Review And Commentary On The Pay What You Want Retro clone Rule book Blue Holme Prenctice Rules For Your Old School Campaign

This is no holds bar meat and potatoes Holmes Blue book Prencice  retroclone action that in sixty pages places everything you need to get started into one of the best of the best versions of basic OD&D that hit the market and its very well organized to boot. The folks over at Dreamscape have taken and updated their very own retroclone to reflect a few fiddly bits and changes. Very few but enough to make all of the difference with this version of the 'grand old game' or the world's most popular fantasy role playing game. All of the old favorites are here in this version of Holmes but there's one of the rubs. Its a bit more clear and concise on how it handles the game details and everything that your going to want is right under the blue and white rule book.



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 When I first looked at Blue Holme I really wasn't expecting much but really this is like coming home for me. Dreamscape did a faboulous job of bring back the magic of Holmes into a concise and well organized package with just the right amount of nostalgia and a better dose of old school gamesmanship that will take PC's from First level and beyond. And all of the old favorites from Wizard to Fighter along with Thief and Cleric are right here mixed in with Dwarf and Elf as well. 
There's something refreshing to me to look at the bang up job that Dreamscape did with this material. Although this rule book emulates the Holmes this re imagining of it brings with it certain amount of well thought out focus and design slight of hand.
This is a perfect game to let kids cut their teeth on or have your relatives who have never played OD&D get into. This version is one of the best emulators to come down the pike in a dogs age and the basic version of OD&D is one of a select retroclones that has a very strong core audience already for it. This update cements the deal and enables the retroclone to be both a Saturday night quick pickup set of rules or as another reference piece for rule booking.. 
I can understand if you think that this is simply another retro clone or why in the heck should the reviewer be excited. Well this edition incorporates all of the errata and changes from Dreamscape. They've got a blog for support of the game as well right HERE
According to the blog here what's going on in this latest incarnation : 

Yes, the long-awaited update to the Prentice Rules has finally arrived on your virtual bookshelf! As well as incorporating all the errata that has surfaced in the 18 months or so since the 1st printing, this edition has been reformatted for a cleaner typeface and to make it fully compatible with the upcoming Compleat Rules.

With everything you need in one rulesbook and not anything to get in your way as a DM or player its easy to see why this edition and retroclone of Holmes matters. There's now a complete version of Blue Holmes coming out in the near future making these rules a nice quick set of pick up and go weekend play through rules. I know that new players are not the ones who are going to look at these rules but the more experienced DM's and players who want to have a bit of that old lighting in the memories and a D20 between their fingers. You could do a lot worse then to download and go with this great little re imaginational retroclone in you DM's arsenal. A very nice retroclone rules set and one of the best basic set ups to come down the pike in a while. I'm looking forward to Dreamscape's version of the Complet rules.All in all this was a really nice trip down memory lane updated for a more streamlined version of Holmes style play.