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The Great D&D Schism: The End of an age and the scattering of gamers
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<blockquote data-quote="Remus Lupin" data-source="post: 6261232" data-attributes="member: 12760"><p>Following up on GreyLord's point, I think it's probably fruitless to attempt to gain a consensus on what was <em>the</em> Golden Age of D&D. Advocates for the main candidates can make a good case on very different grounds for their own preferred age and edition.</p><p></p><p>But to the point of the original post: I do think that there was something special going on in that initial 3.0 period, both in terms of renewal of the hobby and in terms of the kind of creative ferment caused by both the appearance of the new edition and the adoption of the OGL. It may have led, as some have argued, to a glut in the market, but it also led to the creation of some of the best D&D supplements by 3rd parties of any era. It led to variations in rules that were genuinely unique, and it all revolved around 3rd edition. Even the stuff that didn't directly depend on 3rd edition rules in some way, shape, or form took account of it (<em>Call of Cthulhu d20</em>, anyone?).</p><p></p><p>So yes, I do think something real was lost when WOTC moved on to 4th edition. Again, this is not to suggest that 4th edition isn't a fine game in its own right. But it definitely marked the end of an age when there was an increased unity within the gaming community, and a greater sense that we were all involved in a common project, even if that project took many and diverse forms.</p><p></p><p>And, if we are laying our credentials on the table, I started playing in 1982, so right there in the middle of that First Great Age of D&D, and I remember well the controversy and the Satanic Panic. But fortunately I was blessed with tolerant and easy going parents, who weren't the type to take that kind of thing seriously. And their general attitude was: "Well, they're sitting in our living room playing a game. We know where they are, and they're not doing drugs. What's the problem?"</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Remus Lupin, post: 6261232, member: 12760"] Following up on GreyLord's point, I think it's probably fruitless to attempt to gain a consensus on what was [I]the[/I] Golden Age of D&D. Advocates for the main candidates can make a good case on very different grounds for their own preferred age and edition. But to the point of the original post: I do think that there was something special going on in that initial 3.0 period, both in terms of renewal of the hobby and in terms of the kind of creative ferment caused by both the appearance of the new edition and the adoption of the OGL. It may have led, as some have argued, to a glut in the market, but it also led to the creation of some of the best D&D supplements by 3rd parties of any era. It led to variations in rules that were genuinely unique, and it all revolved around 3rd edition. Even the stuff that didn't directly depend on 3rd edition rules in some way, shape, or form took account of it ([I]Call of Cthulhu d20[/I], anyone?). So yes, I do think something real was lost when WOTC moved on to 4th edition. Again, this is not to suggest that 4th edition isn't a fine game in its own right. But it definitely marked the end of an age when there was an increased unity within the gaming community, and a greater sense that we were all involved in a common project, even if that project took many and diverse forms. And, if we are laying our credentials on the table, I started playing in 1982, so right there in the middle of that First Great Age of D&D, and I remember well the controversy and the Satanic Panic. But fortunately I was blessed with tolerant and easy going parents, who weren't the type to take that kind of thing seriously. And their general attitude was: "Well, they're sitting in our living room playing a game. We know where they are, and they're not doing drugs. What's the problem?" [/QUOTE]
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