* * * Wizards Community Thread * * * -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Thread : n00b Started at 12-17-06 07:32 PM by Roscoe_Greenbottle Visit at http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=757359 -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [Post 1] Author : Roscoe_Greenbottle Date : 12-17-06 07:32 PM Thread Title : n00b I'm a 14 year old and the only version of DnD I've ever played is 3.5, and I have some questions about 2nd edition AD&D 1. Does it really not use a board for combat 2. if not, how is it done? 3. how different is it from 3.5 besides combat 4. is ther any way to get my hands of some cheap/free stuff about it 5. how much stuff is there about it the reasons are that I have some after school stuf with my friends that would be a great time for DnD, but there's no way to bring a board, minitures, and all the books and other stuff. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [Post 2] Author : kengar Date : 12-18-06 10:42 AM Thread Title : Re: n00b While I'm not a 2e expert, I can tell you that most earlier versions of the game (pre-3e) did not rely so heavily on miniatures and the "battle grid." When I played 1e as a teenager (back in the 80's), we never used minis. It usually fell to the DM to keep track of where folks were in relation to one another (in addition to the players remembering what they did the previous round). This isn't as hard as it sounds, since exact distances and measurements weren't as emphasized. For cheap 2e stuff (or any OOP edition), eBay can be your pal. If you don't mind an electronic copy (PDF) instead of a bound book, you can download most Basic/Expert, 1e, and 2e books at Paizo or RPGNow.com for about $5 per book. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [Post 3] Author : Agathokles Date : 12-18-06 11:57 AM Thread Title : Re: n00b 1. Does it really not use a board for combat 2. if not, how is it done? Uhm, 3e people do really use boards for combat? Anyway, since there are no "Attacks of Opportunity" or other elements that require strict control of PC and monster positions, a simple sheet of scratch paper is enough. In most encounters, even a simple description can be used, especially if the DM handles combat cinematically. 3. how different is it from 3.5 besides combat Skills (Non-Weapon Proficiencies in the AD&D jargon) are not strictly level-based (it's the number of available NWPs that depends on the level, not the chance to succeed at a use of an NWP), and are more specialized. There are no feats. Weapon proficiency and specialization are represented by Weapons Proficiencies, similar to skills. They are taken individually, not in groups. Multiclassing is completely different as well, and there are no prestige classes (though there are other ways to customize characters). 4. is ther any way to get my hands of some cheap/free stuff about it 5. how much stuff is there about it There's a lot of stuff (especially settings and adventures, rules-wise, there aren't as many splatbooks as in 3e, and they're not needed during the game, anyway), most of it optional. You can get almost everything as cheap PDFs at Paizo or RPGnow. It usually doesn't take much space to carry around a set of AD&D stuff -- you just need dice, character sheets, a player's handbook (roughly the same size of a 3e PBH, IIRC) and the monster sheets and/or adventure modules you want to use (these are usually pretty thin in AD&D/OD&D etc.). -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [Post 4] Author : Elendur Date : 12-18-06 01:46 PM Thread Title : Re: n00b That's how I used to play D&D in the lunchroom when I was a kid. It's really not that hard. In fact you can do it with 3.5e as well. It just takes a bit more adjudication from the DM. Which can lead to a few more arguments, but not that bad. It certainly runs a lot faster. A few examples: Am I in range?/Can I get there? This is usually easily determined. If the DM says "You round the corner and see an orc 20 ft away." You know you can move up to it and hit him on your turn. If he's 40ft away, you know you can charge him, and the DM can tell you if anything is impeding your charge. The DM keeps track of the distances in his head or on a sheet of graph paper. Area of effect spells: This is one that leads to arguments. If a rogue says "I wait out in the hall while my companions charge into the room", then an enemy fires a fireball out into the hall, a cheesy rogue might say "well of course I was 20ft down the hall, not wanting to be attacked from the room". (Then next time when the ghoul walks down the hall he'll say "Well of course I was right by my buddies at the door, I wouldn't split the party!") Attacks of opportunities: In the old game this took the form of free attacks against casters and ranged attacks being impossible to ajacent foes. This is just another case of DM judgement. If the DM thinks you are doing something 'dangerous', you provoke. "I move past the monster to get to my friend" the DM can say the corridor is narrow, so it's dangerous. If a monster melees you, it can be considered threatening, making drinking potions, casting spells, or whatever else you want to be dangerous. AOO's can also be easily discarded. Believe it or not, D&D was and still is played without miniatures. In fact we even had school bus sessions when we didn't even use dice (gasp!) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [Post 5] Author : ZolDarklock Date : 01-05-07 01:44 AM Thread Title : Re: n00b 2e can be just as detailed and even more so as 3e ever could be, it's just in my opnion a little easier to deal with, except 3e has a better way to calculate thaco and ac than 2e did, especially to a newbie learning... mixing the best ideas and ways from all the versions is the best way to go, AOO IS RIDICULOUS...there has always been an attack of opportunity in every version of d&d, we just called it common sense, and sometimes stupidity depending on the circumstances (2e DM to pc's "hey a stormgiant vampire high preist carrying the scimitar of souls just stepped out of a hidden door within five feet of you, anybody wish to do anything" pc with commonsense - "I take this opportunity to scream like a scared little girl, as I bolt toward the exit" dumbass pc - "I take this opportunity to attack with my trusty +1 dagger of lizard slaying" -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [Post 6] Author : True_Atlantean Date : 01-05-07 05:48 AM Thread Title : Re: n00b mixing the best ideas and ways from all the versions is the best way to go, AOO IS RIDICULOUS...there has always been an attack of opportunity in every version of d&d, we just called it common sense, and sometimes stupidity depending on the circumstances (2e DM to pc's "hey a stormgiant vampire high preist carrying the scimitar of souls just stepped out of a hidden door within five feet of you, anybody wish to do anything" pc with commonsense - "I take this opportunity to scream like a scared little girl, as I bolt toward the exit" dumbass pc - "I take this opportunity to attack with my trusty +1 dagger of lizard slaying" Lol. Welcome aboard Roscoe, you've just let yourself in for a great time. Anyone wanting to look back over D&D history has my thumbs up.:) As for AOO, I don't use them in my 3.0e game at all. That was actually the players choice as well as mine. We looked over the rules and ditched the AOO rules as we have always had a "give and take" relationship for distance. The players trust me and I trust them and we're willing to apply commonsense [I hear it is a feat nowadays] to situations. Roscoe, 1st and 2nd ed were where all the legends were made. The original Dragonlance heroes, the classic dungeons and the classic heroes (Mordenkainen, Vecna, Strahd, Soth and the list goes on...). The characters are something that 3rd ed hasn't been able to produce. If you are interested in some of the stuff, check out www.paizo.com and see the downloads section. Most of the 2nd ed stuff is available in .pdf and is at about US$4.00. It would be a great way to immerse yourself into the game. Good luck and welcome aboard. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [Post 7] Author : exorb Date : 01-05-07 03:55 PM Thread Title : Re: n00b I'm a 14 year old and the only version of DnD I've ever played is 3.5, and I have some questions about 2nd edition AD&D 1. Does it really not use a board for combat - Miniatures can be used in 2nd ED just as well as 3EDed. Old school boards were dry erase boards (usualy self made) with squares of ten feet in permanate marker. Movement Base is per 10 feet. - adjustments and fine tuning can be achieved via Encumbrance,Time and Movement rules and Movement in Combat rules Note: there are "Attacks of Opportunity" and free attacks in this version as well. 2. if not, how is it done? As others have said, The game is designed to be played either way. When PC and Moster Location is important in the encounter: peices of paper or any kind of token/coin can represent a PCs' and mosters' locations. 3. how different is it ? How long of a list do you want? *No Feats - good. (I'm i the only one that thinks most of these are riducules?) how much bonus do you need? - *Restrictions for class and race - Not everyone can be anything. also a good thing. *Class ability score requirements *Proficiencies *non weapon proficiencies *Weapon Speed Factors *Rate of Fire *Initiative can change with each round this can swing a battle= fun **Thief Class is not underminded by handing out these abilities to everyone with feats. *Medieval settings many more differences 4. is ther any way to get my hands of some cheap/free stuff about it same place you might download music? ;) most websites that sell D&D also have the early stuff as well. *Bookmans , Ebay 5. how much stuff is there about itTONS considering that 1st ED and even basic and expert sets can be converted in the blink of an eye. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [Post 8] Author : DM_Rennick Date : 01-08-07 05:40 PM Thread Title : Re: n00b Hey, everyone else seems to have things covered, but I wanted to say that I've been Playing and DMing since 3rd edition came out and I very rarely use minatures or a board, It just takes more description. Heck if your players like the roleplaying aspect of it, (as mine do) You may not even have a battle for awhile. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [Post 9] Author : Horemheb442 Date : 01-08-07 10:03 PM Thread Title : Re: n00b My homegrown 2nd Ed game I ran at a local gamestore involves a lot of roleplaying. One of the players came up after the 3rd gaming session and remarked he just reallized we hadn't yet fought a single battle. I asked if that was a problem? He said,"Heck no. The CSI stuff (crime scene investigation) we are doing and the mystery aspect is great, I can't wait for next week." Welcome to 2nd Ed.!:rimshot: -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [Post 10] Author : True_Atlantean Date : 01-10-07 04:48 AM Thread Title : Re: n00b My homegrown 2nd Ed game I ran at a local gamestore involves a lot of roleplaying. One of the players came up after the 3rd gaming session and remarked he just reallized we hadn't yet fought a single battle. I asked if that was a problem? He said,"Heck no. The CSI stuff (crime scene investigation) we are doing and the mystery aspect is great, I can't wait for next week." Welcome to 2nd Ed.!:rimshot: It is still possible to enter 3rd ed with that same mindset. I'm running Savage Tide for my group and we only had one minor combat in almost five hours of play. The rest was info-gathering and meeting with NPC's, exploring the city and role-playing. The experience was thoroughly enjoyed, and we left the game on final rounds of combat [my insidious way of ensuring that all the players show up on time to the next session]. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [Post 11] Author : exorb Date : 01-10-07 01:00 PM Thread Title : Re: n00b Sure it is. anything that is possible in one edition is also possible with any of D&D EDs. (don't forget that) no matter how much things differ changes can be made by the DM with players approval. You can refer to page 8 in the DM's Guide (3ED) on tips for Styles of Play. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [Post 12] Author : Mock26 Date : 01-16-07 02:17 PM Thread Title : Re: n00b All you have to do is use your imagination when you picture combat. I still play 2nd edition and while I occasionally use miniatures for combat purposes, I generally only use them in very large spaces where the characters are moving around a lot. When the group is in a dungeon I simply describe the scene in detail and then ask the players what they do. Part of what they do is tell me where they position themselves. So long as the DM gives a good description of the room and the players can imagine this, there shouldn't be any problems. And, if a situation does arise where, by 3.x rules, an Attack Of Opportunity should have happened, does it really matter? I've played all versions of D&D that have been released, including 3.0 and 3.5, and while the Attacks Of Opportunity can sometimes add flavor to combat, they aren't needed. Another option is to get a small dry erase board that is the size of a piece of paper and you can quickly sketch out a room and then use tiny dice to represent the character and monster locations. Just don't worry about drawing all the 5' squares. Take care and have a great day.... ciao, john. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Downloaded from Wizards Community (http://forums.gleemax.com) at 05-10-08 08:21 AM.