Aleksander R. Nordgarden Rødner
Norway
Oslo
Oslo
Proud father of Sarah Arwen
Live long and prosper.
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Recently, I was lucky enough to get my hands around the red book, the Dungeons and Dragons basic set red box, Norwegian translation, a prize I'd been looking for for some time. I started reading, and decided that it needed to be reviewed.
Style:
Unlike its later siblings, the D&D basic set is written in a fairly conversational tone, which is very much to my liking. Through two adventures in the Fighting fantasy style you learn the basics of how the rules system.
The table of contents only lists the contents through the players' tables, the rest, being intended for the GM is not listed until the GM's part of the book begins. The rest of this review will be divided according to the division in the table of contents.
Learn to play Dungeons & Dragons:
A quick, one-page introduction to RPGs and three of the basic stats (Strenght, Dexterity and Intelligence) this section leads quickly up to the next.
Start here:
This next section is a short fighting fantasy module, intended to introduce the most basic mechanics of the game, such as hit points, the remaining three basic stats, saving throws and the classes. Two potential endings are written down, and you are told to read both.
The Character:
The Character repeats what was learned through the previous chapter, and expands on it. The charscter sheet is introduced, as well as the monetary system and experience points.
I really like how the section on experience points directly encourages you to find non-violent solutions to the challenges you meet, stating that:
Quote: "Notice that you received most of the points for finding treasure, and very few of them for killing monsters. The best option is to avoid combat, and rather trick the monsters, or use magic, as combat situations will often mean you risk your life..."
Dice:
This section simply deals with the different kinds of dice used in D&D.
A solitaire adventure:
In this section, we use the character with whom we emerged from the small adventure in the beginning, and go through a subsequent adventure. First, we visit the blacksmith in town, before heading towards another cave in the same mountain, where we meat Goblins, Giant Rats and a Rustmonster.
The rest of the basics of combat are explained here, and we are given ample opportunity to try it out in practice. The adventure consists both of combat and riddles, but there's no way to talk yourself out of a combat situation, which, while allowing the player to get acquainted with the combat system goes against the imperative to think of alternative ways out.
At the end of the adventure, we calculate XP.
Player Characters in D&D:
This is the last, and longest section, in which we are introduced to the races and the classes used in D&D. With the exception of the human, each class and race includes XP leveling tables.
After learning about the different classes and races, we learn how to create, roll up, a character. The section then concludes with information about adventuring parties, rules for sessions (including listening, secret doors, traps, wandering monsters and the use of miniatures) and rules for encounters and combat.
Following this information is a character sheet and a few pages of player tables, as well as a map legend.
Final thoughts:
Dungeons & Dragons basic set, players' section is well thought out and written, and gives a simple and thorough walkthrough of the rules. The basic set only covers levels one through three, and any group that picked it up when it came out would soon see a need for the expert set.
Although it has been over twenty years since this edition was printed it feels as playable and fun today as I'm sure it did back then. While the translation has a few idiosyncrasies (such as "lykte" instead of "lykt"), it is still a good and logical read, and a good way of starting to play D&D.
Looking back to my own early experiences playing AD&D, I can't help but think that, had I started out playing this, my interest in RPGs might not have been dormant for all those years.
Coming back to the tone of the book, while I realize that it's not everyone's taste, I like the feeling that the book is talking to me. It gives me more motivation to continue reading, and if it were up to me, all RPG books would be written that way.
P.s. This review is written as an homage, and in memoriam of the nestor and driving force behind the Norwegian fan community, one of the original translators of this book; Johannes H. Berg. Although he has been missing from our lives since 2004, his presence is still felt, and he is sorely missed, so much so that even I, who only came into the scene after his death feels his legacy. Gone, but not forgotten, he will be remembered, for a long, long time to come. D.s.
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Steven Bucey
United States
Lancaster
Ohio
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Quote: Looking back to my own early experiences playing AD&D, I can't help but think that, had I started out playing this, my interest in RPGs might not have been dormant for all those years.
I have pretty much the same thoughts. By the time this particular item had come out I and most others in the group I played with had long since given up on AD&D and moved on to other things.
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Proud father of Sarah Arwen
