KingJosh said:
Ok, I'm a life-long geek, so I've sort of heard all this before. However, I never actually bought any books until I was in college, around the start of 3.5.
I know that was the original D&D in 1974, and the more complex Advanced D&D in 1979. But, there were several different attempts to keep the older, "simpler" system going. Anybody want to post, or link to, a good explanation of what the various flavors are? Specifically, I'm considering getting some "old-school" books directly through DMsGuild. I'd like to know more about which products go with which "edition," and maybe a little more about the differences between them. Is one considered better written than another? Is one "more complete" than another? Are any of them among the products WotC has made available via print-on-demand?
(Quick note: NOT looking to start an Edition War(tm). I'm asking for technical details and strengths and weaknesses, not the "better" version.
B/X, BECMI and Rules Cyclopedia all use largely the same system, and they are all legally available for sale in PDF. Any material made for one is easily usable with the others. There are some notable differences though.
B/X is made up of a Basic Set and Expert Set. The Basic Set covers levels 1-3 and gives rules covering dungeon exploration. The Expert Set covers levels as high as 14. It also gives rules for wilderness exploration and some basic rules for building castles.
It is my favorite edition of D&D, and it has an enormous amount of ongoing support through OSR products. The game Labyrinth Lord is a retro-clone of B/X. If you see a supplement with Labyrinth Lord, it is effectively a B/X supplement. While the changes are minor, I prefer the original B/X rules to Labyrinth Lord, and now you can buy the B/X books legally in PDF format. Also, the B/X books are not that rare, so it isn't prohibitive to buy used copies. The prices only get crazy if you insist on getting them with a still intact box.
To establish personal bias, B/X is my all time favorite version of D&D. It is D&D trimmed down to fundamentals. That makes it easier to tinker with than more complex editions. I can add my own house rules or borrow from other editions as needed.
As I mentioned earlier, characters never go higher than 14th level in this edition. Some may see that as incomplete, but I think that works well. At 14th level, characters are still pretty damned heroic, but haven't reached the point of being cumbersome. I think play past the point is usually a case of diminishing returns.
Moving on to BECMI, it uses essentially the same system as B/X, but as it has five boxed sets rather then two, it goes up to 36th level. I find that beyond my needs. One of the notable changes is that BECMI makes the Thief class weaker than in B/X. Thief skill progression is slowed down so it can take place over 36 levels rather than 14. I don't really care for that.
The Basic Sets for B/X and BECMI have near identical rules, but the presentation is different. The B/X Basic Sets lays out the rules in straightforward manner. The BECMI Basic Set teaches you the game via a choose your own adventure format that you play as you read the book.
Both methods have their virtues. The BECMI method is great for people unfamiliar with RPGs that are trying to wrap their head around the game. The B/X books is more handy just to have as a reference at the table during play. Which is best depends entirely on the reader's experience.
Over the course of the five boxed sets and the Gazetteer series, which detailed the default campaign setting, BECMI produced a lot of rules and new classes. The Rules Cyclopedia was an attempt to revise and collect all those rules in one book. It's widely considered one of the most useful D&D books ever, and the prices for used copies reflect that. It is available in PDF though. There is also a good retroclone called Dark Dungeons that you can get POD if you insist on hard copies.
The Rules Cyclopedia is easier to deal with than all the BECMI rules scattered across many books. My approach is to use the B/X rules as my core, and then I use the Rules Cyclopedia as needed for additional rules. I'll often borrow spells and magic items from AD&D as well.
One thing all the games have in common is that they play much more quickly than 3.5. Combat is much simpler and there is less HP inflation, so fights can often wrap in five minutes or so. When I was a kid, I used to find this version of D&D overly simplistic, but I have come to love it. I like the pacing it encourages.
Another thing that keeps fights shorter is the NPCs/monsters have Morale scores. When their side suffers a setback such as the first death or losing half their number, they need to make a Morale check. If they fail, they surrender, retreat or run away. PCs don't have Morale score as running away is their decision. However, these versions do have rules for running away and also evading enemies in the wilderness. It makes the decision to get out of a bad fight a little more clear to the players.
Another big thing to consider in early D&D compared to 3E is the way experience works. The biggest way to gain experience is by gaining treasure. You do get XP for fights, but it is a small amount compared to treasure gains. There is little gain to getting into random useless fights. You want to pick your battles carefully.
I've given my biased opinions, but I think all three of these are great. If you are curious, I highly recommend at least giving them a look in PDF.
