The 20 Questions

My approach to the game in a nutshell 

Beyond having fun I encourage or discourage nothing. If the rules and campaign matrix don't specifically forbid something? You can try it. For instance, your fighter usually can't cast magic spells, that's outside of the game's reality. But, if your fighter wants to use his spear in an attempt to pole vault a 30 foot deep pit? No problem.


0.  The Rule of Cool

This rule covers a lot of possibilities. Sometimes something will just happen because it's cool and makes the game more fun.

For example: your fighter is engaged in mortal combat with the hobgoblin king. You're both down to a few hit points and you've won initiative. You roll a 20 for your attack and a 6 for damage. Sure, I could blandly say you've slain your opponent and now his soldiers must roll against their morale. Boring! Your dice rolls are noteworthy so the rule of cool says the hobgoblin king's head flies from his shoulders at your mighty blow, sailing through the air and landing at the feet of his general. A moment of shocked silence follows as the general and the hobgoblin soldiers arrayed behind him stare at the king's severed head. Then, a collective shriek splits the air as they drop their weapons and flee in terror.


1.  Ability scores generation method?  

3d6 in order. I offer two methods for altering ability scores during character generation. First, you may use the point buy system proposed in the rulebook and slightly modified by myself. Or, you may swap any one ability score as rolled with the prime requisite of your chosen class. You may use one method or the other but not both.


2.  How are death and dying handled?

Your player-character is dead at zero hit points or below. Barring massive hit point loss, promptly applied curative magic (e.g. cure light wounds) stands a chance of bringing the player-character back from death's door.


3.  What about raising the dead?

The capability certainly exists within the milieu but this isn't a quest lightly undertaken.


4.  How are replacement PCs handled?

They are worked into the story as quickly as possible. I like to use some pretext, however thin, to insert them into the action. Still, I've been known to have them appear in a flash of light and puff of smoke with a very confused look on their face if nothing readily suggests itself.


5.  Initiative: individual, group, or something else?

Group. Each faction rolls d6 with high roll winning the right to act first. Action may be delayed if desired. Ties are rolled again.


6.  Are there critical hits and fumbles? How do they work? 

No critical hits or fumbles. My house rules do state a natural 20 is always a hit (with the exception of opponents only hit be special attacks) and a natural 1 is always a miss.


7.  Do I get any benefits for wearing a helmet?

A protected head! Otherwise “1 in 6 hits in melee will be at an unarmored head” as per the rules. If you do wear a helmet and are AC 5 or AC 3 it is further assumed you are wearing a chain coif with padded hood or cap beneath that. All this must be removed if your player-character wishes to attempt to listen at doors or hear noise. 


8.  Can I hurt my friends if I fire into melee or do something similarly silly?

Yes. It may be a fantasy milieu but getting shot with an arrow still hurts, whether fired by friend or foe.


9.  Will we need to run from some encounters, or will we be able to kill everything? 

You, the players, decide your own tactics. If your party of first level adventurers is foolhardy enough to take on an ancient red dragon you'll surely get what you deserve. I'll never arbitrarily throw you onto the sword but if you see an outstretched blade and still want to run onto it, that's your decision.


10.  Level-draining monsters: yes or no?

Yes. And to further illuminate; without some high-level restorative magic a drained level is gone for good. You'll have to regain experience to regain your previous level. Level draining is scary, but it's supposed to be scary.


11.  Are there going to be cases where a failed save results in PC death?

Yes. Adventuring is a dangerous and deadly pastime, player-character death is a very real possibility.


12.  How strictly are encumbrance & resources tracked?

I feel both are integral to the challenge of the game so I track both. The rules themselves are somewhat lax regarding encumbrance: the weight of your armor and weapons plus 80 coins (8 pounds) of gear. If you're carrying more than a backpack full of stuff I'll probably take a closer look at your inventory to see if you've incurred a movement penalty. Encumbrance becomes an issue when treasure is found and the player-characters wish to cart it off. There's only so much one can carry and gold is heavy!

Some resources are more stringently checked. I'll often give you tokens such as poker chips or printed chits for certain expendables such as arrows, quarrels, torches, or vials of holy water. Every time you use one I'll take a token back from you and, when they're gone? You've reached the end of that particular resource.


13.  What’s required when my PC gains a level? Training? Do I get new spells automatically? Can it happen in the middle of an adventure, or do I have to wait for down time?

In order: nothing, no, no for magical types and yes for divine types, no, yes.


14.  What do I get experience for?

Recovering treasure is the main source of experience. For this reason clever adventurers will attempt to gain maximum treasure with minimum combat. Other sources of experience are defeating or outwitting monsters, solving problems, outstanding role-playing. In short? For good play.


15.  How are traps located? Description, dice rolling, or some combination?

Description, augmented with die rolling in some situations for certain characters (particularly scouts).


16.  Are retainers encouraged and how does morale work?

If you want them, hire them. They will be played as persons balancing a greed for treasure against a strong sense of self-preservation, modified by how you treat them. They may also have their own agenda which will affect their behavior as well. Morale is outlined in further detail in my rules document.


17.  How do I identify magic items?

By using/wielding/wearing/etc. the item. For instance, small sips of potions will often give a hint as to their use. NPC sages and wizards will often identify items for a fee.


18.  Can I buy magic items? Oh, come on: how about just potions?

Generally speaking, no. Some relatively common items, such as healing potions or first level spell scrolls, might occasionally be found for sale but a wise player won't count on it.


19.  Can I create magic items? When and how?

Short answer? Yes, with lots of money and time. Meanwhile, the world keeps on spinning. Opportunities may be lost and your enemies will still be working on their nefarious plans. The official rules should give you an idea of time and effort, as well as the level of player experience, required to create items, I'll give you more exact information if and when the need arises.


20.  What about splitting the party?

There is safety in numbers but if the slowed and rather awkward play arising from splitting the party is how you wish to spend your gaming time? Have at it.

Everyone Is Somebody's Moron

Society at large is quick to label persons with the worst possible spin they can put on their actions. Somebody making a very public mistake is called a moron. Someone running a stop sign in front of a police car is labelled an idiot. Someone who tells two different versions of a story on different occasions, sometimes years apart, is obviously a liar.

Can't it be those folks made foolish decision on the spur of the moment; made a careless mistake; or were mistaken in their recollection of an event? Why does it always have to be worst thing we can think of to call them? I'm not saying you automatically dismiss things that don't add up from people. By all means, keep it in mind. There is a great deal of difference, however, between mental reservations and public shaming.

This was inspired by a fellow who called into a well-known radio show dealing with ... err ... fringe belief systems. You know, folks who claim to have evidence of bigfoot, alien landings, visitations from billion year old spirits with detailed information about prehistory, etc.? Everything about this fellow spoke of his lack of education and refinement: his speech patterns, his inability to frame a cogent argument, his inappropriate word usage and grammar in general. And yet, he felt perfectly comfortable calling folks disagreeing with his viewpoint as morons. 

Well? Everyone is somebody's moron. We've all done something causing us to look around while thinking I hope nobody saw that.  Take a breath. Even better, take a minute or at least count to 10. Remind yourself we all make mistakes and don't be so quick to give the other person both barrels.

Burning Crosses

Religion and D&D is a touchy subject and I certainly don't mean to inflame anyone with this post. However, strong religious beliefs did play negatively into my gaming life and my social life in general in the 1970's. I would therefore be remiss if I didn't speak on the subject, however briefly.

A couple of caveats before I begin:

I'm a "live and let live" kind of fellow. I've no issue with your personal beliefs or lack thereof. If you want to play the game and are able to interact with other adults of the same interest in a wholesome way? You're welcome at any game I run.

Second, don't be a dick. If this post, in spite of the fact I'm not naming or slamming any particular faith, pushes your buttons? Stop reading and move on to something else. Don't "call me out" or take me to task. I'm merely reporting actual events and avoiding value judgment on some of the actors in this little play.

Still here? Read on ...

As I've stated, I grew up on a small Texas town. Never mind which one, that's personal and frankly it's information you really don't need. It's enough to know the folks of that town, indeed the entire region of this rather large state, were god-fearing folk.

The first omen was a simple one. I was at a friend's house and we were puttering around the backyard (garden to you UK folks). We were moving some debris caused by a recent storm from the fence-line to a compost heap when I saw something odd and passingly familiar sticking out. Curious, I poked at it to learn it was half a Ouija Board, the other half presumably buried somewhere within the midden heap. My friend saw my puzzled expression and related how his mom had learned the Ouija Board was a "tool of the devil" and had destroyed his before he could succumb to its power.

Okay. Well, as I've said I'm a big believer in folks doing what they wish so long as they don't break the law. I filed it under "curiosities" in my brain and mostly forgot about it.

So D&D comes along and when folks learned I played it I started getting stories about that, too. Like how the rules were based upon the Satanic Bible. Or, the magic spells in the game were real and I could lose my eternal soul to the demons those spells conjured up. One woman burst into tears as she told me about a boy who had "a real curse" put on him by another player ... and he died a few days later don't you know. My favorite, however, was the well-intentioned but rather scary woman who held her hands high and loudly rebuked the power of Satan within me for playing "that devil game" as onlookers gawked. My reply to these sorts of gambits was to either laugh out loud when folks brought them up, or reply along the lines "playing D&D makes you a real Wizard much like playing Monopoly makes you a real slum lord. It's a game!"

Now, don't get me wrong. I was never in fear of my physical safety over my participation in what I feel was a harmless hobby. However I was insulted, talked down to, dismissed, made fun of, and had folks go out of their way to frighten what they believed was an impressionable young man (I was anything but that) on the road to ruin. So I could say my mental health was threatened. And I did lose a few friends over it, though mostly relationships with certain ones cooled a lot rather than just stopped altogether. The whole episode taught me a lot about folks who may mean well but still leave harm in their wake.

Keep in mind, my parents and the people in funny hats of my particular sect of Christianity had no issue at all with me playing this or any other game. My folks saw me socially interacting in a positive manner with boys and girls of my age group and this was thought of as a good thing. The priest of our church reacted similarly to how I reacted when I approached him with the "devil game" stories I'd been getting from that other Christian denomination. He laughed then assured me I was in no danger of eternal damnation. 

So there you have it. I've no doubt others had no issues at all and I'm just as certain still others had far worse experiences than mine. I've always done as I pleased and hang anyone who didn't like it. That didn't make me popular with the "conform at all costs" types of persons out there, but that really wasn't an issue to me. I'll take a handful of friends who genuinely care about me over a crowd of folks whose interest is a fleeting, fickle thing.

Too Picayune?

A stack of poker chips, pennies, an index card with tally marks, a simple hand-written note ... all ways to track expendable resources. Resource management is an integral part of the challenge of playing OD&D. My favorite method for tracking arrows was to hand the player a stack of poker chips, one for each arrow in his quiver. Each round he fired an arrow he had to hand a chip back to me. When the chips were gone, so were his arrows. A bow without arrows is called a stick. Parties who just watched their last torch sputter and go out are in a bad way if they haven't planned ahead.

In like manner, tracking and using encumbrance is a big part of adventuring. OD&D had a wonderfully simple way to track player-character encumbrance: assume players are carrying 80 coins or 8 pounds of gear (basically, a backpack full of stuff) in addition to weapons carried and the encumbrance of their armor if any is worn. Alternately, I'd allow players to itemize gear carried if they enjoyed that aspect of the game. Any treasure or items recovered during the course of the adventure counted against their encumbrance.

I'm always curious why both players and referees balk over a shield granting only +1 to armor class (for example) but have no issue at all with assuming players have unlimited numbers of arrows or iron rations. Along with this wonderful boon, they are able to easily transport treasures weighing a thousand pounds with no problem at all.

Encumbrance and resource management adds another challenging aspect to play. If your players find 100,000 gold pieces but can only carry a few hundred of them back to civilization, what happens to the rest of them while the party is away? Do they divide up, some of them taking what they can carry to safety while the others guard the remainder? Do they hide what they can't carry away? Leave it behind, sacrificing both XP and financial gain? Similarly, if the party opts to flee from an encounter they are faced with hard choices. Drop non-essential items to increase movement rate? Or, do faster moving members leave the over-burdened compatriots behind? Drop part of the treasure hoping it will deter pursuit?

I'll accept you telling me you simply don't like that aspect of the game. By all means change it if you don't like it, that's how you're supposed to approach OD&D. I'm a bit less inclined to accept all this is "too complicated" because I've been running games with resource management for 40 years.

Order in the Court!

There are probably as many ways to go about character generation (chargen) as there are referees. I've always been a fan of "3d6 in order" chargen for several reasons. Chiefest among those reasons is the fact it's simple and fast, my main criteria for rulings in my campaign. I like to keep the action moving.

Almost as importantly, however, is my belief 3d6 in order removes the emphasis from generating the perfect character and gets the player to rolling dice. Ability scores in original edition Dungeons & Dragons are simply not as important as in later versions of the game, it is the player's skill that makes the difference. 

Still, there is often a need for a certain type of character in the game. If the party consists of four magic-users, a new player rolling up a fifth one might not be the best addition to the party. The dice are tools, not dictators and though it is fun to let random chance have a hand in all aspects of the campaign sometimes a bit a self-determination is in order. My solution? I offer two ways to alter rolled ability scores in my game.

The first method is "point sell" system (as I call it) in the rulebooks. Each class can "sell" points in 2 different ability scores to add to their prime requisite. I keep the same restriction as in the books, that is, no ability score can be reduced below 9. This is a good method if the dice have rolled a character similar to what the player already wants, but wants to "beef up" the prime requisite a bit.

The second method is much simpler but more useful for when the dice roll a complete miss for a certain needed (or desired) class. In this case I allow the player to swap any single ability score with the prime requisite of the desired class. For example, if the player rolled a perfect Cleric character with a 17 Wisdom and 5 Strength but he really wanted to player a Fighter? Under Method II he could swap the WIS and STR scores and wind up with a pretty strong Fighter who may be a bit lacking in common sense.

Naturally, a player may choose one or the other method as desired ...but not both!

D&D: The Movie(s)

[incidentally, if you want to see D&D: The Book of Vile Darkness for yourself ? It airs on Saturday May 9th on SyFy channel at 0100 hours.]

I posted on G+ last night regarding a big studio effort at bringing D&D to the silver screen. As you likely already know there has already been a film in 2000. The company behind it? New Line Cinema, the folks who brought you Jackson's LotR and Hobbit trilogies.

Dungeons & Dragons: The Movie (D&D:TM) was ... well it's difficult to put into words. On the one hand D&D:TM had a promising cast including Jeremy Irons, Justin Whalin, Tom Baker, and Thora Birch. On the balancing side you had an inexperienced director in Courtney Solomon and a low budget. These 2 factors alone are often the kiss of death for this type of film.

The best way I can think up to describe the film is schizophrenic. It couldn't decide if it was a slapstick comedy with wise-cracking Marlon "Snails" Wayans playing off straight man Justin "Ridley" Whalin. Or was it campy, with Jeremy "Profion" Irons chewing the scenery and milking the giant cow? Or was it menacing, with tough guy Bruce "Damodar" Payne in his black armor and armed with a wicked looking sword? Payne, by the way, was incongruously wearing blue lipstick which was never explained but was distracting and looked rather silly.

Overall, the film was mildly entertaining. I saw it in the theater and I must admit there was a rather awkward silence among the film's patrons, few of them though there were, when the credits rolled.

I didn't care for the excursions into comedy or the hammy portrayal of Profion. Wayan's Snails was almost a caricature comic relief character and not very funny anyway. The single dungeon delve was abbreviated and involved only one character while the rest of the party waited outside. The dragons were just plain awful. I realize both these last issues were related, in part, to the budget and freshman director, but a film must be judged on its presentation.

What did I like? The basic story was a good idea. I liked the main characters of Ridley and Marina. I thought Damodar was scary and liked the relentless way he tracked our heroes throughout the course of the film.

Dungeons & Dragons: Wrath of the Dragon God (D&D II) came out 5 years later, much to my surprise. I say "surprise" because (a) I didn't think it there would be another after the poor performance at the box office of the first one, and (b) it was actually pretty good (at least, when compared with the first). D&D II was a made-for-tv film that was a sort of sequel to the first film, taking place in the same milieu and involving the same antagonist but a new story-line and new cast.

D&D II had a third of the budget of its big-screen brother but was a better all around film. Gone was the half-hearted attempt at comedy while the acting, from the main characters at least, was better with much less ham and cheese evident. Even the dragons looked better, though this can be partially chalked up to improved CGI in the intervening 5 years. Best of all, the film depicted a believable adventuring party with each using their abilities to allow the party to progress. I found Tim Stern's Nim the Thief to be particularly well-played: surly, secretive, borderline uncooperative, but when push came to shove he was acting in the best interests of the party.

This one is my favorite of the 3 and it seems many folks who have seen both feel the same way.

Finally, we come to Dungeons & Dragons: The Book of Vile Darkness (D&D III) in 2012. Another made-for-tv movie but after the relative success of D&D II I was certainly willing to give it a chance. Unfortunately, between the acting and obviously lower budget this film fell short of already lowered expectations.

I really liked the story. I interpreted it as a fallen paladin questing to regain his paladin-hood. He basically had to look into the abyss and, for a brief while, the abyss looked into him (with apologies to Nietzsche).

Unfortunately? Between the pedestrian acting and low budget, this movie just didn't work. It can't even be bought here in the US of A last I checked. I had to log into the German version of Amazon, fortunately I speak and read German, and order it from there.

BOTTOM LINE The second film comes the closest to capturing the "feel" I expect of a film with D&D in the title.

Variant Character Classes

My feelings about popular variants changes with my moods and the needs of the campaign but, overall, I simply don't care for them. Many seem invented to fill campaign specific slots while still others are a bit overpowered, taking emphasis in game-play away from cooperation and the party pooling its resources and talents.

Still, I do use them and here are my general guidelines:

Archetypes are the best at what they do. IMC fighters are the best class at dealing and absorbing damage, magic-users are the best class at casting spells and using magic, and so on. So, for example, if you invent a warrior class that exceeds the fighter class in some respect I will add in some disadvantages to off-set this skill.

You can't do it all. Table-top FRPGs are designed around groups of player-characters, each with their own set of skills, working together to solve problems. So your character will be very good at his profession but still have to rely on the others for certain things.

No evil characters. This is not a popular stance these days but I make no apologies. I don't find running a campaign with evil characters such as assassins*, anti-paladins, death masters, demons or half-demons, etc. to be fun. You don't have to be a caricature of the All American Hero or anything like that, but you won't be committing murder, rape, or the like in my game. I put a lot of work into running the campaign and I have to find it fun, too, or it isn't worth my time.

I won't offset a mechanical advantage with a role-playing disadvantage. To go back to my example of a variant fighter? If you are better at sword-fighting than your typical member of the fighter class I'll likely limit your armor wearing ability or perhaps decrease your hit points. What I won't do is limit your ability to have magic-users or clerics in the party because members of your profession "distrust" magic users. Role-playing disadvantages often turn into what my character would do types of arguments. No! Mechanical advantages will be balanced out with mechanical disadvantages.

THE BOTTOM LINE Would any reasonable player wish to play the variant class over the archetype? Does your Blade Master variant class dominate player-character classes, all but replacing stock fighters? Then, in all likelihood, the class is over-powered for the purposes of my campaign. Of course, it should go without saying if the class is meant to replace an archetype (something I've never done) then this is not a consideration.

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* Yes, I have assassins in my campaign but they are NPCs, very Lawful, and have a lot of laws and societal expectations built into the specifics of how they are used.