Vaalingrade
Legend
I don't know if it's been on this thread, but there is definitely a culture present in D&D in certain corners of having to 'earn' fun games, be it from a player or DM perspective.
I posted one example that was published in Classic Traveller in 1977. A contemporary mechanical system that resembles this is the Circles check found in Burning Wheel and spin-off games.So the guy didn't have the tools in 2E. Would he have them now? What would it look like?
I cut my teeth on the Metzer Basic, then went straight into 1e core. That and the 2e lore have formed the basis of what D&D is to me.Trifle not with 1e, lest ye play 1e, and if you gaze at the purplish High Gygaxian Verbiage, the purplish High Gygaxian Verbiage gazes also into you.
I posted one example that was published in Classic Traveller in 1977. A contemporary mechanical system that resembles this is the Circles check found in Burning Wheel and spin-off games.
Another, different, sort of tool would be skill challenge, or similar, resolution.
Yet a different sort of tool would be the way Apocalypse World handles "I look for an <X>"-type actions: Read a Situation, Barter-moves, and GM soft moves when those don't apply.
There are lots and lots of tools for GMing relatively open-ended scenarios like defending a city against infiltration other than railroading through a GM's (or module author's) preconception of how things must happen.
I posted one example that was published in Classic Traveller in 1977. A contemporary mechanical system that resembles this is the Circles check found in Burning Wheel and spin-off games.
Another, different, sort of tool would be skill challenge, or similar, resolution.
Yet a different sort of tool would be the way Apocalypse World handles "I look for an <X>"-type actions: Read a Situation, Barter-moves, and GM soft moves when those don't apply.
There are lots and lots of tools for GMing relatively open-ended scenarios like defending a city against infiltration other than railroading through a GM's (or module author's) preconception of how things must happen.
I think decades is a bit of hyperbole, but I also think 'there is no greater teacher than experience' is just as true in RPGs as it is for most of life.There also seems to be a strong sentiment that the decades of trial and error are “the way” and any attempt to bypass that is therefore looked down upon.
Ditto. Really only played one BECMI character (a cleric), then went into 1E. First characters rolled was a paladin. Switched to 2E when it came out.I cut my teeth on the Metzer Basic, then went straight into 1e core. That and the 2e lore have formed the basis of what D&D is to me.
I genuinely believe it is, yes. D&D is the face of TTRPGs, for good and for ill. Having a bad experience with D&D is a great way to ensure that a person never interacts with TTRPGs again. It would be like being served bad sushi the first time you eat it--you've given it a shot and hated it, why would you ever try it again?I gotta ask. Is this whole "D&D is hard to pick up" really a significant issue? We all goof, especially when we first start to play. I'm sure I've gotten rules wrong many a time. But it never stopped us from playing.
Doesn't it? A "truly bad, horrendous" DM can only happen one of three ways:I've had truly bad, horrendous, DMs but it had nothing to do with them or their players not understanding how to play the game.
The dreaded option 4!Doesn't it? A "truly bad, horrendous" DM can only happen one of three ways:
- the DM knows exactly what they're doing and how upsetting it is, and doesn't care (aka, they're a jerk or acting in bad faith).
- the DM believes certain things actually are good behavior, but is incorrect in that belief.
- the DM makes serious mistakes in their attempt to pursue what they correctly believe to be good DMing.