Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (a.k.a. "AD&D", "first edition", "1e") was written by Gary Gygax in three volumes between 1977 and 1979.
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What are the most important differences for a 1st Edition AD&D Dungeon Master learning to run D&D 4E?
I'm a campaign designer and DM with 20+ years of AD&D 1st edition experience. I've been "retired" from the game for over a decade, assume I don't know anything about 2nd, 3rd, or 3.5.
Now I'm ...
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5answers
1k views
What is the purpose of old-school D&D class level limitations?
When I played 1E and 2E, race class limits was one of the first rules we decided to ignore. We decided that it would prevent us from playing (say) an Elven fighter for as long as the party might ...
16
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4answers
495 views
Was Original D&D an Historical Wargame?
At the dawn of roleplaying, the Castle & Crusade Society and Lake Geneva Tactical Studies Association (LGTSA) focused on Medieval Britain, and produced the Chainmail tabletop wargame rules with a ...
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13answers
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Good Single Word Instruction for “Command” Spell
The first level Cleric spell "Command" allows a single word verb command to be issued which will be obeyed by the target.
What commands would you recommend / have you had success with? It feels like ...
13
votes
3answers
316 views
What does a Troglodyte actually smell like?
In 1st Edition AD&D, the Monster Manual states that Troglodytes
...emit a secretion which smells
extremely disgusting to humans...
If I want to keep the party on their toes, I would like ...
13
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2answers
166 views
How fast can sailing ships turn?
I've been rereading my 1e books for a campaign that would be set on a series of Caribbean-type islands with the potential for plentiful naval combat. Since I'm not too concerned about realism, the ...
12
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9answers
3k views
How do you powergame 1st Edition AD&D?
1st Edition Dungeons and Dragons gives its players a few strategic options during character creation, many of which are restricted by randomly generated attributes. With this in mind, what are some ...
12
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1answer
272 views
At what point does a trap on a lock spring?
So a thief finds a chest which is trapped and locked (though he knows neither of these things at this point).
He fails his find traps roll and assumes / risks that it's not trapped. At what point ...
12
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1answer
428 views
What's the history of the Darkness spell?
In D&D 3.0, the darkness spell was a sphere of blackness, impenetrable even to darkvision, which was terrifyingly powerful (except against demons and devils).
In D&D 3.5, it's a zone of 20% ...
12
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1answer
151 views
Rules on Treasure Carrying
(Definition of "treasure" for the purposes of this post: primarily coins but anything which is heavy, valuable but not useful to the party beyond it's cash value and therefore not something they ...
12
votes
3answers
498 views
Why can't a Cleric use a sling?
So by the book 1st Edition AD&D, clerics can't use a sling.
Other than game balance (it essentially means that other than the odd thrown hammer clerics have no ranged weapon ability which further ...
11
votes
8answers
380 views
10-100 Troglodytes is too many!
I'm picking on troglodytes as an example. In MMI, the number of troglodytes appearing in their lair(cave system/dungeon) is 10-100. Troglodytes are a nice, not-too-tough, HD2 monster with some ...
11
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8answers
553 views
How to turn an AD&D thief into a con-man?
The thief character in Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, 1st edition is just that; a thief. Pickpocket, cut-purse, cat burglar, sneaky little blighter....
I'm thinking of running a non-combat (or ...
11
votes
4answers
191 views
Megadungeon or modules for a weekend of play?
I've been having gaming/camping weekends with some friends and we've only played Call of Cthulhu so far, using modules. This time I plan on running an OSRIC/1e game, and would like to run the ...
11
votes
3answers
2k views
AC differences between AD&D 1E and Basic D&D?
I understand that there are differences between the way Armor Class works in AD&D (first edition) and Basic D&D (the boxed sets, Rules Cyclopedia, etc.), but I don't have the books to check it ...
10
votes
6answers
564 views
How would I go about making an outdoor environment in dungeons and dragons?
How would I go about making an outdoor environment in dungeons and dragons? I would like to know what the rooms and hallways would be. I would really appreciate it if someone would help me. I'm really ...
10
votes
4answers
199 views
Does finding and removing a trap require one or two find/remove traps rolls?
Most of the question's above. I shall be running a campaign tomorrow where thieves and traps may have a higher profile than usual, and it occurred to me to wonder whether the thief skill of ...
10
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5answers
362 views
Where can I find good 2D representation of AD&D 1st edition monsters
I am looking for a good source of images of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st edition monsters from the Monster Manual, Fiend Folio, and Monster Manual II.
Sure, there are drawings of most of ...
10
votes
3answers
327 views
What does a Thieves Guild turf war look like?
Related to this question, what is actually involved in a turf war between a high-level thief character and the local Thieves Guild?
I assume that Assassins are involved at some point. What other ...
10
votes
1answer
198 views
What does 6" mean under speed in the 1st edition monster Manual
In the AD&D 1st edition monster Manual, every monster's speed is represented in inches. Obviously, a big monster cannot just move 6 inches per turn, so what does the " mean?
10
votes
2answers
331 views
Infinite wish combo using 3 items
I was reading HPMOR and on chapter 3 it mentions some infinite wish combo in
"Advanced Dungeons and Dragons" using 3 items. The action being set in 1991 it can either be AD&D or AD&D 2nd ...
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9answers
943 views
House Rules for AD&D Character Generation (1e+)
Looking at starting an AD&D game for a bunch of players who haven't played for a while and have never played together so there are no common house rules.
To maximise playing time we want ...
8
votes
4answers
261 views
How many gems will fit in a bag?
In Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st edition there is a plethora of information on the value of gems, and their purported magical uses. But the gems are only ever listed by value, not size or ...
8
votes
6answers
305 views
Can you use a Spelljammer ship to get to Krynn?
Following on from this (can-you-use-a-spelljammer-ship-to-get-to-ravenloft) question, I seem to remember that Krynn is similarly impossible to get to, mainly for plot reasons since no character on ...
8
votes
2answers
207 views
Does the 2nd printing of Deities and Demigods have Cthulhu?
Does the 2nd printing of Deities and Demigods have Cthulhu? I have heard that it does, and I have also heard that it does not. Does it or not?
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votes
3answers
303 views
How many encounters can you squeeze into a 3 hour slot?
A local game day is coming within the next month and I am planning on running an adventure. The slots are three hours long. Given that time slot I would like to see the players complete the ...
8
votes
3answers
502 views
Does color spray affect undead?
The first-level illusionist spell color spray operates by overloading the senses/neural networks of its subject. Our view is that the same lack of conventional consciousness that makes the undead ...
8
votes
1answer
360 views
Concealed door vs Secret door
In AD&D 1st edition, what is the difference between a concealed door and a secret door?
8
votes
3answers
147 views
Rules for delaying action?
Does Advanced Dungeons & Dragons have rules for holding/delaying action in combat?
8
votes
3answers
267 views
How connected are the LOTFP rules with the adventures?
I've been reading up on Raggi's Lamentations of the Flame Princess, and was considering introducing it to my players using one of the adventures but using 1e/OSRIC rules. Would this break the whole ...
8
votes
1answer
138 views
Module with a mage's tower that had miniature exercising golems
In the late '80s or early '90s I played an AD&D game session centered on a mage's tower that had miniature golems that were constantly exercising (jumping jacks, jogging in place, etc.). Our GM ...
8
votes
3answers
257 views
AD&D 1st Edition, Unearthed Arcana, Cooperative spell casting
My question refers to the 8th Level MU spell Binding found in Unearthed Arcana. In it, it describes the ability of other mages to enhance the power, essentially, of the primary spell caster (up to six ...
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3answers
693 views
Cavalier, Acrobat, Barbarian
What's the name of the AD&D book (1st Edition) that has the other character classes that were popularized in the Saturday morning cartoon?
I'm talking about the Cavalier, Acrobat, Barbarian, ...
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votes
5answers
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How do you calculate THAC0?
So, I get what THAC0 stands for (To Hit Armour Class 0) but it's not something I ever used when playing way back when - we just pored over the to hit tables all the time, manually worked out ...
7
votes
5answers
427 views
Are there rules for skinning animals and making leather armor with the hide?
Recently I was DMing a game, and my players ran into a giant lizard. After they defeated it, they asked if they could skin the lizard and make it into armor. I basically just made it up on the fly; ...
7
votes
4answers
865 views
Differences between D&D 3.X and previous editions
In my quest of learning about Dragonlance setting I came upon an adventure module set in D&D 2nd edition and now I am curious about what the previous editions were all about. I have tried to look ...
7
votes
2answers
606 views
What are the major differences between AD&D 1st Edition & AD&D 2nd Edition
Supposedly on May 21st WoTC are going to release a premium limited edition reprinting of Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition in of honor of the late Gary Gygax.
I already own the AD&D 1st edition ...
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votes
4answers
279 views
Stone battle axe vs steel battle axe
What damage is done by a stone battle axe as opposed to a normal steel battle axe? Specifically the kind sometimes wielded by troglodytes?
7
votes
3answers
276 views
AD&D (1e) Weapon Restrictions
Is the list of weapons that can be used by each class absolute or is it purely a list of weapon types that a particular class can be proficient in?
Realistically if a magic user picks up a sword and ...
7
votes
1answer
397 views
Is it possible to mix different versions of AD&D?
Does anyone know if it is possible to mix different versions of AD&D? I'm hoping to mix Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 1st edition with the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd edition. What I would ...
7
votes
3answers
179 views
Can a Piercer attack more than once?
From the 1st Edition Monster Manual:
...and when a living creature passes
beneath their position above they will
drop upon it in order to kill and
devour it.
After they drop, can they ...
7
votes
2answers
151 views
Amount of treasure based on number of monsters encountered?
The Monster Manual (1st Edition) indicates the number of monsters encountered and the treasure type. In general, I like these guidelines.
But say for instance, I'm rolling for number of troglodytes ...
7
votes
1answer
226 views
How do I start a gaming group? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Where can I find other RPG players?
I would like to start an AD&D group at my local library. But how do I start one? How do I spread the word? Any help would be ...
6
votes
6answers
347 views
Do I have to map out villages or outside areas?
Do I have to make a map of areas outside of my dungeons? For instance, a village or forest? Does the context of the Dungeon have to be mapped?
6
votes
4answers
236 views
Is it possible for a LG paladin to adventure with a N wizard that practices necromancy, using the undead for good?
I was playing with the idea of my N wizard starting to dabble in animating dead, but there is a conflict because of my LG paladin. I'm in the school of thought that mindless undead such as skeletons ...
6
votes
2answers
275 views
Minimum intelligence for thief in AD&D 1st edition
The Player's Handbook mentions that high intelligence is very important for a thief, but Intelligence Table I does not list a minimum value for a thief, only for an assassin.
Is there a minimum ...
6
votes
3answers
195 views
Can Druid in Shifted Form Speak Normal Languages?
In 1st Edition AD&D if a druid shape shifts form into an animal can they speak their normal languages? I am assuming they can not, but wanted some clarification.
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votes
4answers
588 views
Can AD&D Thieves Wear Studded Leather Armour?
AD&D (1e) states that thieves can only wear leather armour.
Does this include studded leather? I've always played not as I can't think of any instances where studded leather is expressly ...
6
votes
2answers
297 views
Enchant Item Spell
Is Enchant Magic Item (a 6th level AD&D spell) is written up anywhere in the OD&D books, supplements, or Strategic Review? I am researching the difference between OD&D magic item creation ...
6
votes
3answers
264 views
What do I need to make a campaign?
I am a sorta newbie DM (been playing for about 5 months) and I have a couple dungeons. So is that all I need to make a campaign? I have about 6-8 friends that I play with every week, but they are ...
