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Leveling assumptions then and now
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<blockquote data-quote="Raven Crowking" data-source="post: 4988586" data-attributes="member: 18280"><p><strong>More Goodies</strong></p><p></p><p>Module B1, In Search of the Unknown (the module which gave us Quasqueton), was described as "especially designed as an instructional aid for beginning Dungeon Masters and players". Copyright 1979 and 1981, we might be able to glean what was considered "normal" by the game manufacturers at that time.</p><p></p><p>Two questions assail us:</p><p></p><p>(1) Were big dungeons normal? This has been disputed on EN World.</p><p></p><p>(2) Was finding all the treasure in a dungeon normal? This, again, has been disputed on EN World.</p><p></p><p>B1 will not allow us to answer what happened in any particular game, or if the expections of TSR really were the norm, but it will certainly aid us to determine what the good folks at TSR considered the norm when it was published.</p><p></p><p>Question 1 is only addressed once that I could locate:</p><p></p><p style="margin-left: 20px">With over fifty rooms and chambers noted on the two level maps by numbers (and several other unmarked open areas), there is plenty of space to explore (though this dungeon is actually quite small compared to most). - page 24</p><p></p><p>So it seems that larger dungeons than this were considered normal by TSR. Indeed, 50 areas over 2 rooms is "quite small compared to most". Most dungeons were, therefore, quite a bit larger.</p><p></p><p>As to Question 2:</p><p></p><p style="margin-left: 20px">The treasures to be found will generally be small, although a couple of more lucrative finds are possible if the adventurers are clever or lucky. - Page 2</p><p></p><p>and</p><p></p><p style="margin-left: 20px">Considering their very nature, treasures, in most instances, should be concealed or hidden cleverly. The Dungeon Master should use his or her imagination in devising ways to hide items from discovery. Some suggestions for treasure location might be: Inside an ordinary item in plain view, within a secret compartment in a container, disguised to appear as something else, under or behind a loose stone in the floor or wall, under a heap of trash or dung, or similarly hidden. Occasionally a treasure may be easily noticed, but this should be the exception rather than the rule. - Page 25</p><p></p><p>This seems to indicate that cleverness or luck are required to find some treasures. Is there anything clearer, though? Page 24 comes to our rescue:</p><p></p><p style="margin-left: 20px">Although monsters will inevitably make their presence known, treasures are usually not obvious. It is up to players to locate them by telling the DM how their characters will conduct any attempted search, and it is quite conceivable that they could totally miss seeing a treasure which is hidden or concealed. In fact, any good dungeon will have undiscovered treasures in areas that have been explored by the players, simply because it is impossible to expect that they will find every one of them.</p><p></p><p>Seems pretty unequivical (knowing full well, of course, that some will nonetheless equivocate).</p><p></p><p>It is "impossible" to expect that the PCs will find every treasure.</p><p></p><p>"Any good dungeon" will not yield all of its treasures.</p><p></p><p>Perhaps in another post, we will look at Mr. Gygax's words in The Strategic Review, where he discusses DMs who do not make their players work for the treasure they garner. Whatever do you suppose we will find?</p><p></p><p>It seems quite clear to me that a major paradigm shift has occurred!</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Raven Crowking, post: 4988586, member: 18280"] [b]More Goodies[/b] Module B1, In Search of the Unknown (the module which gave us Quasqueton), was described as "especially designed as an instructional aid for beginning Dungeon Masters and players". Copyright 1979 and 1981, we might be able to glean what was considered "normal" by the game manufacturers at that time. Two questions assail us: (1) Were big dungeons normal? This has been disputed on EN World. (2) Was finding all the treasure in a dungeon normal? This, again, has been disputed on EN World. B1 will not allow us to answer what happened in any particular game, or if the expections of TSR really were the norm, but it will certainly aid us to determine what the good folks at TSR considered the norm when it was published. Question 1 is only addressed once that I could locate: [indent]With over fifty rooms and chambers noted on the two level maps by numbers (and several other unmarked open areas), there is plenty of space to explore (though this dungeon is actually quite small compared to most). - page 24[/indent] So it seems that larger dungeons than this were considered normal by TSR. Indeed, 50 areas over 2 rooms is "quite small compared to most". Most dungeons were, therefore, quite a bit larger. As to Question 2: [indent]The treasures to be found will generally be small, although a couple of more lucrative finds are possible if the adventurers are clever or lucky. - Page 2[/indent] and [indent]Considering their very nature, treasures, in most instances, should be concealed or hidden cleverly. The Dungeon Master should use his or her imagination in devising ways to hide items from discovery. Some suggestions for treasure location might be: Inside an ordinary item in plain view, within a secret compartment in a container, disguised to appear as something else, under or behind a loose stone in the floor or wall, under a heap of trash or dung, or similarly hidden. Occasionally a treasure may be easily noticed, but this should be the exception rather than the rule. - Page 25[/indent] This seems to indicate that cleverness or luck are required to find some treasures. Is there anything clearer, though? Page 24 comes to our rescue: [indent]Although monsters will inevitably make their presence known, treasures are usually not obvious. It is up to players to locate them by telling the DM how their characters will conduct any attempted search, and it is quite conceivable that they could totally miss seeing a treasure which is hidden or concealed. In fact, any good dungeon will have undiscovered treasures in areas that have been explored by the players, simply because it is impossible to expect that they will find every one of them.[/indent] Seems pretty unequivical (knowing full well, of course, that some will nonetheless equivocate). It is "impossible" to expect that the PCs will find every treasure. "Any good dungeon" will not yield all of its treasures. Perhaps in another post, we will look at Mr. Gygax's words in The Strategic Review, where he discusses DMs who do not make their players work for the treasure they garner. Whatever do you suppose we will find? It seems quite clear to me that a major paradigm shift has occurred! [/QUOTE]
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