I asked an AI to create a D&D setting for me
I went to chat.openai.com and asked the following:invent a new fantasy world and describe it to me, detailing a brief outline of its history, mythology, distinct characteristics and flavour. It should...
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Journey Fantasy (or: Clarifying the Nebulous Pull of Dragonlance)
I have bloggedseveraltimesaboutDragonlance in the past. The broad theme I've struck up is that it gets unfairly judged on the railroad nature of its eponymous modules and the straightjacketing nature...
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I just picked up the original 1e boxed sets for Greyhawk and Forgotten Realms
30 dollars a pop on ebay from the same seller. Good deal I think.The Greyhawk set is missing the maps, but I have the sturdier versions from the folio already so no loss for meI have owned both in pdf...
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Stunting for Profit in D&D combat
A complaint I've something seen concerning combat in TSR-era D&D is that it is too simplistic. You roll to hit and see if you hit or miss, roll damage die and that is it. There is no room for the...
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Using Ability Checks in B/X
One gripe I have always had with D&D ability scores is - what are they for? Regardless of edition, they are only ever used for deriving other numbers. It would be much clearer if it were simply a...
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Ability Score Improvements have been a terrible addition to D&D
This is going to be one of them rants I fear. It relates to my previous meditation on the heft of levels across various editions and my recent contemplation on ability checks in B/X, specifically my...
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How Difficulty Class and the D20 engine ruined roleplaying
It seemed revolutionary at the time. 3e came out and made a unified mechanic. Roll 1d20 against a target number to see if you succeed. In combat, AC is the target number. For everything else, it's a...
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Addendum: Why "Roll under" Ability checks really are the best of checks
My recent meditations on roll under ability checks and rant against the D20 unified mechanic has generated a bit of commentary and further clarified my own thinking on the matter. This post is an...
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Standing up for D&D's Gen X: 2e (Part 1)
This is part 1 of 2 about 2nd edition. Part 1 will focus on the rules aspects. Part 2 on the nebulous 'culture' aspect of 2e.Out there in real life, I just about made the cut for an elder millennial....
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Standing up for D&D's Gen X: 2e (Part 2)
This is part 2 of a 2 part series. Part 1 is about 2e rules. Part 2 is about 2e 'culture'. Here's my dirty little secret that I never told anyone before:I actually really liked the Complete Book of...
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Streamlined Mechanics aren't all they are made out to be
I'll tell you what I instinctively disliked the first time I opened the 3e Player's Handbook: Priest spell levels going all the way up to 9th level. Now, the reasons for this change seem fairly obvious...
View ArticleThe Difficult-to-Believe Case of Zak Smith's Innocence
I honestly did not imagine myself to be writing a piece like this on this blog. But I feel morally obligated to do so, given that I previously wrote a piece based on the firm assumption of his...
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The Fighter Across All Editions of TSR D&D
Ok, it's time to get back to elf-games. And why not look at the class that is simultaneously the most beloved and under-appreciated class in the history of D&D?I was going to include assessments of...
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Ailments for the Poor Fighter
I discussed the poverty of options for the poor fighter recently.And concluded that extra attacks seems to be the go-to solution for giving the fighter something extra. I think it's a poor solution....
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D&D taught me English
I was flipping through the my copy of the AD&D 2e Player's handbook and noticed something I had forgotten was there - My own scribblings in the equipment charts, translating most of the entries to...
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Mystara / Known World Review
I've been anticipating reviewing "Mystara" as perhaps the most difficult of the setting reviews. Unlike most settings, it never really had a dedicated setting book. As the default setting for the...
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Appraising ADVANCED D&D - Part 1 (Ability Scores)
It's time. A detailed and opinionated appraisal of the best, or possible second best, version of Dungeons & Dragons ever made. I mean of course Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, Second Edition.There...
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The 3 Mile Hex - The Natural Unit for Exploration
There will be interludes between the AD&D Appraisal series, to keep my own writing motivation going.I was going to do a 3-mile hex post outlining the virtues of it, but turns out Silverarm did that...
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