Some Quick Commentary On 'The Pay What You Want' BECMI Retro Clone Dark Dungeons From Gurbintroll Games

So before the Thanksgiving holiday I thought I share some thoughts on one of my other favorite retroclones Dark Dungeons. Dark Dungeons is a BECMI D&D rules cyclopedia retroclone but its more then the sum of its parts.


So why is this a better deal then that Rules Cyclopedia? Well its better organized & its a homage to the infamous Jack Chick tract with the characters from the anti-D&D religious characters from it in the examples of play. In some respects its better then the original work because all of the errors and errata have been eliminated and cleaned up. It has
improve thieves' progression and incorporated elements of Advanced rulesets,thus allowing far more flexibility with other OSR retroclone rule sets!

There are several reasons why I love this OSR rules set :

1.  This system can take your adventurers from basic delvers right up into divinity. 
2. All of the weirdness and errors from the D&D Rules Cylopedia have been eliminated and the whole affair streamlined. 
3. Its actually in print and easily affordable at fourteen sixty seven from Lulu
4. All of the magick of the original without sacrificing any of the neat material such as the monsters, magic items, or more. 
5. You can check out the system before purchasing a copy from Drivethrurpg. 
6. A solidly balanced system for the construction of old school style adventures. 
7. Monsters can be exploited for the level of PC's as needed. 
8. A vast array of systems that can be used to take PC's from basic levels up to retirement and beyond. I love the way that Dark Dungeons handles planar travel and exploits!
9. A system that ties in deeply to the old school but stands on its own. 
10. All of this is under one cover and in one place from the get go.
    
    
     You Can Download
    & Support The Author's Work Right Here 

Commentary On Several Free Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia Resources

Tonight's besides getting ready for the holidaze but I'm getting ready for the Thanksgiving holiday but I was able to take a moment to grab some time with my D&D Rules Cyclopedia. Every rule from the Basic to Masters boxed sets is covered in a very easy-to-read format within this volume but I came across even more great free downloads to make it even a bit easier to use. Within the D&D Rules Cyclopedia is the "Balancing Encounters" table which, although optional for the DM, allows him/her to always create fair encounters that will challenge players.


I've spoken at length about the fact that the Rules Cyclopedia covers war and army rules, strongholds and dominions, the affairs of immortals, PCs becoming immortals, creating magical items, artifacts, other planes of existence, and AD&D conversion rules. I also find myself going back to it for AD&D first edition material from planning out adventures to creating adventure locations lately. I will probably use this title more in my AD&D campaign than any of the AD&D manuals I am supposed to be using

Yet while the holidays seem to be looming once again I find myself thumbing through the book. Planning rosters of adventurers, NPC's, monsters, menaces, and more. Tonight while searching through Dragon's Foot I ran across several really nice free downloads that can make a dungeon's master's life a bit more reasonable.


These include BECMI house rules in a second version that seem to make a bit more sense. A series of 1 edition that make dealing with combat a bit less nightmarish and they include a combat summary as well. Finally for planning out those rosters of adventurers there's a free party roster sheet. These can also be used to create a wide variety of NPC's at the drop of at hat.


Did I also forgot to mention that most of the major D&D monsters are in the book and that its back in print not to mention that there are rules for nonlethal combat for adventurers who want to do a bit of subduing of other adventurers who might come under the influence of some dangerous monster?  Here are several resources that might come in handy for BECMI dungeon masters

There are several Free BECMI downloads 
BECMI/Rules Cyclopedia House Rules, version 2.0
1E House Rules, version 3.3 with a quick reference combat summary
DM's Party Roster Sheet

Commentary On Building DYI Custom Player Character Classes In Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia D&D

I was away from the internet for about a week and whist away I started doing a number of things that I used to like read books and really get into the D&D Rules Cyclopedia. I'm really fascinated by the construction of character classes and their application within campaigns. They're one of the  backbones of creating unique campaigns and world settings for me as a dungeon master. So imagine my surprise when I stumbled across these two resources for BECMI black box! This basically means that your now in control of your own world setting completely within Black Box BECMI.

This takes all of the pressure off to create your own unique world that belongs to you. It also means that once you create the PC's you want and need then you can expand upon your own ideas. This is one of the backbones of DYI D&D.
This was one of the design conceits to the Rules Cyclopedia, "This was the second revision to the D&D rules.^[4] These guidelines allow a player to develop and play characters from levels 1-36, and includes a special section on skills.^[1] The book also contained an overview of the Known World (Mystara) and Hollow World campaign settings.^[1] It also has rules on how to convert characters between the Dungeons & Dragons game and the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons second edition game."
So why is this important? Because it takes the black box BECMI series  over to the next level into a solid customization game set, this means that with a bit of elbow grease you can really make this game your own.


The reviewer Rick Swan really hit it on the head about the Rules Cyclopedia;"Rick Swan reviewed the D&D Rules Cyclopedia for Dragon magazine #184 (August 1992).^[1] He calls the book a "stunningly comprehensive volume", explaining that it "includes more detail than most GMs will ever use [...] but if you want it, you can probably find it here".^[1] According to Swan, "Best of all, the material is a joy to read, thanks to the breezy style of Aaron Allston, who must've been genetically engineered to write RPG rules. This is a must for serious fans."
With these additions its not hard to figure out the 'ins & out's' of creating your own material and PC's from the ground up. This gives the DM one more tool for the home court campaign setting advantage & yet more options for players who are going to be far more seriously invested in the campaign world as a whole. This actually goes back to the OD&D war gaming roots where the players were active participants within the world building process. This creates a far more unique and in some respects dangerous situation for world creation balance.

Building the Perfect Class
& Building a More Perfect Class

Have I personally tried these rules yet? Well no because of my time factor at the moment I haven't be able to get to them. With that being said I know that there are host of people among the OSR crowd who are fans of black box BECMI  D&D. Hence why I'm sharing them, as an OSR blogger and DM I want you to have the most time playing and sharing the hobby.These rules look like another option to have in your tool belt! More to come and as always keep those dice rolling.

More Commentary On The 2016 Smooth Transition From Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia D&D to Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Using A Free Resource

I stopped in to see some old friends yesterday to take break from the storm of weirdness that the 2016 Election has been. I dropped right into the middle of another old gamer controversy!

This has been a time of turmoil and grief with the age old arugments rearing their heads. The conversion from D&D Cylopedia rules over to Advanced Dungeons & Dragons! The great controversy of the D&D Rules Cyclopedia by by Aaron Allston and published by TSR, Inc  way back in 1991 when I first acquired this tome I was sneered at by the AD&D first and second edition crowd. Also some folks at TSR thought that this book was the worst thing to come out. Why?! Because it gives you everything you need in one package to play black box D&D up through thirty sixth level.
Now why did the AD&D crowd have a problem with it? Because the charters were 'basic' and the book was meant for 'experienced' D&D dungeon masters."However, the book's introduction on page 5 states that it is "intended to be a reference volume for those who already play the D&D game ... this book is aimed at the experienced user ... [it] lacks many of the examples and patient explanation you'll find in the D&D box sets"."
Everyone knew that you switched over to Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. Well some of us didn't give a crap and freely switched back and forth using AD&D 1st edition regardless. The real problem were the guidelines from the Rules cyclopedia they suck. Seriously they're a bit of a convoluted mess and hard to deal with.


Now fortunately the Vaults of Pandius website have a set of conversions for the D&D Rules Cyclopedia that make sense. These can take a PC over black box to AD&D with little issue.
Yesterday I literally saw this issue cause a small dust up between friends. Sigh. There has always been revisionism between D&D players and DM's. There's nothing new about it but fortunately there have always been cooler heads at the table. 


Ian R Malcomson 's rules conversions are by no means complete because they can't cover every twist and turn of the process. But they do give a great base line to deal with most of the major conversion issues. There has always been a stick with one or the other D&D system attitude that many groups that I've played with and DM have simply ignored. In the end its going to be your players and your decision as a dungeon master as to what system to play. But in the meantime here's a solid set of conversion rules.

GRAB THE CONVERSION 
GUIDE LINES HERE

Commentary On The Free Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia Resource - Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia Errata & Companion

I was quietly sipping Scotch & watching the elections last night with my copy of the D&D Rules Cyclopedia by by Aaron Allston and published by TSR, Inc. Its a great and wonderfully comprehensive book but there are issues with D&D black box.

Welcome to Wednesday and don't panic I'm here to help with some commentary on ' The Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia' first of all this isn't Mentzer Basic. This is another revision of the classic rules and came out in 1991, "

The Rules Cyclopedia contained all the major rules, compiled and revised from the Dungeons & Dragons Basic Rules, as well as the Expert Rules, Companion Rules, and Master Rules boxed sets.^[1]

However, the book's introduction on page 5 states that it is "intended to be a reference volume for those who already play the D&D game ... this book is aimed at the experienced user ... [it] lacks many of the examples and patient explanation you'll find in the D&D box sets".^[2] The same year, a revised introductory Dungeons & Dragons set was released to introduce new players to the game.^[3]

This was the second revision to the D&D rules.^[4] These guidelines allow a player to develop and play characters from levels 1-36, and includes a special section on skills.^[1] The book also contained an overview of the Known World (Mystara) and Hollow Worldcampaign settings"

So whist the results,commentary, celebrations,etc. played in the background of the television. I dug down into the bowels of the Dragon's Foot  site and came across a most glorious thing. A complete or nearly complete errata and companion piece done by Dragon Foot member Mr. Reaper. For those of us who are into this set of rules its very well done. It doesn't have a pdf but is available in two forms on the website.  I have to say this is one very handy reference book to add to the OSR pile of resources.  I'm sort of pin balling back and forth between OD&D, Basic, the Rules Cyclopedia,and cross comparing its been an eye opening experience to say the least.
There is a very good break down of the differences between classic  Mentzer BECM D&D and Allston Rules Cyclopedia D&D.

The fact is that the Rules Cyclopedia is meant for experienced D&D players, Mentzer D&D is the easier pick up and go play game. Anyhow my thanks to Mr. Reaper for compiling this awesome companion volume.


GRAB IT RIGHT OVER HERE