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.

Your D-trilogy of modules are my favorite AD&D modules. Legalities aside, do you have any interest in finishing detailing all the encounter areas on the large-scale map? It should only take a dozen or so more modules. It would be doubly cool to have them printed in the same font as the D trilogy, and have monochrome/pastel covers.

Shifting gears to your latest love, when is Hall of Many Panes scheduled for release? It sounds intriguing!

Sure! It would be fun to goi back and flesh out more of the Drow underground, but that's pretty unlikely to come about

your mention of format of the modules is something that you can count on seeing from one to two publishers soon. It's been discussed recently on the www. Dragonsfoot.org boards too.

The HALL OF MANY PANES should be ready for release at GenCon as a premier--at least that's the current plan of the Trolls, I believe.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Mark CMG]

Good afternoon Poppa G!

I'm sharing some old time stories from the early days about my first DM/GM in another thread and it'd be great if you could pop in and share some of yours too.

http://enworld.cyberstreet.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=41429

And, if you hadn't already heard, please know that you are also invited to jump on board for the March Fo(u)rth for GM's Day! movement. We've got a growing, grass roots movement to promote the first gamers' holiday and I think you'd enjoy being a part of it.

 

[JohnBrown]

Mr. Gygax,

Thank you for your response to my questions. Your insight is very helphful

John

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Good afternoon Poppa G!

I'm sharing some old time stories from the early days about my first DM/GM in another thread and it'd be great if you could pop in and share some of yours too.

http://enworld.cyberstreet.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=41429

And, if you hadn't already heard, please know that you are also invited to jump on board for the March Fo(u)rth for GM's Day! movement. We've got a growing, grass roots movement to promote the first gamers' holiday and I think you'd enjoy being a part of it.

Heh, and son Alex is want to call me "Papa G" now and again

The accounts of the old time D&D games I have are pretty well told already, or will be, in the DRAGON Magazine column I do, "Up on a Soapbox," so I have to pass on the kind offer.

I hadn't heard about March Fo(u)rth for GM's Day. Sounds an excellent idea. Hope it gets a great turnout. I'll not be marching much of anyplace, though, what with my bad leg...

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Mr. Gygax,

Thank you for your response to my questions. Your insight is very helphful

John

Welcome, john!

Anytime, and my pleasure.

Gary

 

[Lord Zardoz]

Quick Question

This is related to politics, but thankfully, not to firearms.

What non US country do you admire most, and why?

And on a more game related note:

What D&D Villian did you create that you are most proud of?

END COMMUNICATION

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Re: Quick Question

This is related to politics, but thankfully, not to firearms.

What non US country do you admire most, and why?

And on a more game related note:

What D&D Villian did you create that you are most proud of?

END COMMUNICATION

As one of the very select number who are members of the Zardoz Film Fans, how can I not respond?

Actually, from my historical interest perspective, I admire many other countries for one or more reasons. Which one I admire most is a very difficult question for me to answer. The criteria are manifold, so without some specific bases for selecting one, I can't name a special one.

I will mention that Ancient Egypt holds a special place in my heart, for it lasted so many centuries, and the people of the land wanted the afterlife to be no more than a continuation of their fleshly existance there. That's quite a nod for living under pharoah's rule.

From a gaming standpoint, my all-time favorite is Obmi the dwarf. All of the players who encountered him rapidly came to despise Obmi and want to see him extirpated. Of course, that was why he kept coming back.

Most of the others were sort of uber-NPCs, and not as much joy could be had from thwarting the PCs' desires in regards to their expunging them.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Ulrick]

Mr. Gygax,

Is it true that you knew and were friends with the late Chief Standing Bear here in Ames, Iowa?

I'm the current President of the Guild of Wargamers and Roleplayers--which used to be known as Iowa State University Simulation Association.

http://www.stuorg.iastate.edu/gowar/

I'm just trying to get some understand of the history my organization.

Chief Standing Bear is a bit of a legend within the Guild. Some of the older gamers say he was the best DM they ever had and all around great guy.

Ulrick

Edit: Added the link.

 

[Nathal]

I do have some number of d20 works in process of publication. anthough the advent of 3.5E is likely to mess that up a good deal.

Oh, don't let 3.5 stop you, Gary. There are always many who are willing to aid in translating your adventure designs, or more generic "gygaxian fantasy" material into the specifics of the latest D&D incarnation.

Of course anybody who tires of keeping a strict catalog of errata and revisions to "official canon" can try out Lejendary Adventure with its emphasis on the Game Master's primacy as the final arbiter on which rules (or even updates) to use or toss.

Granted there is such a "Rule Zero" written in the new D&D, and yet there remains a great concern with what is Official. This a common obsession, never discouraged by Wizards, regardless of conventional wisdom concerning DM fiat. LA hammers home the point that the Game Master is ultimately responsible for the success of the game, the fact intrinsic to its very design it would seem, based on its "rules-light" nature.

 

[MerricB]

G'day, Gary!

Back a while ago, you did that poll in Dragon on the various aspects of RPGs - very illuminating and thought-provoking, I must say!

Which aspect do you find easiest, and which do you find hardest as a DM to handle properly?

Personally, whilst I love role-playing, I find it extremely difficult to pull off, especially when I'm not getting good feedback from the other player: instead of feeding off each other, it turns into one person doing all the work. "I am Sir Malkonian, lord of these lands. What are you called, adventurer." "Bob." "Why have you come before me." "Need work." "Is there a reason that I should hire you?" "..."

Conversely, finding quests for the players seems relatively easy to me, though at times it turns into quest overload. "Can't we have some down-time?" "But there's a dragon about to eat your castle, and you need to find the Sword of Magnificence to kill it! No, you can't rest, now!"

Cheers!