: This is actually a spy's advice under different name. Because lots of people have questions about weapons. Remember folks, know what your weapons can do. They could save someone's life.
Why aren't official guns stats calculated using the formulas in the gun design section. (Lots of reasons. But mainly because we know better than to follow the rules we impose on you. Plus custom guns are designed by amateurs, not pros.)
How are range modifiers designed (more complicated formulae based on examination of real world guns, then modified as we choose)
How did you choose which weapons to include in the book. (we cut ones that were too vaguely described, or statistically too similar to other ones, so you had good choices. Here's some of the ones that were cut)
The reviews section has dropped it's header. Well, it's a new year, they've got to change the format somehow. Anyway, this month's reviews AAAAaaaaare.....
United nations is a game of global politics. Which power bloc will TAKE OVER THE WORLD! first? It seems simple at first, but there's plenty of strategy to be found in it's rules.
Jasmine, battle for the mid-realm takes the characters and world from the story, and lets you resolve the conflict yourself with a strategy card game. After all, they never did get a chance to finish it in the magazine. It has plenty of depth and some features that make it not just about luck and tactics, but also your own skills at negotiating with other players. And obviously the art is pretty good. Someone put a lot of care and attention into this. So the reviewer likes it then
The role of books: Lew continues to gives us books that will help us with our worldbuilding. Cities, castles, other cultures. You'll be able to build better ones in your game if you know how the real ones work. Plus some advice on how to get hold of rare and out of print books. This isn't that interesting, but hopefully the things it points you too will be.
What's new tackles what to do with your christmas presents, Wormy finally gets to the fighting. Dragonmirth is hungover from the christmas celebrations and doesn't get there in time.
Lots and lots of adverts, including a clearance sale of some out of print OD&D stuff. That'll be worth a good deal more in a few years time.
Not a very good issue to start the year off with, with tons of dull stuff, particularly near the beginning where it's most crucial to make a good impression. Looks like the slide in quality control is continuing, and however much they may protest that they are not a house organ, they do seem very much beholden to their masters whims at this point. They really could be doing better.
part 2/2
Featured Creatures is still in a fungible mood, with the ustilagor and zygom. Psychic fungus that promotes paranoia, and parasitic fungus that grows inside you and takes you over. Both are pretty gross, and should make for interesting conflicts that go beyond straight-up battles. Especially when they turn PC's against one another. That's always fun.
Caped crusaders and masked Marvels: More analytical stuff from Roger. He turns his attention to the superhero genre and the innate problems that making a game for them presents. Killing is not de rigeur and the rules need to support this, because damage systems where characters are fragile (yes, you aberrant) will result in people dying a lot even if you try and play nice. Physics are exceedingly loose, and the range of powers characters can have very wide. Keeping a team together and following the adventure you had planned may be a problem. All of which are surmountable problems, but it does mean the games are easier to break than D&D. While this points out the problems, it doesn't do a lot to solve them, particularly on the mechanical side. You'll still have to convince your players to play along with the genre conventions, which might not be easy. This is definitely an area that needs improving.
Of course there is some themed advertising adjacent to the above article.
Arakhar's Wand: Another complete boardgame. We are building up quite a substantial selection of these. The good guys hunt for the wand before the evil side can amass enough monsters to take over the world (Muahahahaha!) Some very dry point by point rules make the system pretty clear, but feel rather mechanical to read. The number of variations it has should make for a reasonable amount of replay value. Another solid bit of design.
We get another food fight illustration, apropos of nothing.
Leomund's tiny hut: Len gives us another unofficial class, the Entertainer. Are bards and jesters not enough for you? This seems to be designed to make their progression a whole new gamestyle in itself, with an incredibly idiosyncratic advancement structure with multiple forking advanced class paths. Given their variety, I could easily imagine a whole party comprised mainly of entertainers working as a troupe. This is almost as big a departure from the original mileu as the attempt to twist D&D into boys own adventure in the professor ludlow module. I have to applaud him for the bravery of his attempt. On the other hand, I have no idea how well these guys would work out in actual play with a normal team. Does anyone have any actual play experiences to supply, because I'm really rather curious. This doesn't quite top carnivorous flying squirrels for sheer entertainment, but it comes pretty close. I guess they'll have to train some and use them in their act if they want to reach that elusive 12th level.
Ready for anything: Lew reminds us that you should be prepared for anything when dungeoneering. Which of course means big heavy packs full of just in case
like wolfsbane, holy water, and climbing equipment. They don't have those encumbrance rules for nothing, you know. This is solid advice for anyone engaged in old skool dungeoneering, because you know the DM won't pull punches, and if you forgot to pack something, chances are you'll wind up wishing you had it. Another solid article from him, that's still useful today. Hell, the basic principles are applicable to real life, if you change the specifics. Fill your jacket or handbag with things you've needed in the past, and probably will again in the future, and you'll avoid so many crises and become the envy of all your friends. (Which means they'll be constantly coming to you for help, but that's a price I'm willing to pay. ) Buy the Fantasia strategy game now! No comment needed.
More pages from the mages: Ha. We get the first hint as to the extent of Elminsters wizardry (and letchery) skills. Well, he is capable of interplanar travel fairly easily, so he can't be a slouch at magical knowledge. We get four spellbooks, and seven new spells, six of them named, plus 16 poisons, 4 new glyphs of warding, and tons of realms tidbits. We're starting to see place names and people show up more than once. It still isn't nearly enough to piece the world behind the hints together, but it is more than enough to intrigue. Before you know it, people'll be bombarding him with questions, and he'll have to reveal ever more. It's a nice way to build a world really. Make up whatever stuff seems fun at the time, and then figure out how to piece it together afterwards. He's certainly doing a better job of it than Gary at the moment.
Words of wisdom about weapon statistics: This is actually a spy's advice under different name. Because lots of people have questions about weapons. Remember folks, know what your weapons can do. They could save someone's life.
Why aren't official guns stats calculated using the formulas in the gun design section. (Lots of reasons. But mainly because we know better than to follow the rules we impose on you. Plus custom guns are designed by amateurs, not pros.)
How are range modifiers designed (more complicated formulae based on examination of real world guns, then modified as we choose)
How did you choose which weapons to include in the book. (we cut ones that were too vaguely described, or statistically too similar to other ones, so you had good choices. Here's some of the ones that were cut)
The reviews section has dropped it's header. Well, it's a new year, they've got to change the format somehow. Anyway, this month's reviews AAAAaaaaare.....
United nations is a game of global politics. Which power bloc will TAKE OVER THE WORLD! first? It seems simple at first, but there's plenty of strategy to be found in it's rules.
Jasmine, battle for the mid-realm takes the characters and world from the story, and lets you resolve the conflict yourself with a strategy card game. After all, they never did get a chance to finish it in the magazine. It has plenty of depth and some features that make it not just about luck and tactics, but also your own skills at negotiating with other players. And obviously the art is pretty good. Someone put a lot of care and attention into this. So the reviewer likes it then
The role of books: Lew continues to gives us books that will help us with our worldbuilding. Cities, castles, other cultures. You'll be able to build better ones in your game if you know how the real ones work. Plus some advice on how to get hold of rare and out of print books. This isn't that interesting, but hopefully the things it points you too will be.
What's new tackles what to do with your christmas presents, Wormy finally gets to the fighting. Dragonmirth is hungover from the christmas celebrations and doesn't get there in time.
Lots and lots of adverts, including a clearance sale of some out of print OD&D stuff. That'll be worth a good deal more in a few years time.
Not a very good issue to start the year off with, with tons of dull stuff, particularly near the beginning where it's most crucial to make a good impression. Looks like the slide in quality control is continuing, and however much they may protest that they are not a house organ, they do seem very much beholden to their masters whims at this point. They really could be doing better.
I wish we could still order the grid sheets 36"x28" for $1.50 and the overlay for $4.50!
For that matter, being able to order anything from The Armory, cause I am almost out of Nipple Pink!
So all in all you are saying that #69 wasn't good for you?
Can't wait to see if you catch the mess up in #70.
For that matter, being able to order anything from The Armory, cause I am almost out of Nipple Pink!
So all in all you are saying that #69 wasn't good for you?
Can't wait to see if you catch the mess up in #70.
(un)reason
Legend
Dragon Issue 70: February 1983
part 1/2
84 pages
In this issue:
Out on a limb: A letter complementing them on the weather article, and also providing some minor errata.
A letter asking them to cover other games more. They reply that they would if they were more popular. But they aren't. So there. This is the magazine for the cool geeks.
A letter asking them to use a better form of binding than staples. But then how could people remove the adventures in the center? Plus it'd cost more. They don't want to raise prices.
Another article pointing out the flaws in their thieves cant article. Using so many sibilants would not be a good idea when trying to communicate quietly in a dangerous area, as they're incredibly noticable to anyone who might be listening, even at very low levels. A very valid point indeed. You should pay more attention to the specific sounds that make up a language and their voicing qualities when designing them. If only people did that in real life. Then maybe we wouldn't get languages that you need several pounds of phlegm in your throat to pronounce properly.
The smith: Another NPC class for you to ponder the use of. Well, I guess it'll make players thing twice about killing NPC's instead of paying for new stuff. This is another example of new experiments in class design, giving them unique benefits when combined with PC classes. Since their XP costs are pretty low, this might actually be viable for a PC. One of the better examples of profession classes we've seen.
The hull truth about speed: A big correction here. For whatever reason, the people designing the ship rules in the DMG made larger ships slower than small ones. This is rubbish! Though they may have higher inertia, in reality, the longer a ship is, the faster it can go. It'll just take a while to start, stop or turn. Glad that's sorted out then. Now, will they remember this when designing the rules for the next edition? Previous experience points to unlikely.
From the sorceror's scroll: Oh boy, social status. One of those annoying things that crops up every now and then. Since these are Official AD&Dtm Tables, I assume they apply to greyhawk. So lets see what they reveal about the setting assumptions. If characters are too low in status, they can't get the training to qualify for many classes. There is a quite substantial middle class, and adventurers often hail from it. Most people still go in for official weddings. Half-orcs have about a 1 in 20 chance of being from a stable loving family. First and second children either die a lot, or are discouraged from becoming adventurers, as they are less common as adventurers than 3rd-6th children. (also, orcs apparently don't go for virgins, because a half-orc PC generated by these tables has no chance of being a first child. That generates interesting concepts. ) Hmm. I get the impression that these may not have been thought through too well, as they fail to build a cohesive picture. But then, when has D&D's socioeconomic structure ever made sense? Depressing to realize that's par for the course.
A caste of realistic characters: Frank Mentzer gives his own contributions on the topic. Thinking about social classes in your game is another important part of worldbuilding. And that's something you shouldn't skimp on, unless you like endless one dimensional dungeon crawls. Relationships between people and monsters (not that sort, this isn't third edition) are important, and you ought to think about them. Yeah, we get it already. Tell us something new.
Falling damage: Belated errata, what an annoying phrase. Belated errata, aint no passing craze. It means the rules suck, and you'll have to cut out this page. Its the rarely seen, revisioning. Belated errata. When I was a young games player. (When he was a young games PLAYER!) I thought that for things to ever be published, they'd be examined until they were perfect. But no, when I grew up you shattered my dreams. And the fall was much more painful than you might think. From linear to geometric, we must put a harsher yardstick. To make things more realistic. So even high level characters fear the reaper, turning them into pizza when they jump off a rooftop with no magic to stop them going SPLAT! :extended silence: Another Official AD&Dtm Rules Correction that most of you probably ignored.
Giants can be awful or awe-full: Nothing to do with actual giants, this is about using characters from the Giants in the Earth series in your own game. Putting the characters in as they are may provoke a certain amount of protest and incredulity from your players, particularly if they've actually read the magazine and know what they're up against. You may want to adapt them to your campaign, changing their statistics, or filing the serial numbers off and using their stats for a different character. Along with the advice we get an index of all the fictional characters statted in the magazine, including those under different titles. A nice way to cap off the series, before it takes an extended break. Actually, they have stopped quite a few of their old regulars over the past year or so. What's up with that?
Deities and demigods of greyhawk: This month's objects of worship are Boccob the uncaring and his servant Zagyg (nudge nudge wink wink), and Olidammara the laughing rogue. (so if you need a healer for your all entertainer party, he'll be the guy for the job.) More ones that continued on to 3rd edition. Their cleric's special powers are fairly muted this issue, so the game will not be broken by permitting them.
Figure feature: Once again they've changed the title and format of the mini's column. Proper categorized grading is out. This is totally dumbing down. I disapprove. All the minis this issue have a knightly theme. Well, it's a good staple. How will they meddle with this next?
Dwarves in Space: Ahem, surely you mean DWARVES IN SPAAAAAACE!!!!!, Mr Moore. This is crossover advice on how to put D&D stuff in a sci-fi setting, with a particular focus on Traveller. Just how liberal are you prepared to be with the laws of physics? In any case, it's not that hard, unless you want to make them available as PC's. In which case you need to build career and aging stuff. Thankfully he does just that. And the tables seem pretty decent. Not bad at all.
part 1/2
84 pages
In this issue:
Out on a limb: A letter complementing them on the weather article, and also providing some minor errata.
A letter asking them to cover other games more. They reply that they would if they were more popular. But they aren't. So there. This is the magazine for the cool geeks.
A letter asking them to use a better form of binding than staples. But then how could people remove the adventures in the center?
Plus it'd cost more. They don't want to raise prices.Another article pointing out the flaws in their thieves cant article. Using so many sibilants would not be a good idea when trying to communicate quietly in a dangerous area, as they're incredibly noticable to anyone who might be listening, even at very low levels. A very valid point indeed. You should pay more attention to the specific sounds that make up a language and their voicing qualities when designing them. If only people did that in real life. Then maybe we wouldn't get languages that you need several pounds of phlegm in your throat to pronounce properly.
The smith: Another NPC class for you to ponder the use of. Well, I guess it'll make players thing twice about killing NPC's instead of paying for new stuff. This is another example of new experiments in class design, giving them unique benefits when combined with PC classes. Since their XP costs are pretty low, this might actually be viable for a PC. One of the better examples of profession classes we've seen.
The hull truth about speed: A big correction here. For whatever reason, the people designing the ship rules in the DMG made larger ships slower than small ones. This is rubbish! Though they may have higher inertia, in reality, the longer a ship is, the faster it can go. It'll just take a while to start, stop or turn. Glad that's sorted out then. Now, will they remember this when designing the rules for the next edition? Previous experience points to unlikely.
From the sorceror's scroll: Oh boy, social status. One of those annoying things that crops up every now and then. Since these are Official AD&Dtm Tables, I assume they apply to greyhawk. So lets see what they reveal about the setting assumptions. If characters are too low in status, they can't get the training to qualify for many classes. There is a quite substantial middle class, and adventurers often hail from it. Most people still go in for official weddings. Half-orcs have about a 1 in 20 chance of being from a stable loving family. First and second children either die a lot, or are discouraged from becoming adventurers, as they are less common as adventurers than 3rd-6th children. (also, orcs apparently don't go for virgins, because a half-orc PC generated by these tables has no chance of being a first child. That generates interesting concepts. ) Hmm. I get the impression that these may not have been thought through too well, as they fail to build a cohesive picture. But then, when has D&D's socioeconomic structure ever made sense? Depressing to realize that's par for the course.
A caste of realistic characters: Frank Mentzer gives his own contributions on the topic. Thinking about social classes in your game is another important part of worldbuilding. And that's something you shouldn't skimp on, unless you like endless one dimensional dungeon crawls. Relationships between people and monsters (not that sort, this isn't third edition) are important, and you ought to think about them. Yeah, we get it already. Tell us something new.
Falling damage: Belated errata, what an annoying phrase. Belated errata, aint no passing craze. It means the rules suck, and you'll have to cut out this page. Its the rarely seen, revisioning. Belated errata. When I was a young games player. (When he was a young games PLAYER!) I thought that for things to ever be published, they'd be examined until they were perfect. But no, when I grew up you shattered my dreams. And the fall was much more painful than you might think. From linear to geometric, we must put a harsher yardstick. To make things more realistic. So even high level characters fear the reaper, turning them into pizza when they jump off a rooftop with no magic to stop them going SPLAT! :extended silence: Another Official AD&Dtm Rules Correction that most of you probably ignored.
Giants can be awful or awe-full: Nothing to do with actual giants, this is about using characters from the Giants in the Earth series in your own game. Putting the characters in as they are may provoke a certain amount of protest and incredulity from your players, particularly if they've actually read the magazine and know what they're up against. You may want to adapt them to your campaign, changing their statistics, or filing the serial numbers off and using their stats for a different character. Along with the advice we get an index of all the fictional characters statted in the magazine, including those under different titles. A nice way to cap off the series, before it takes an extended break. Actually, they have stopped quite a few of their old regulars over the past year or so. What's up with that?
Deities and demigods of greyhawk: This month's objects of worship are Boccob the uncaring and his servant Zagyg (nudge nudge wink wink), and Olidammara the laughing rogue. (so if you need a healer for your all entertainer party, he'll be the guy for the job.) More ones that continued on to 3rd edition. Their cleric's special powers are fairly muted this issue, so the game will not be broken by permitting them.
Figure feature: Once again they've changed the title and format of the mini's column. Proper categorized grading is out. This is totally dumbing down. I disapprove. All the minis this issue have a knightly theme. Well, it's a good staple. How will they meddle with this next?
Dwarves in Space: Ahem, surely you mean DWARVES IN SPAAAAAACE!!!!!, Mr Moore. This is crossover advice on how to put D&D stuff in a sci-fi setting, with a particular focus on Traveller. Just how liberal are you prepared to be with the laws of physics? In any case, it's not that hard, unless you want to make them available as PC's. In which case you need to build career and aging stuff. Thankfully he does just that. And the tables seem pretty decent. Not bad at all.
(un)reason
Legend
Dragon Issue 70: February 1983
part 2/2
A second Volley: Ed Greenwood returns to the idea of putting firearms in D&D. Having done cannons and muskets last time, this time it's handgun's turn. Remember, old guns sucked. It took several minutes to reload, and there was a substantial risk of hurting yourself if you loaded it wrong. Still, at this point wizards took 10 minutes per level of the spell to memorize each one. (yeah, like any of you really enforced that one) A fireball represents 30 minutes work in the morning. Comparing damage outputs by that metric, they don't seem that unbalanced. As ever, Ed does a sterling job of both research and writing the piece.
Mehica: Another module that takes AD&D to new places, this time mesoamerican jungle. Which means step pyramids, human sacrifice, werejaguars, and lots of stuff to loot. Sound like fun to you? A 12 pager, this still finds the space to introduce a variant character class ( a neutral ranger type) and plenty of twisted setting detail. As is often the case in this era, there are several challenges that are way out of the league of the stated party level, that the group is expected to avoid rather than fight. (what 7th level group would have a chance against a 26th level cleric?) A pretty solid module that shows once again, dungeoncrawling does not have to involve literal dungeons, and humans can be just as monstrous as any actual monster.
How to make the most out of FRP tournaments: Hmm. Seems like we have a returning article theme. How do you do well in tournament games? Since it's been a few years, this has evolved a bit. A very long article (11 pages, although after removing ads, probably only 8 pages of writing.) this goes into quite a lot of detail on the process of preparation for a game and advantageous ways to behave during play. Learn the rules, figure out what kind of GM and module you're up against and adapt your play accordingly. Sort out who's boss in the team and work together efficiently. Keep things moving because you only have a limited amount of time. Don't walk into obvious traps. And try to have fun through all this. Not an easy task, by any metric. Seems like playing to win that hard would suck the fun out of gaming. You certainly won't get the chance to do much roleplaying in any case.
The game within a game: Ahh, another perennial question. How do you represent skill in something in game without bringing player skill into the equasion but also allow for some measure of personal choice. Skill rolls modified with rock/paper/scissors general strategy list selections isn't a bad way to go about it. Now, if only AD&D had a proper skill system. But that's not the fault of this article is it? They're doing the best with what they have.
Off the shelf: The book of the dun cow by Walter Wangerin Jr is a story involving speaking animals. Thankfully, they aren't disneyfied talking animals, as that would be a bit crap.
Special Deliverance by Cliford D Simak is a supernatural mystery story. Can the protagonists survive and solve it? Read it and see.
The man who had no idea by Thomas M Disch is a collection of his short stories. Both comedy and horror are well catered for, and none of them outstay their welcome.
Magician by Raymond Feist is a novel by a gamer. But that does not make it bad by any means. Quite the opposite. The reviewer hails it as a classic, putting together an intricate and epic plot and resolving it nicely, but still leaving the world open for further books.
The odds are murder by Mike McQuay is another featuring his future-noir detective, Matthew Swain. Having hit rock bottom, and lost his license, he's got to claw his way back up again, and take out the people who put him down there. The author convincingly captures the emotional journey he goes through using real life study.
The secret, (by an entire writing team) is both a book about fae stuff and a competition. Hidden in the book are clues to 12 treasures, buried somewhere in America. Can you figure out where the hell they are before anyone else does. No chance by now, given how long it's been. There've been several books like this since then, because I remember seeing this gimmick used a few times. Anyone remember how this turned out?
The venetian court by Charles L Harness is rather simplistic, with 2 dimensional characters, and fails to please the reviewer.
Manshape by John Brunner is another tale of sci-fi drama and confusion, with a well developed setting and characters.
Reviews: Citybook I is a generic RPG supplement to help you build your own urban areas. Obviously you'll have to do quite a bit of adapting to the quirks of your own campaign, but it'd probably still be quicker than creating everything wholecloth. The reviewer is as usual, pretty positive about this.
Civilization is a boardgame that does pretty much what the computer game would later do. Develop your technology, grow your population, and beat all the other players to become the ultimate empire in the world. It goes surprisingly quickly given its scope, and would make a good way to spend an evening for the whole family.
Daredevils is of course a 30's pulp adventure game. This of course means it's in direct competition with TSR's Gangbusters. The reviewer finds the level of crunch in it rather impenetrable, and therefore it's only recommended to hardcore gamers. Reservations aside, it is one of the most comprehensive modern games out there, with interesting mechanics for things beyond just combat. If you want to run an investigation centered game, this could be one for you.
What's new posits the future when gamers are grown up. Reality is less impressive. Wormy uses up his breath weapon.
Another issue that starts off annoyingly and then improves as it goes along. Still, at least they can justify the changes they're making at the moment, even if I might not agree with them. You do have to do a certain amount of dumbing down to maximize popular appeal. But not too much, otherwise people feel patronized, and it doesn't work. Come on, we need a new editorial policy. I'm getting tired of this one.
part 2/2
A second Volley: Ed Greenwood returns to the idea of putting firearms in D&D. Having done cannons and muskets last time, this time it's handgun's turn. Remember, old guns sucked. It took several minutes to reload, and there was a substantial risk of hurting yourself if you loaded it wrong. Still, at this point wizards took 10 minutes per level of the spell to memorize each one. (yeah, like any of you really enforced that one) A fireball represents 30 minutes work in the morning. Comparing damage outputs by that metric, they don't seem that unbalanced. As ever, Ed does a sterling job of both research and writing the piece.
Mehica: Another module that takes AD&D to new places, this time mesoamerican jungle. Which means step pyramids, human sacrifice, werejaguars, and lots of stuff to loot. Sound like fun to you? A 12 pager, this still finds the space to introduce a variant character class ( a neutral ranger type) and plenty of twisted setting detail. As is often the case in this era, there are several challenges that are way out of the league of the stated party level, that the group is expected to avoid rather than fight. (what 7th level group would have a chance against a 26th level cleric?) A pretty solid module that shows once again, dungeoncrawling does not have to involve literal dungeons, and humans can be just as monstrous as any actual monster.
How to make the most out of FRP tournaments: Hmm. Seems like we have a returning article theme. How do you do well in tournament games? Since it's been a few years, this has evolved a bit. A very long article (11 pages, although after removing ads, probably only 8 pages of writing.) this goes into quite a lot of detail on the process of preparation for a game and advantageous ways to behave during play. Learn the rules, figure out what kind of GM and module you're up against and adapt your play accordingly. Sort out who's boss in the team and work together efficiently. Keep things moving because you only have a limited amount of time. Don't walk into obvious traps. And try to have fun through all this. Not an easy task, by any metric. Seems like playing to win that hard would suck the fun out of gaming. You certainly won't get the chance to do much roleplaying in any case.
The game within a game: Ahh, another perennial question. How do you represent skill in something in game without bringing player skill into the equasion but also allow for some measure of personal choice. Skill rolls modified with rock/paper/scissors general strategy list selections isn't a bad way to go about it. Now, if only AD&D had a proper skill system. But that's not the fault of this article is it? They're doing the best with what they have.
Off the shelf: The book of the dun cow by Walter Wangerin Jr is a story involving speaking animals. Thankfully, they aren't disneyfied talking animals, as that would be a bit crap.
Special Deliverance by Cliford D Simak is a supernatural mystery story. Can the protagonists survive and solve it? Read it and see.
The man who had no idea by Thomas M Disch is a collection of his short stories. Both comedy and horror are well catered for, and none of them outstay their welcome.
Magician by Raymond Feist is a novel by a gamer. But that does not make it bad by any means. Quite the opposite. The reviewer hails it as a classic, putting together an intricate and epic plot and resolving it nicely, but still leaving the world open for further books.
The odds are murder by Mike McQuay is another featuring his future-noir detective, Matthew Swain. Having hit rock bottom, and lost his license, he's got to claw his way back up again, and take out the people who put him down there. The author convincingly captures the emotional journey he goes through using real life study.
The secret, (by an entire writing team) is both a book about fae stuff and a competition. Hidden in the book are clues to 12 treasures, buried somewhere in America. Can you figure out where the hell they are before anyone else does. No chance by now, given how long it's been. There've been several books like this since then, because I remember seeing this gimmick used a few times. Anyone remember how this turned out?
The venetian court by Charles L Harness is rather simplistic, with 2 dimensional characters, and fails to please the reviewer.
Manshape by John Brunner is another tale of sci-fi drama and confusion, with a well developed setting and characters.
Reviews: Citybook I is a generic RPG supplement to help you build your own urban areas. Obviously you'll have to do quite a bit of adapting to the quirks of your own campaign, but it'd probably still be quicker than creating everything wholecloth. The reviewer is as usual, pretty positive about this.
Civilization is a boardgame that does pretty much what the computer game would later do. Develop your technology, grow your population, and beat all the other players to become the ultimate empire in the world. It goes surprisingly quickly given its scope, and would make a good way to spend an evening for the whole family.
Daredevils is of course a 30's pulp adventure game. This of course means it's in direct competition with TSR's Gangbusters. The reviewer finds the level of crunch in it rather impenetrable, and therefore it's only recommended to hardcore gamers. Reservations aside, it is one of the most comprehensive modern games out there, with interesting mechanics for things beyond just combat. If you want to run an investigation centered game, this could be one for you.
What's new posits the future when gamers are grown up. Reality is less impressive. Wormy uses up his breath weapon.
Another issue that starts off annoyingly and then improves as it goes along. Still, at least they can justify the changes they're making at the moment, even if I might not agree with them. You do have to do a certain amount of dumbing down to maximize popular appeal. But not too much, otherwise people feel patronized, and it doesn't work. Come on, we need a new editorial policy. I'm getting tired of this one.
On the adventureers background generator, it would make sense that many adventurers from highter classes would not be first or second childern, depending in the inheritance practices.
As for Civilisation, I suppose that is the Avalon Hill version, it would be a long evening, I have never seen a game end in less than 6 hours and 8 to 10 is more usual.
My guess is you are going by the advertissed playing time. I have never seen a wargame of the era playable in the stated times.
As for Civilisation, I suppose that is the Avalon Hill version, it would be a long evening, I have never seen a game end in less than 6 hours and 8 to 10 is more usual.
My guess is you are going by the advertissed playing time. I have never seen a wargame of the era playable in the stated times.
(un)reason
Legend
On most of these I'm just condensing what the reviewer says, and possibly some opinion on the way they say it. That won't really change until we get to the 90's, and I have personal experience with more of the things being reviewed. Obviously as a games reviewer, he is more likely to engage in marathon sessions than the average family.
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