Languages, NPCs; Annotated

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Languages: these rules often give the percentage chance for an occurrence but assume the reader will generate the numbers as they see fit. This is one such case, players might choose to either use 1-5 on d20 or 1-20 on d%.

Player-Characters could potentially begin the game with a number of languages known. For example, a human magic-user with an Intelligence score of 18 would speak 10 languages: Common, Alignment, and the PC’s choice of 8 more for a total of ten. If the character is an Elf rather than a Human, with an Intelligence of 18 he could speak an additional 4 languages (i.e. Orc, Hobgoblin, Gnolls, Elvish) for a total of fourteen!

• Holmes: as a basic restatement of OD&D, the Blue Book had the same numbers.
• AD&D: gave 7 languages for Intelligence 18.
• Moldvay’s Basic Dungeons & Dragons: 3 extra languages for an Intelligence of 18.

Non-Player Characters

Non-player character (NPC) hirelings, including monsters and higher level NPC types, figured rather prominently in early OD&D play. Thus many players of these rules regard Charisma as the most important ability, or at least one the more important ones alongside prime attributes.

The table at the bottom of the page also proved useful for many referees as a catch-all for winging it. Starting from the lowest results and working up the table a result of 2 would be the worst thing that could happen, then a simple failure, neutral results, success, and 12 being an outstanding success.