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Sing to me, O Muse, of BECMI!
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<blockquote data-quote="Gus L" data-source="post: 9298671" data-attributes="member: 7045072"><p>Perhaps this is a hot take ... but ...</p><p></p><p>I also disagree with JB - largely because I don't think any of the early D&D games "hold up" well past about 6 or 7th level, and I find AD&D - at least the original versions of its rules that I've read a jumbled mess (an inspirational one but...) I personally believe that every early D&D system requires and will naturally undergo large amounts of change through house rules as any campaign progresses or as the referee builds a more unique setting. For example I play my own version of pre-Greyhawk OD&D that's been evolving since 2014 or so. I think good AD&D referees/designers like Bluebard/Huso (and I am sure B/X Blackrazor) are doing pretty much the same thing with AD&D, and that's cool. These systems all need to adapt to fit one's table, refereeing style, and campaign goals. </p><p></p><p>My overall impression though is that the overall current focus on AD&D among certain circles in the Post-OSR has more to do with nostalgia for the early forum days of OSRIC and scene drama/posturing rather then any particular system benefits. It shouldn't be read too seriously unless one wants to engage in psycho-sociological scene archeology of the OSR (2005-2020). Back to this thread's topic...</p><p></p><p>BECMI is an interesting project! Long ago I played a level 1 - 30ish campaign of BECMI largely using published adventures. It was an experience, but I can't say our youthful selves were especially rigorous about interrogating (or even applying) its many subsystems. Last adventure we started was I think was Twilight Calling, but we didn't finish it and instead went off to stew in various teenage demimondes. </p><p></p><p>To me BECMI represents a fascinating attempt to create (for a large audience) these exact sorts of house rules and directs the early D&D rules (which are sufficiently the same from OD&D through 3E to be more or less interchangeable) specifically towards domain play with a final ascension to godhood. One can compare this with AD&D, which is less coherent or focused, but seems (perhaps as part of its efforts to create a 'tournament ruleset') to channel high-level play into extraplanar adventure. That is to say that AD&D struggles with the difficulties of high-level D&D as a game of individual adventurers while BECMI seems to move more deliberately back towards the wargame roots that Gygax and Arneson likely originally envisioned. Now, despite this I don't especially love how BECMI tries to do this -- it's burdened by retaining the mechanics of older editions while placing a stronger focus on "trad" style directed narrative adventure.</p><p></p><p>As an example of how this causes issues - take a look at the way the creatures in BECMI adventures (specifically the sample ones in "B") tend to "attack until killed" vs. the greater emphasis on reaction and morale mechanics in B/X or AD&D. Given that BECMI's lethality isn't any less then B/X's this makes combat far more dangerous and also far more common, which encourages players to race up the power curve and focus on combat viability rather than exploration or other types of play.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Gus L, post: 9298671, member: 7045072"] Perhaps this is a hot take ... but ... I also disagree with JB - largely because I don't think any of the early D&D games "hold up" well past about 6 or 7th level, and I find AD&D - at least the original versions of its rules that I've read a jumbled mess (an inspirational one but...) I personally believe that every early D&D system requires and will naturally undergo large amounts of change through house rules as any campaign progresses or as the referee builds a more unique setting. For example I play my own version of pre-Greyhawk OD&D that's been evolving since 2014 or so. I think good AD&D referees/designers like Bluebard/Huso (and I am sure B/X Blackrazor) are doing pretty much the same thing with AD&D, and that's cool. These systems all need to adapt to fit one's table, refereeing style, and campaign goals. My overall impression though is that the overall current focus on AD&D among certain circles in the Post-OSR has more to do with nostalgia for the early forum days of OSRIC and scene drama/posturing rather then any particular system benefits. It shouldn't be read too seriously unless one wants to engage in psycho-sociological scene archeology of the OSR (2005-2020). Back to this thread's topic... BECMI is an interesting project! Long ago I played a level 1 - 30ish campaign of BECMI largely using published adventures. It was an experience, but I can't say our youthful selves were especially rigorous about interrogating (or even applying) its many subsystems. Last adventure we started was I think was Twilight Calling, but we didn't finish it and instead went off to stew in various teenage demimondes. To me BECMI represents a fascinating attempt to create (for a large audience) these exact sorts of house rules and directs the early D&D rules (which are sufficiently the same from OD&D through 3E to be more or less interchangeable) specifically towards domain play with a final ascension to godhood. One can compare this with AD&D, which is less coherent or focused, but seems (perhaps as part of its efforts to create a 'tournament ruleset') to channel high-level play into extraplanar adventure. That is to say that AD&D struggles with the difficulties of high-level D&D as a game of individual adventurers while BECMI seems to move more deliberately back towards the wargame roots that Gygax and Arneson likely originally envisioned. Now, despite this I don't especially love how BECMI tries to do this -- it's burdened by retaining the mechanics of older editions while placing a stronger focus on "trad" style directed narrative adventure. As an example of how this causes issues - take a look at the way the creatures in BECMI adventures (specifically the sample ones in "B") tend to "attack until killed" vs. the greater emphasis on reaction and morale mechanics in B/X or AD&D. Given that BECMI's lethality isn't any less then B/X's this makes combat far more dangerous and also far more common, which encourages players to race up the power curve and focus on combat viability rather than exploration or other types of play. [/QUOTE]
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