D&D Pre-History

Click here for an interesting summary of the DNA of D&D.

Red Box (The Good One, Not the 4e One)

Good news! The classic Basic D&D "Red Box" starter set materials are now available for download as PDFs from D&D Classics.

Jack Vance

Sci-fi author Jack Vance passed away over the weekend at the age of 96. I've never read any of his work, but the early TSR folks were big Vance fans, and some of his ideas were adapted into the D&D game rules. The notion that wizards and other spell-casters must memorize spells that subsequently disappear from their memories once cast is an idea straight from Vance. He's honored in D&D mythology by the god Vecna, whose name is an anagram of Vance.

Tomb of Horrors

The TSR-era adventure Tomb of Horrors returns as part of Wizards' re-release of classic D&D material in the new Dungeons of Dread book. Check out this amusing cartoon map that may or may not get you through the tomb alive!

D&D Classics

Dudes, this is dangerous. I probably shouldn't have navigated to this site, but it's too late. Damn you, Wizards! It's been many months since I bought any D&D product, but that's probably going to change in a big way as I start picking up classic D&D modules -- now re-released as PDFs. Oh, world of Greyhawk, I've missed you...

The Deck of Encounters

Reading Timothy's recent post on Spellfire got me thinking about the upcoming Pathfinder Adventure Card Game. I can't wait! But more on that in another post.

Today, I'm going to reminisce about another card-based gaming product, a little gem from the '90s called The Deck of Encounters. As part of the AD&D Official Dungeon Master Decks series, this product included dozens of index-card-sized cards that each contained the necessary information (story hook, monsters, treasure, etc.) for a single tactical encounter. The cards also identified the threat level and environment (urban, dungeon, wilderness, etc.) for ease of reference.

I loved this set. I rarely used the encounters exactly as written, but they provided the seeds for a lot of adventures. They also spurred my interest in the possibility of a "DM-less" game in which a group of players can get together, week after week, for a true roleplaying experience that requires little or no preparation on anyone's part. It's a tall order, but I'm hoping the Pathfinder game can pull it off.

Spellfire

I don't remember Spellfire CCG, but then again, I wasn't as involved with D&D beyond the world that John included me in, but it's still an interesting read.

Both of these seem like something I might actually have been interested in, if only Magic hadn't been too geeky for even me.

The Isle of Dread

The game module included in the latest D&D Next playtest packet is The Isle of Dread, a sandbox environment that's chock full of King Kong-style escapades (ancient jungles! giant apes! rampaging dinosaurs!), but with little guidance for the Dungeon Master. The adventure requires a lot of preparation; I'm reminded again that 4e adventures spoiled us with their carefully crafted encounters and DM-friendly layout. Of course, 4e adventures also tended to be monotonously linear and scripted...but I digress.

The Isle of Dread is adapted from a 1981 adventure that was included in the D&D Expert Set. While the Basic ("red box") Set introduced me to the D&D game, the Expert Set introduced me to the D&D world -- TSR's campaign setting of Mystara and its many nations. Mystara was the setting for my first campaign as a player (run by Brian, the older brother of my good friend Kevin, in the mid-to-late '80s) and later my first campaign as a DM (which started in 1989 and was the last Front Porch campaign actually played on my parents' front porch).

I may not be especially pleased with the current state of the D&D Next rules, but I did feel a genuine tinge of nostalgia when I saw that The Isle of Dread was included in the packet. I have fond memories of poring over those maps (so many maps!) and planning expeditions into the untamed wilds of that mysterious and dangerous island. Perhaps one day I'll return there...but only after Wizards fixes the damn game rules!

Legacy System

If you didn't catch Mike Mearls's latest article on the D&D site, check it out.

As you know, I'm not a big fan of the latest iteration of the D&D Next playtest rules. However, I was very encouraged by what I read in this article, especially about the so-called "legacy system." Here's the key quote:

We want a game where you can continue looting dungeons to level 20 if that's what you want. If you want the game to change, you can implement options we're calling the legacy system. Under this system, a rogue can found a thieves' guild, a cleric can establish a temple, a fighter can gain a stronghold and followers, and a wizard can research new spells.

Right on! This was one of my favorite aspects of old-school TSR 2e D&D. I'd love to see something like this show up in Next. With the new-and-improved backgrounds giving PCs a defined place in the game world right from the get-go, the legacy system will allow them to leave their mark on the world when they reach the higher levels of play. I can't wait to see this stuff in the playtest!