D&D General What *is* D&D? (mild movie spoilers)

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

If you look at the modules of the time, so the B series, the A series, Hommlet, you'll see that there was magic, but it was seldom if ever out in the open.

Burne, a very explicit wizard (he had both a tower and a pointy hat!) was on the village council in Hommlet. That's 100% more wizards than my real life low magic city council has.

The funny part is that if you had showed me 5th edition back in 1982, I would have loved it because the style of play we have today is something I enjoy much more in most ways. But to say that games of that era weren't fundamentally different from what D&D would become at the end of 1E and onward is just incorrect.

If you're dating the tone changeover to the publication of Unearthed Arcana, which feels late to me, that's halfway through the lifespan of 1E. The golden age, by your reckoning, lasted 10 of D&D's 49 years.

 

[SteveC]

I would watch the heck out of a D&D survival horror movie. Better yet, a series!

I actually would too. But I don't think we'll see that as anything but an indie project.

 

[Emberashh]

Fantasy horror in general is an untapped genre. Some horror films approach it (especially the ones that lean into occult themes), but none really go all in for Lord of the Rings: A Slasher film.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I actually would too. But I don't think we'll see that as anything but an indie project.

Given that Descent was a popular enough movie to get sequels, I can definitely see someone doing a fantasy RPG version of that in a few years. The OSR is full of inspirational material in that regard.

 

[Swarmkeeper]

And is likely best known for the voyages of a flying sailing ship.

Yes, but what altitude did that ship really achieve? If it’s below 10k feet most of the time, I’d call that Low Magic…

 

[SteveC]

If you're dating the tone changeover to the publication of Unearthed Arcana, which feels late to me, that's halfway through the lifespan of 1E. The golden age, by your reckoning, lasted 10 of D&D's 49 years.

I think that's fair. However, I wouldn't call it a "golden age". It was a different one, and one that at the time I was trying to escape from by playing different games. I still had a blast with it but then I kind of want to paraphrase Stand By Me and say that 'I never gamed like I did when I was twelve. But does anybody?'

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Yes, but what altitude did that ship really achieve? If it’s below 10k feet most of the time, I’d call that Low Magic…

If Jeff Bezos, Richard Branson and Elon Musk barge in here, arguing about the definition of "space," you're going to have a lot to answer for.

 

[Minigiant]

Again, it's a spectrum. A given non-4e campaign has as many or as few magic items as the DM wants to allow and the players will accept (in 4e the DM doesn't really have a choice).

There is a spectrum of how you can play.

But the base assumption of D&D is the existence of magic items. Gold, Things traded for gold, and Magic items are the only treasures in the base game. 4e and 5e both support not having magic items but not really. They both heavily nudge at least noncombat magic items for treasure.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

But the base assumption of D&D is the existence of magic items. Gold, Things traded for gold, and Magic items are the only treasures in the base game. 4e and 5e both support not having magic items but not really. They both heavily nudge at least noncombat magic items for treasure.

Honestly, without magic items as treasure, the only meaningful rewards you can give out in 5E are all story-based.

 

[Micah Sweet]

There is a spectrum of how you can play.

But the base assumption of D&D is the existence of magic items. Gold, Things traded for gold, and Magic items are the only treasures in the base game. 4e and 5e both support not having magic items but not really. They both heavily nudge at least noncombat magic items for treasure.

I don't see your point. Where was I arguing against the existence of magic items?