D&D 2E What was wrong with 2e?

[dagger]

I don't really see 2e as a wholly different game as I do with 3e/4e since we have used so much stuff from 2e in our 1e game.

Also THAC0 goes back pretty far before 2e was even released anyway.

See below from Frank Mentzer

"Then they don't know their D&D history.
I put THAC0s in modules R1-4 (1981-82) and I got the term from local games in Lake Geneva.
It goes back to the beginnings of 1e or even earlier.
"

 

[billd91]

I don't really see 2e as a wholly different game as I do with 3e/4e since we have used so much stuff from 2e in our 1e game.

Also THAC0 goes back pretty far before 2e was even released anyway.

See below from Frank Mentzer

"Then they don't know their D&D history.
I put THAC0s in modules R1-4 (1981-82) and I got the term from local games in Lake Geneva.
It goes back to the beginnings of 1e or even earlier.
"

Indeed, THAC0 goes back a long way. And was partly incompatible with 1e's actual rules too if you actually look at the combat matrices. 2e may not have introduced it, but they did make an official part of the rules for the first time and removed the incompatibility. Much of 2e was exactly what a new edition should be, a means of cleaning up and compiling the ongoing development of the preceding edition.

 

[dagger]

We played 1e and we still play 1e when we our not playing PF and other stuff.

I use THAC0 in my 1e game because I don't want to be bothered with the charts and it does not really make a difference anyway. I also like it because the players can just roll and tell me what AC they hit.

I also use the 2e monsters books along side my 1e monster books especially for things like Demons/Devils and Dragons which I feel need a power bump (guess Giants also). This is especially true I feel if you allow some of the things from UA like Wpn Spec and the extra spells.

 

[ExploderWizard]

I use THAC0 in my 1e game because I don't want to be bothered with the charts and it does not really make a difference anyway. I also like it because the players can just roll and tell me what AC they hit.

While it can be quicker in some cases, there is a difference between THAC0 and the combat matricies.

The biggest difference being the repeating 20 on the charts combined with "to hit" modifiers adjusting the targets AC instead of the attacker's die roll.

This can make a big difference since the tougher AC's flatten out and offset bonuses.