TSR Q&A with Gary Gygax

This is the multi-year Q&A sessions held by D&D co-creator Gary Gygax here at EN World, beginning in 2002 and running up until his sad pasing in 2008. Gary's username in the thread below is Col_Pladoh, and his first post in this long thread is Post #39.

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Gary, what are your views on giving gaming stats to deities, and to avatars/player characters killing deities? Have your views on god stats and god killing changed over the last 30 years? I understand that you are hard at work on Lejendary Pantheons for Lejendary Adventure. How will the deities be presented in that work? (And when can I buy a copy? )

Deitial types are placed into 15 ranks in my LE world pantheons. those that are in the highest ranks are not really deities but quasi ones such as minor demons, so indeed a powerful character could kill one of 15th rank or even of 14th or 13th, after that the power of deities becomes much greater. At the minor deity level it is about impossible for any mortal to harm them, and above that, in the major and higher ranks, the most potent human is akin to a mosquito.

Messing with even a minor deity is most likely to end up very badly for a PC...

I give suggested stat spreads for all 15 ranks of deities, including Health (hit points) and protection as well as special powers likely. It is up to the GM to manage the rest.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Gary, I hope you're doing well. I know this question has been put to you before, but for the life of me I can't recall your answer (someday I hope someone sifts through all the various "Ask Gary" threads here and elsewhere and collates your answers so you don't have to keep answering the same things over and over). So pardon this re-asking: what was the inspiration for the D&D gorgon? The gorgon of Greek myth is what ended up being the medusa in D&D. Was there a mythological critter like the bull-like, petrification-breathing monster in the 1e Monster Manual?

Hi Colonel!

Not a problem at all. Indeed, that question has been put to me before, but I am not sure if that was here on this website. Anyway...

The scale-mailed bull model of a gorgon came directly from a copy of a medieval bestiary, the title of which I do not recall, but it was and probably still is in the local (Lake Geneva) public library. I was happy to use that model, for it added another fearsome monster to the roster for DM use

Cheers,
Gary

 

[ColonelHardisson]

The scale-mailed bull model of a gorgon came directly from a copy of a medieval bestiary, the title of which I do not recall, but it was and probably still is in the local (Lake Geneva) public library. I was happy to use that model, for it added another fearsome monster to the roster for DM use

Thanks much for the quick and courteous reply. I had a feeling it was something like that. Medieval bestiaries and heraldry are rife with unusual critters. I'm glad that someone with an interest in such stuff designed D&D in the first place.

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Thanks much for the quick and courteous reply. I had a feeling it was something like that. Medieval bestiaries and heraldry are rife with unusual critters. I'm glad that someone with an interest in such stuff designed D&D in the first place.

Heh...

But no one liked the opinicus...

Cheers,
Gary

 

[John Drake]

Hi Gary!
Just curious, not that this is really a game related question per say, but, has any particular piece of art/music ever played an influence on anything that you've ever designed (module, supplement or novel)? If so, what type ?
Also, me just be an inquisitive individual, what type of music do you listen to most frequently?
Thank you so much for your time to answer such mundane queries, extra apologies if this has been asked before. Ciao!

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Hi Gary!
Just curious, not that this is really a game related question per say, but, has any particular piece of art/music ever played an influence on anything that you've ever designed (module, supplement or novel)? If so, what type ?
Also, me just be an inquisitive individual, what type of music do you listen to most frequently?
Thank you so much for your time to answer such mundane queries, extra apologies if this has been asked before. Ciao!

Howdy John,

Two pieces of artsy-craftsy sort have engendered short stories--"The Five Dragon Bowl" from a Chinese plate, and "The House in the Tree" from a series of collectable miniature houses.

I listen to classical music mostly, but I also enjoy Spanish guitar, modern jazz, old r & b (1950s), and blues, even some country & western and opera now and again.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[haakon1]

All the material on Google is sans text...lost in the crash I assume.

Haakon1 was the last poster that I know of, but that too is lost.

Such is life on the internet :\

Cheers,
Gary

Alas . . . indeed, such is the internet.

At least I get the satisfaction of knowing once and for all that Gary remembers my screenname.

 

[haakon1]

Henry, your .sig got reset to those two excellent quotes.

I know. What was the Gary quote about timidity and something-err-other are the harbingers of death, as is foolhardiness?

Actually, when I first discovered the crash was when I logged in specifically to grab that quote for an email. :\

 

[haakon1]

But no one liked the opinicus...

I'll bite . . . what's a opinicus?

Sounds like an opinionated quasit to me: Smite Evil time!

(Opps, I think that's 3.x rules . . . it blends to together after 20 years of AD&D and 5 years of 3e.)

 

[haakon1]

even some country & western

That reminds me of a pre-crash topic . . . Boot Hill. I think I asked naively if you wrote it.

I should just look it up, I know, but my Boot Hill materials are in NY State, and I'm in WA State. :\

Boot Hill was a whole lot of fun for me and my friends, in the original and 2nd edition.

My senior year in college (1991), someone discovered our college had a long-defunct roleplaying society in the 1970s, and they had left behind a very few things, including a booklet of original Boot Hill.

Naturally, we took it very seriously as a historical simulation of life on the frontier . . .

We were drunk the first time we played it, and we all had a blast -- learning the rules was not hard, plus we invented new ones, like a 50% chance of falling off a balcony everytime you were shot on a second story. There were more PC deaths that night than ever -- I think it took about 3 minutes to make a new one.

The most memorable player death was the Chinaman kung-fu laundryman/ninja/deadeye gunfighter in black pajamas and a ten-gallon-hat being crushed with a player piano down the stairs by the evil Eastern banker/pimp/beer magnate, C. Montgomery Coors, as the whore with a heart of gold screamed in horror, and many, many, many shots rang out in the night.