I took stock of all of my Appendix N reading to date, which entailed a mix of staring off into space, combing my shelves, and blowing the dust off my long-dormant Goodreads account. Of the 29 authors in Appendix N (well, 28 plus an editor), I have: I made it further than I thought back […]
Cataloging my Appendix N reading Read More »
Back in 2012, as my interest in old-school D&D was returning and flourishing, I started a project to read all of Gary Gygax’s famous Appendix N. I came up with a detailed plan, researched and assembled a 100-book Appendix N reading list that included recommendations for those authors whose works Gary didn’t note by title
Returning to Appendix N (vewy vewy quietly) Read More »
Thanks to Bryan Shipp over on G+, I just checked out this Gary Gygax interview from 1979 on Jon Peterson’s site — and it blew my mind. Here’s Gary on game prep: “Two to three hours per hour of play is generally what the dungeon master has to prepare with. He sits down and draws
Gary Gygax on game prep, 1979 Read More »
This post is a round-up of three things that crossed my path and grabbed my attention, all RPG-related. Gygax on agreement I found this fascinating 1975 Gary Gygax quote over on The Acaeum: “Dave and I disagree on how to handle any number of things, and both of our campaigns differ from the “rules” found
Agreement, rough edges, and combat as sport vs. war Read More »
Back in 2015, I came across a Gary Gygax quote I hadn’t seen before — one that resonated deeply with me then, and which still resonates just as deeply 18 months later: Role-playing isn’t storytelling. If the dungeon master is directing it, it’s not a game. I love this quote. It’s a strong stance, and
A lesser-known Gary Gygax quote Read More »
Over on Against the Wicked City, Joseph Manola posted about colorful versions of classic D&D monsters — from the AD&D 1e Monster Manual (paid link). Quick, picture an ogre. What color is it? Now check out its description from the MM: The hide of ogres varies from dull blackish-brown to dead yellow. Rare specimens are a
The case of the colorful ogre Read More »
My copy of Delving Deeper just came in the mail, and after a thorough skim I quite like it. I was after a retroclone that hews as closely as possible to OD&D[1] (paid link), and at first blush DD seems to fit the bill. But when I got to the section on dungeon stocking, it
Dungeon stocking in OD&D vs. Delving Deeper, plus The Strategic Review Read More »
Martin Brown from Grognard Games produced a great short video introduction to Appendix N, the influence the works therein in had on D&D — from thieves and paladins to plane-hopping and alignment — and the inspiration those works can provide today. It’s a bit surreal for me, though: He’s called Martin as well, and is
Grognard Games’ introduction to Appendix N Read More »
Since I first posted about Reading Appendix N, I’ve been pointed to several similar reading lists that are either contemporary with Appendix N or related to it in some other way. None of them are additions to Appendix N — to date, Gary’s 2007 additions are the only ones I’ve found — but they’re all
Other Appendices N Read More »
I’ve been curious whether Gary ever added anything to Appendix N post-1979, be it books he forgot to include or post-1979 works he would have included if he’d written the DMG later on. So I did some digging and found this post Gary Gygax wrote on EN World in 2007, a bit more than a
Gary Gygax’s 2007 additions to Appendix N Read More »
