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arguskos
2008-10-21, 02:34 AM
So, I picked up some Original Dungeons and Dragons (3rd, 5th, and 6th printings, if anyone cares) rule sets, and wanted to give it a spin.

Do the oldies in the playground have any advice to playing it? Any interesting rules quirks I need to know about? Anything interesting about it at all?

-argus

hamlet
2008-10-21, 07:01 AM
Define "OD&D." Are you talking original white box/brown box? Or are you talking BECMI (basic, expert, companion, master, immortal) rules?

If the former, then I envy you. My tips for playing it are, essentially, this: the "rules" are not rules, they are suggestions and are far from complete. If you try to run the game as if the books were complete and comprehensive, you will have little but heartache. Go through the rules as a DM ahead of time and identify areas where you believe there are gaps or potential gaps. Decide ahead of time potential ways of dealing with those gaps. Not set in concrete ways, just possibilities. If you try to throw in hard and fast rules, you'll find that it detracts from the situation in favor of comprehensive rules. Remember: rulings, not rules.

If you have the BECMI books, pretty much the same applies, though you'll find them a little easier to understand as they are better organized and started closing up some of the wide open gaps.

For both: there are no rules governing role playing. That means that you (both players and DM) are expected to play the role without the aid of dice. There are no sense motive checks, or bluff checks. For that matter, there are no spot checks or search checks. There's a reason for that.

Happy gaming.

arguskos
2008-10-21, 12:34 PM
Yeah, I have the old white box.

I already took a look at the rules, and was fairly confused, till I sat down and actually worked stuff out, and realized it is much like AD&D (the attack rules are similar to THAC0 at first glance) in some respects.

I was very pleased that there are no skills (they bother me some times, actually), but I am wondering, is all NPC interaction meant to be RPed? Or did some DMs actually create NPC interaction rules, to speed things along a little?

-argus

Meat Shield
2008-10-21, 01:47 PM
Nope, it was pretty much free form game - roleplay all the NPCs you like!

As he said, the rules are SUGGESTIONS, not ironclad. Encourage cool actions, not legal ones. Wing it, and have fun.

Arogan
2008-10-21, 01:47 PM
Yeah, I have the old white box.

I already took a look at the rules, and was fairly confused, till I sat down and actually worked stuff out, and realized it is much like AD&D (the attack rules are similar to THAC0 at first glance) in some respects.

I was very pleased that there are no skills (they bother me some times, actually), but I am wondering, is all NPC interaction meant to be RPed? Or did some DMs actually create NPC interaction rules, to speed things along a little?

-argus

It's been a long time, but I do think all NPC interaction is RPed in the original 3 book set.

Try these sites/forums:

http://dragonsfoot.org/forums/viewforum.php?f=15
http://grognardia.blogspot.com/
http://odd74.proboards76.com/index.cgi

That last one is particularly good with Dave Arneson making regular posts.

arguskos
2008-10-21, 01:50 PM
Sweet. Looks like a blast (gogo Fighting-Men!).

-argus

hamlet
2008-10-21, 02:42 PM
I was very pleased that there are no skills (they bother me some times, actually), but I am wondering, is all NPC interaction meant to be RPed? Or did some DMs actually create NPC interaction rules, to speed things along a little?

-argus

My answer: they are meant to all be RPed.

Real answer: you can handle them however you choose. If you feel the need to write down some mechanics to handle some, all, or half of NPC interactions, then do so.

I encourage you not to, though. Honestly, I don't see a need for them and, nine times out of ten, when players realize that the challenges facing their characters are as much a challenge for them, they get very into things. It's amazing what a creative player can come up with when he needs to get out of a sticky situation.

Matthew
2008-10-22, 02:02 PM
You might also want to check out "Swords & Wizardry", which is a similar sort of thing for OD&D as OSRIC and Labyrinth Lord are to AD&D and BD&D.

In case you don't know of them, here's a couple of forums:

Original Dungeons & Dragons Discussion (http://odd74.proboards76.com/index.cgi).

Swords & Wizardry (http://swordsandwizardry.com/forum/)

In terms of advice, I would say don't be afraid to experiment. :smallbiggrin:

Jolly Steve
2008-10-22, 02:58 PM
This article (http://www.lulu.com/content/3019374) is intended as an introduction to OD&D, for people more used to 3rd edition.

Hopeless
2008-10-22, 03:24 PM
What about Basic Fantasy?

Isn't that pretty much the same thing as OD&D?

Hopeless
2008-10-22, 03:28 PM
This article (http://www.lulu.com/content/3019374) is intended as an introduction to OD&D, for people more used to 3rd edition.

Thanks for the link its a great read!

Matthew
2008-10-22, 04:57 PM
What about Basic Fantasy?

Isn't that pretty much the same thing as OD&D?

No, though at one time Original Dungeons & Dragons was sufficiently conflated with Basic Dungeons & Dragons that the terms were used interchangably. Basic Fantasy is somewhere between Basic, Advanced and D20 versions of Dungeons & Dragons; Original Dungeons & Dragons is the precursor to all. OD&D with all the frills is pretty much AD&D, whilst at its core OD&D is more like BD&D.

arguskos
2008-10-22, 05:10 PM
In terms of advice, I would say don't be afraid to experiment.
Yay!! I am really getting excited for this game, since the advice in Jolly Steve's link, and your advice Matthew, is how I tend to run games. Perhaps OD&D is for me. :smallbiggrin:

-argus

Matthew
2008-10-22, 07:17 PM
It sounds like it might be! (though to be fair, the same advice applies to most RPGs). Definitely check out Swords & Wizardry, if you get the chance. It is by the same author as the old school primer.

arguskos
2008-10-22, 10:41 PM
May just Matthew. :smallwink:

-argus