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]

Hi, Gary. I have some Lejendary Adventure questions for you:

1. Why did you include Psychogenics in the game? I remember you had expressed regret for including psionics (which seem similar) in D&D and AD&D.

Hi Geoffrey

Okay, point by point, here are the answers:

The LA game's magic system is point based, so Psychogenics, unlike AD&D's psionics, fit the overall system as just another Extraordinary Ability that can be taken. The Powers offered in the game tend to be relatively limited, and many encourage roleplay and non-combat options to encounter situations. So the comparison of the two, they being in different sysyems, isn't actually one that applies.

2. If I drop Psychogenics from the game, are there unfortunate ripples that might adversely affect the game? (Note: I plan on requiring all the players' Avatars to be human, so the "what to do about Wylfs?" question wouldn't crop-up.).

The main repercussioons will be in those areas where NACs and creatures are given Psychogenic Ability. the lack of that Ability will also hinder human Avatars in being able to see in darkness. A quick perusal of the list of Powers for the Ability should serve to alert you to any other drawbacks you might encounter in your campaign.

By and large, the rules and systems will be otherwise unaffected by exclusion of Psychogenic Ability.

3. What level of play is Hall of Many Panes geared towards? Would a group of new Avatars be able to adventure through it?

The HOMP is geared for about four to six veteran players with Avatars that have adventured for a year or so, thus have added score in existing Abilities, and have added some new ones to their repertorie. In my group there are three players whose Avatars are very strong, and they could likely manage the whole alone...maybe. In some encounters numbers are inportant.

The module is designed to be adaptable, though, the GM adjusting the strength of opponents where believed necessary, downwards or upwards.

The upshot is that experienced players can manage with beginning Avatars if you as Lejend Master give them breaks where necessary. There are some very challengind combat scenario encounters. By doing that, they can manage those panes where problem solving and roleplay are called for in the main--or exclusively. By allowing extra Merits to them initially, so they can increase Ability scores, a newbie group could manage well enough, I believe.

Oh yes, one thing more: Many Abilities can not be raised for lack of someone to train the Avatar. That can be accommodated by having the sprites in one of the rest areas able to prodide some help in this regard. There are encounters where the team can remain in the other dimension accessed by the pane, gain training there in the more difficult Abilities--the Extraordianry ones as well as Chivalry.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Caedrel]

Zelazny, art and guns

This thread is STILL going? Simply amazing! Hello again Gary, Merry Christmas, Happy New year, etc etc etc. Good to hear that things have been busy and going well for you - Hall of Many Panes sounds exciting, although Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil and my own connecting spin offs is going to occupy my own group for well into the forseeable future...

I'm a bit disappoined I missed the whole thing with PA - I love Roger Zelzany's works, and would love to debate some of those things with him, but I don't particularly want to draw his attention back to this thread, so I'll keep my peace

I like the candour with which people have talked about the whole art / craft / trade issue. I like the fact that you and others don't see themselves as somehow "better" than others because of your creativity and ability, or look down on people who don't have the same ability and who praise your work. That humility is wonderful and delightful to me - well done!

I'm interested in what it is about firearms that attracts you - I think it's an exceptionally bad idea to have ready access to one (and its ammunition) in your home...

Cheers,
Caedrel

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Re: Zelazny, art and guns

This thread is STILL going? Simply amazing! Hello again Gary, Merry Christmas, Happy New year, etc etc etc. Good to hear that things have been busy and going well for you - Hall of Many Panes sounds exciting, although Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil and my own connecting spin offs is going to occupy my own group for well into the forseeable future...

Howdy, and thanks for good words. The HALL' is a long haul, but with luck it will be on the backlist of Troll Lord Games when you finish the RttToEE and are ready for another...if the group is up for another campaign-length module

I'm a bit disappoined I missed the whole thing with PA - I love Roger Zelzany's works, and would love to debate some of those things with him, but I don't particularly want to draw his attention back to this thread, so I'll keep my peace

No question in my mind that Zelazny was an excellent author. It is not his writing that was in question, but the merits of a diceless "RPG" based on his books.

No need to worry about PA jumping in here, though. He is busily engaged in furthering his education, getting his Ph.D. Pity that, as I enjoy sparring with him. He is a good fellow.

I like the candour with which people have talked about the whole art / craft / trade issue. I like the fact that you and others don't see themselves as somehow "better" than others because of your creativity and ability, or look down on people who don't have the same ability and who praise your work. That humility is wonderful and delightful to me - well done!

It's pretty difficult to get haughty about something I was blessed with. I thank my parents, and sometimes curse my inate compulsion to do things creative, but... Now if I was a virtuoso musician or a great painter or could write like Shakespeare likely I'd be insufferable

I'm interested in what it is about firearms that attracts you - I think it's an exceptionally bad idea to have ready access to one (and its ammunition) in your home...

Cheers,
Caedrel

Just about everyone I know here grew up in a house where there were firearms around--mostly mine as I got older. I think it odd that everyone does not own a weapon or two of the sort. Not many burglaries or home invasions hereabouts, because the bad guys know that the honest citizens are armed.

I loved target shooting as a boy, and then when I was old enough I hunted a good deal--squirrel, rabbit, pheasant, duck, goose. Only got to go deer hunting once, and failed to bag a buck. Sad that, as I enjoy venison. Always eat what I shoot.

All of my children were around firearms, and I taught them to respect guns. Of course I keep loaded handguns--empty ones are less useful that a rock. Never had a single problem with firearms.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Hadit]

Dear Gary,
I wonder if you might be willing to comment about the upcoming 3.5 edition of D&D?
While I accept the fact that various rules changes/clarifications are needed to better serve the game and it's audience, it seems to me that an entire overhaul and rewriting of all the core books is extreme and really only serves the purpose of trying to milk the entire D&D audience of money equal to their original investment in the game.
Am I being too harsh?
Am I expecting too much to hope that the core books (and their content) should last a life-time, not a few years? Wouldn't WotC better serve the D&D community by seeking to generate revenue for the game by publishing supplemental material to the game, not rewriting the rules of the game?
I respect that a gaming company exists to make money, but the whole 3.5 thing seems like a rip-off to me.
How would you go about implementing a rules update for your game, Lejendary Adventures?
Thanks, Duglas

 

[blackshirt5]

This one might have been asked before, if it was, just let me know: Who were the writers/what were the books, that influenced D&D originally. I know that Tolkien, Moorcock, and Vance were influences on you, but what about others?

And will you adopt me Gary? I'm very clean, and easy to live with. I come with a complete set of 3rd edition rules!

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Dear Gary,
I wonder if you might be willing to comment about the upcoming 3.5 edition of D&D?

[snippage]

Nothing I can say would be useful. I am concerned that a new edition will fracture the new D&D audience, and that's all I can venture.

Whenever some new information, correction or addition, to the LA game system is determinbed, it is posted to webpages as Errata or new core material or else covered in an article in LEJENDS Magazine.

Minor changes are done automatically in core books as they are reprinted. We plan a couple of supplements at some point. One to cover the addition of Shamanism & Witchery, the other to compile all the other added rules and information. These books are planned for 2004 or so. No hurry, as they don't change the game, only expand its scope.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Col_Pladoh]

This one might have been asked before, if it was, just let me know: Who were the writers/what were the books, that influenced D&D originally. I know that Tolkien, Moorcock, and Vance were influences on you, but what about others?

And will you adopt me Gary? I'm very clean, and easy to live with. I come with a complete set of 3rd edition rules!

Heh, Blackshirt5

If you check the OAD&D DMG, Appendix M IIRR, there is a long list of inspirational authors given. JRRT's influence was more in ther marketing of the D&D game than in it's creation and development.

A few other authors that were very key to my thinking: R.E. Howard, A. Merritt, De Camp & Pratt, Fritz Lieber, Fred Saberhagen, Stanley Weinbaum, R. Zelazny.

As for adopting a gamer, I actually did that back in the TSR days, sorta... a lad from the southwest came up to Lake Geneva looking for a job at TSR. There was none, he was broke, so I hired him to help at my place--it had horses, and he helped take care of them. He lived with us, played in my campaign. Eventually he went back home. He emailed me about a year ago. He is now an MD

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Enceladus]

[
As for adopting a gamer, I actually did that back in the TSR days, sorta... a lad from the southwest came up to Lake Geneva looking for a job at TSR. There was none, he was broke, so I hired him to help at my place--it had horses, and he helped take care of them. He lived with us, played in my campaign. Eventually he went back home. He emailed me about a year ago. He is now an MD

Cheers,
Gary [/B]

That has to be one of the coolest things I've read since this thread's been going.

I've always felt that Tolkien's world and style was a bit out of place with DnD, that is they didn't fit well together. After reading much about your history I can see why this is so.
Fritz Lieber is one of my favorites, becuase he can paint a scene so well, the atmosphere and feel of his style is very much how I percieve DND. Of all of the fantasy writers that I like, his has the most DnD feel to it IMHO. Don't know if this has been asked before but, out of all the sources that you've stated, how much of his Lankhmar/Characters inspired you?

 

[Col_Pladoh]

That has to be one of the coolest things I've read since this thread's been going.

Well thanks, but I am just passing along the same spirit Leo Edwards included in his novels for boys. If you've never read a "Jerry todd" book, and they are for a pre-teen male audience, have a look

I've always felt that Tolkien's world and style was a bit out of place with DnD, that is they didn't fit well together. After reading much about your history I can see why this is so.
Fritz Lieber is one of my favorites, becuase he can paint a scene so well, the atmosphere and feel of his style is very much how I percieve DND. Of all of the fantasy writers that I like, his has the most DnD feel to it IMHO. Don't know if this has been asked before but, out of all the sources that you've stated, how much of his Lankhmar/Characters inspired you?

My real impetus was Howard's "Conan," not surprisingly. Fritz's novels and the De Camp & Pratt books were also great influences as was Vance--my all-time favorite author in the genre. From 1950 through 1956 I read about every book and magazine of F & SF published in the US, and I bought used pulps so as to read back through the entire 1940 on era. That's why I included so extensive a reading list in the old DMG...I read and enjoyed, was inspired by, a large number of authors.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Janos Antero]

Now I'll have to see about getting PA back posting on these boards. Being unfairly attacked and villified keeps me humble, of course...

Well someone has to keep you not just humble but under control afterall.