Dragon Reflections #18 -- Gamers Behaving Badly

[Ubiquitous]

The Dragon Issue 18 was published in September 1978. It is 36 pages
long, with a cover price of $1.50. In this issue, we have gamers
behaving badly at Origins '78, lots of D&D homebrew rules, and an
introduction to the Traveller RPG!

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Tim Kask has recently returned from Origins '78, held in Michigan and
run by Metro Detroit Gamers (MDG). The rivalry between GenCon and
Origins is always simmering below the surface of these Origins reviews,
and Kask spends a good chunk of time discussing the venue and
organizational problems at the con, while limply praising MDG by saying
they "did as good a job as could be expected under the circumstances."

His fiercest criticism was for the exhibitor party at the Marriott:

"One other low point stands out in my mind, in stark relief.
It’s fortunate that this event was not open to the general
public. I’m referring to the party at the Marriott Hotel on
Friday night for the exhibitors, workers, etc. It started off
as a nice party and ended up a disgusting spectacle. If the
Marriott ever allows another wargaming-related event within
its confines, I’d be very surprised. More than a few attendees
left in disgust after watching some of the “captains” of our
industry make drunken fools of themselves. As anyone that
knows me can attest, I like to party with the best of them,
and I’m certainly no teetotaler, but I left the party early.
I stopped back sometime later and it was even worse."

But Kask does finish by saying, "Lest you think that I didn’t like
Origins ‘78, let me assure you that I did, in spite of the bummers." He
also wryly notes that anyone who attends cons must have a little bit of
a masochistic streak.

Issue #18 is just crammed with content. There are a lot of little
articles covering a wide range of topics. The table of contents groups
things into five categories: Features, Variants, Reviews, Designers
Forum, and Dragon Mirth (the comics). I usually ignore the comics in
these retrospectives, but I'll briefly hit the other areas.

We'll start with Variants, which are basically homebrew rules submitted
by readers. "The Effective Use of Poison" presents a more sophisticated
poison subsystem than the "save or die" approach that was common in D&D
at the time. In "Monkish Weapons & Monk vs. Monk Combat" we have
(another) attempt to simulate eastern martial arts in a more realistic
manner. These subsystems simply don't mesh that well with AD&D's
abstract approach to combat. "NPC Statistics" adds the "Ego" and
"Greed" attributes to merchants and shopkeepers, to help assess price
and quality of work in retail dealings. In "Chamber of the God Game" we
have a Russian roulette style puzzle, while "Insanity" presents a
workable little system for player madness.

Perhaps the most amusing variant article is "New Spells in D&D," which
Tim Kask has subtitled "Cure for an Ailing Campaign or Killer of A
Healthy One?" before noting, "The following is an example of how one
group handles the research of new spells. They are NOT recommended for
general absorption into existing campaigns willy-nilly." I suspect the
author may have been a little miffed when he finally saw his article in
print!

The "Designers Forum" section also contains variant rules, though in
this case by "pro" designers. "Magic: Governed by Laws of Theory" gives
a theoretical underpinning to D&D magic based on five laws--Similarity,
Contagion, Mana, Obscurity, and Harmony. It's nicely written though a
bit abstract. It's a shame the author didn't work through and apply the
whole theory to at least one actual spell.

There are two articles related to Boot Hill, one describing town design
and the other a set of character origins tables (clearly influenced by
Traveller - see below). In an article called "Guidelines for Mixing
Campaigns: Androids, Wizards, Several Mutants, and Liberal Doses of
Imagination, Well Blended," Jim Ward discusses the combination of game
genres. As I've read these early issues of Dragon, it's become obvious
how much genre-mixing the TSR folk used to do in their personal gaming.
Given this, it's interesting how many of us were real "fantasy purists"
back in the 80s.

There is another "From the Sorcerer's Scroll," this one written by Jim
Ward and subtitled "GAMMA WORLD: First Report; Setting Up The
Campaign." The article explains the various design decisions made for
the new Gamma World game, only just released by TSR.

The issue contains six game reviews. Of the games mentioned, Pellic
Quest, Alpha Omega, and The Emerald Tablet are largely forgotten today.
By contrast, Imperium is fondly remembered, while Cosmic Encounter is a
highly celebrated game which remains in print.

But the most important review was for the new science fiction RPG known
as Traveller. Traveller was an instant success and went on to become
recognized as one of the classic RPGs. Reviewer Tom Wham praises the
game thoroughly, noting, "The wait, for those of us who had finally
tired of trolls and treasures, was well worth it... TRAVELLER is a
unique SF game and probably the best of the role-playing variety. It
offers a colorful but consistent future for players to adventure in."
This is lavish praise considering that TSR had two science fiction RPGs
of their in the market at the time.

The Features section also mentions the new RPG. In "Traveller: The
Strategy of Survival," the writer opens with the following lines:

"Recently, while attending a good sized gaming convention
sponsored by the local wargaming club, I took advantage of
the opportunity to observe the TRAVELLER phenomenon first
hand. A full fledged campaign version was announced to the
crowd. With a roar of approval, a throng of players squeezed
themselves into the playing area, some leaving wide-eyed
opponents still staring at now vacated wargames."

He then gives some tips for navigating Traveller's famous character
creation minigame. It's a fun article.
The second feature article is another story by Harry O. Fischer, this
one called "The Childhood and Youth of The Gray Mouser." Although
written with Fritz Leiber's apparent approval, it's one for hard-core
fans only.

Next issue we look at competitive D&D, more Gamma World, and monsters
of the Australian mythos!

This article was contributed by M.T. Black as part of EN World's
Columnist (ENWC) program. M.T. Black is a game designer and DMs Guild
Adept.

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