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,

Early roleplaying, much like the stories which were its primary inspirations, didn't always draw hard and fast distinctions between "fantasy" and "science fiction," as we're likely to do nowadays. Was this the case in your home campaign as well? I've often wondered if the conversion rules for Gamma World were written for reasons other than simply providing another option to the beleaguered DM or if the Mighty Servant of Leuk-o was more a robot than a golem (or if the distinction even makes any sense).

Thanks.

As a matter of fact I never attempted to give my campaign any airs, just provided as much entertainment as possible for those playing in it. Thus anything was fair game, from Gothis horror to SF, along with everything in between. One of the favorite places my better players liked to be transported to for an adventure was the "Carabas," where the Dirdir hunted sequin takers...and they as did Adam Reith, hunted the Dirdir as in Jack Vance's novel The Dirdir from the "PLanet of Adventure" quatrology. That set of stories being amongst my very favorites.

The players wisely declined to venture into NYC during the famous blackout. After wholloping some street punks they went back down the subway tunnel to where the inter-unicerse game was still operational.

Cheerio,
Gary

 

[JamesM]

Gary,

Do you have any recollection of what Shadowland would have contained? I noticed that you produced quite a few Plane of Shadow-related monsters, spells, and items over a certain period back in the TSR days. Were these in any way related to or derived from the work you did on this unfinished/unreleased product?

Thanks.

 

[Tewligan]

Hey Gary, I was wondering what your take was on the original version of Palace of the Silver Princess. I know that most copies of it were quickly rounded up and destroyed almost immediately after printing - was that your call, or did someone else think it was a little too iffy to release when they laid eyes on it? Did the editing/review process get more thorough after that near-release? It does seem pretty tame today, but I guess it was seen as being a little much 30 years ago (although, that Erol Otus drawing of the 3-headed creatures was just WRONG...with the exception of one unusually dashing and handsome head, of course!)

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Gary,

Do you have any recollection of what Shadowland would have contained? I noticed that you produced quite a few Plane of Shadow-related monsters, spells, and items over a certain period back in the TSR days. Were these in any way related to or derived from the work you did on this unfinished/unreleased product?

Thanks.

An agathocacological plane of insubstantial stuff has always fascinated me since I began contemplating additional realms. So the shadows from A. Merritt's Creep Shadow, Creep novel were included in the AD&D game, and new and similar monsters added to the projected plane betweem light and darkness. Skip Williams was going to co-author a long adventure module and sourcebook for the place, but he decided to remain a loyal employee of Lorraine Williams instead. I have my notes, but his are amons=gst them, so doing such a worrk now is pretty much unlikely.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[Col_Pladoh]

Hey Gary, I was wondering what your take was on the original version of Palace of the Silver Princess. I know that most copies of it were quickly rounded up and destroyed almost immediately after printing - was that your call, or did someone else think it was a little too iffy to release when they laid eyes on it? Did the editing/review process get more thorough after that near-release? It does seem pretty tame today, but I guess it was seen as being a little much 30 years ago (although, that Erol Otus drawing of the 3-headed creatures was just WRONG...with the exception of one unusually dashing and handsome head, of course!)

Bah!

There was no reason to pull the initial version of the Palace of the Silver Princess as far as I am concerned. The same was obviously true in the minds of the editors that sent it into production.

Kevin Blume was responsible for recalling it--strange fellow he. Every book he read made him an expert on the subject dealt with in the work. At one time he was going to use a penlight to examine employees' eyes for signs of drug use, but he was dissuaded finally.

Cheers,
Gary

 

[JamesM]

An agathocacological plane

This is what gaming is missing nowadays: vocabulary higher than that of a fifth grader! When I was a boy, D&D enriched my vocabulary like no other entertainment did. I can't begin to tell you how indebted I am to you for the new words you introduced to me through the game.

of insubstantial stuff has always fascinated me since I began contemplating additional realms. So the shadows from A. Merritt's Creep Shadow, Creep novel were included in the AD&D game, and new and similar monsters added to the projected plane betweem light and darkness.

I regret to say that I've read little to nothing of Merritt that I can recall, despite his being an influence on the game. Do you have any recommendations of where one might start to get acquainted with his works?

Skip Williams was going to co-author a long adventure module and sourcebook for the place, but he decided to remain a loyal employee of Lorraine Williams instead. I have my notes, but his are amons=gst them, so doing such a worrk now is pretty much unlikely.

A pity. I remember reading old columns of yours where you laid out your plans for future AD&D products and Shadowland was one of the most interesting to me (along with the City of Greyhawk).

 

[Col_Pladoh]

This is what gaming is missing nowadays: vocabulary higher than that of a fifth grader! When I was a boy, D&D enriched my vocabulary like no other entertainment did. I can't begin to tell you how indebted I am to you for the new words you introduced to me through the game.

I was read to a lot by my parents, and my mother made sure that I took the vocabulary tests in each month's Reader's Digest by challenging me to beat her which I managed to do only in my mid-teens.

I regret to say that I've read little to nothing of Merritt that I can recall, despite his being an influence on the game. Do you have any recommendations of where one might start to get acquainted with his works?

Moon Pool
Dwellers in the Mirage
Creep Shadow, Creep
Face in the Abyss
Fox Woman
Return to the Moon Pool

Those are my faviorites

A pity. I remember reading old columns of yours where you laid out your plans for future AD&D products and Shadowland was one of the most interesting to me (along with the City of Greyhawk).

Yes, water under the bridge can evoke some regrets. The plan I had for the city was far too ambitious, certainly. The way that Castle Zagyg, Yggsburgh, has been and is being completed is more reasonable as I am not older and wizer.

Cheerio,
Gary

 

[rossik]

hi gary!

what do you think of characters and age?
i mean, isnt odd a 1st lvl M-U old, bald, with long beard?

i always try to make young 1st lvl characters....whats your thoghts about this?

 

[JamesM]

Moon Pool
Dwellers in the Mirage
Creep Shadow, Creep
Face in the Abyss
Fox Woman
Return to the Moon Pool

Those are my faviorites

I'll see if I can find them, although I suspect most are out of print. It's damnably hard to find older fantasy authors nowadays.

Yes, water under the bridge can evoke some regrets. The plan I had for the city was far too ambitious, certainly. The way that Castle Zagyg, Yggsburgh, has been and is being completed is more reasonable as I am not older and wizer.

This raises another question I'd intended to ask: do you view your work on Castle Zagyg as being better or at least more well considered than your older creative efforts? There are lots of obvious commonalities between, for example, your Greyhawk work and your Yggsburgh work, but there are also quite a few differences as well. I don't want to ask you to choose between your children, so to speak, but are there things you specifically chose to do differently with Yggsburgh that you either wish you had done with Greyhawk or simply had never considered doing way back when?

Thanks.

 

[Geoffrey]

Return to the Moon Pool

Whoa! I've never heard of that one. Since The Moon Pool is thus far perhaps my favorite Merritt tale (though it's so hard to choose), I'm going to have to track that one down.

Gary, how do you treat small, very young dragons in your A/D&D games? Do you make them significantly shorter than the lengths listed in the Monster Manual? And, if so, do you make the area covered by their breath weapons significantly smaller?