Jack Daniel
Engines & Empires
Inspired by a similar thread asking about 2E house rules—and in dire need of distracting, happy thoughts today—I figured I might take a moment to post about the 1E game that I have the good fortune to be able to start tomorrow. I'll be running a small group through module T1, with the roster of players and characters consisting of of my wife (paladin—she rolled two 17s and two 16s before my very eyes!), my brother (gnome assassin), my boss (halfling thief), and my neighbor (half-elf cleric/mage, in service to Wee Jas). It's gonna be a time!
Anyhow: it's been more than five years since I've played any Advanced D&D (I'm usually dedicated to the original/basic game), and it's been a lot of fun putting together a list of tweaks for how I want to run 1E at my table! Here we go —
• • •
Alignment: I don't use it. Since there's no alignment in my game, clerics can't cast the spell know alignment, because it would have no effect. That spell gets replaced with a different 2nd level spell, cure medium wounds (restores 1d10+1 hp).
PC Races: All of the standard races are present, but none of the demihumans have infravision. (I want player characters relying on torches, lanterns, and magic to see in the dark.) In place of infravision, the various playable nonhuman races receive the following special abilities:
• Halflings of all lineages (stout and otherwise) receive the same +1 to hit with missiles and +1 to individual initiative rolls that they get in Basic D&D.
• Elves, half-elves, dwarves, and gnomes receive two bonus weapon proficiencies in place of infravision. (Additionally, gnomes are +1 to Constitution and −1 to Strength. Purely because I like those adjustments better than the +1 to Intelligence / −1 to Wisdom they're given in 2nd edition.)
• Half-orcs receive the greatest number of changes. They are +1 to Strength and −1 to Charisma (no Constitution bonus and no double Charisma penalty); they get the dwarf's Constitution-based bonus to saving throws vs. poison (but not vs. magic); and, as with the other demihumans, they get two bonus weapon proficiencies instead of infravision.
PC Classes: I have twelve playable character classes available. The THAC0 table from 2nd Edition is in use, purely because it smooths out and regularizes the attack progressions, particularly for mages. Hit points are maximum at 1st level and half maximum at all higher levels that would ordinarily roll hit dice (e.g. d6 = 3, d10 = 5, etc.). Hit dice are regularized (as per 2nd Edition), so that druids and monks roll up to nine d8 hit dice (just like clerics), rangers roll up to nine d10 hit dice (just like fighters and paladins), mages only get a maximum of ten d4 hit dice (as do illusionists), and assassins and bards have up to ten d6 hit dice (just like thieves).
• FIGHTERS (including paladins and rangers) are otherwise unchanged from the 1E PHB.
• MAGES are titled "Medium" at 1st level, "Seer" at 2nd level, "Wizard" at 10th level, and "Archmage" at all levels from 11th onward. The illusionist sub-class is unchanged. The necromancer sub-class (from Footprints E-Zine #14) is added to the playable lineup.
• CLERICS are titled "Vicar" at 5th level and "Curate" at 6th level. Druids have no changes. Monks have Strength adjustments to hit and damage and Dexterity adjustments to AC like all other characters. Stunning or killing with an open-hand attack is limited to once per day per experience level (as in 2nd edition). Additionally, a monk has the power to attack with ch'i once per day (twice per day after 8th level and thrice after 16th): this "Breath of the Dragon" attack takes the form of a line 1' wide and 10' long per level of the monk and behaves in all ways like dragon-breath, inflicting damage equal to the monk's current hit points, and with targets permitted to save vs. breath weapon for half damage. The damage inflicted is magical, non-elemental force, like that caused by a magic missile. ("Hadōken!")
• THIEVES are permitted the use of the expanded weapon list given in Unearthed Arcana. (Otherwise nothing at all from UA gets used!) Assassins have the ability to cast a limited number of illusionist spells from 10th level onward, using a spell progression similar to that of a paladin. However, the assassin's ability to read scrolls (acquired upon reaching 12th level) is limited to illusionist scrolls only. Bards are playable straightaway from 1st level and combine features of the original bard class from The Strategic Review #2.1 and Dragon Magazine #56: they are a thief sub-class with skills as a thief of one-half their bard level, use of all weapons (but limited to chain/mail armor or lighter and unable to use shields; spell-casting while armored is permitted), one six-sided hit die per level up to 11th level (+1 hp at each higher level), and two separate spell progressions for druidic and illusionist spells.
Apart from that, the only other tweaks I make to 1st Edition are corrections to the historicity of the weapons and armor (e.g. gambesons or aketons were the typical sort of light armor, not leather and certainly not "studded" leather; a "long sword" is a two-handed weapon, whereas an arming sword is one-handed; etc.).
• • •
So that's my take on 1st Edition. Tomorrow evening, we'll see what happens when Hommlet and the Moathouse get a load of this fresh party of 1st level heroes (being run by players who, I should stress, are generally more familiar with Critical Role than with 1E… hoo-boy).
Grognards of EN World (I know you're out there!), what are your 1st Edition house rules? How do you mod "Gary's game"?
Anyhow: it's been more than five years since I've played any Advanced D&D (I'm usually dedicated to the original/basic game), and it's been a lot of fun putting together a list of tweaks for how I want to run 1E at my table! Here we go —
• • •
Alignment: I don't use it. Since there's no alignment in my game, clerics can't cast the spell know alignment, because it would have no effect. That spell gets replaced with a different 2nd level spell, cure medium wounds (restores 1d10+1 hp).
PC Races: All of the standard races are present, but none of the demihumans have infravision. (I want player characters relying on torches, lanterns, and magic to see in the dark.) In place of infravision, the various playable nonhuman races receive the following special abilities:
• Halflings of all lineages (stout and otherwise) receive the same +1 to hit with missiles and +1 to individual initiative rolls that they get in Basic D&D.
• Elves, half-elves, dwarves, and gnomes receive two bonus weapon proficiencies in place of infravision. (Additionally, gnomes are +1 to Constitution and −1 to Strength. Purely because I like those adjustments better than the +1 to Intelligence / −1 to Wisdom they're given in 2nd edition.)
• Half-orcs receive the greatest number of changes. They are +1 to Strength and −1 to Charisma (no Constitution bonus and no double Charisma penalty); they get the dwarf's Constitution-based bonus to saving throws vs. poison (but not vs. magic); and, as with the other demihumans, they get two bonus weapon proficiencies instead of infravision.
PC Classes: I have twelve playable character classes available. The THAC0 table from 2nd Edition is in use, purely because it smooths out and regularizes the attack progressions, particularly for mages. Hit points are maximum at 1st level and half maximum at all higher levels that would ordinarily roll hit dice (e.g. d6 = 3, d10 = 5, etc.). Hit dice are regularized (as per 2nd Edition), so that druids and monks roll up to nine d8 hit dice (just like clerics), rangers roll up to nine d10 hit dice (just like fighters and paladins), mages only get a maximum of ten d4 hit dice (as do illusionists), and assassins and bards have up to ten d6 hit dice (just like thieves).
• FIGHTERS (including paladins and rangers) are otherwise unchanged from the 1E PHB.
• MAGES are titled "Medium" at 1st level, "Seer" at 2nd level, "Wizard" at 10th level, and "Archmage" at all levels from 11th onward. The illusionist sub-class is unchanged. The necromancer sub-class (from Footprints E-Zine #14) is added to the playable lineup.
• CLERICS are titled "Vicar" at 5th level and "Curate" at 6th level. Druids have no changes. Monks have Strength adjustments to hit and damage and Dexterity adjustments to AC like all other characters. Stunning or killing with an open-hand attack is limited to once per day per experience level (as in 2nd edition). Additionally, a monk has the power to attack with ch'i once per day (twice per day after 8th level and thrice after 16th): this "Breath of the Dragon" attack takes the form of a line 1' wide and 10' long per level of the monk and behaves in all ways like dragon-breath, inflicting damage equal to the monk's current hit points, and with targets permitted to save vs. breath weapon for half damage. The damage inflicted is magical, non-elemental force, like that caused by a magic missile. ("Hadōken!")
• THIEVES are permitted the use of the expanded weapon list given in Unearthed Arcana. (Otherwise nothing at all from UA gets used!) Assassins have the ability to cast a limited number of illusionist spells from 10th level onward, using a spell progression similar to that of a paladin. However, the assassin's ability to read scrolls (acquired upon reaching 12th level) is limited to illusionist scrolls only. Bards are playable straightaway from 1st level and combine features of the original bard class from The Strategic Review #2.1 and Dragon Magazine #56: they are a thief sub-class with skills as a thief of one-half their bard level, use of all weapons (but limited to chain/mail armor or lighter and unable to use shields; spell-casting while armored is permitted), one six-sided hit die per level up to 11th level (+1 hp at each higher level), and two separate spell progressions for druidic and illusionist spells.
Apart from that, the only other tweaks I make to 1st Edition are corrections to the historicity of the weapons and armor (e.g. gambesons or aketons were the typical sort of light armor, not leather and certainly not "studded" leather; a "long sword" is a two-handed weapon, whereas an arming sword is one-handed; etc.).
• • •
So that's my take on 1st Edition. Tomorrow evening, we'll see what happens when Hommlet and the Moathouse get a load of this fresh party of 1st level heroes (being run by players who, I should stress, are generally more familiar with Critical Role than with 1E… hoo-boy).
Grognards of EN World (I know you're out there!), what are your 1st Edition house rules? How do you mod "Gary's game"?
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