Classic D&D TSR Modules

Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth 1976

What is a "classic" module? Taking the definition from the Six Cultures of Play article we can say that modules made during the time when the classic style of play was prevalent is a good starting point. The "classic style of play" being that style which focused primarily on posing unique and unusual challenges to players in overland hex crawls or "sprawling labyrinths". 

D1, 2, 3 & S1 1978

Though back in the day I never considered these modules to be "short" on story or narrative, they were decidedly different from later endeavors that began in late '83 when Gary was being pushed out of TSR by successive degrees. 

G1, 2 & 3 "The Giant Series 1978

B1 In Search of the Unknown 1978

1983 is a nominal stopping off point, and more traditional styles of play were certainly on the rise. But with the publication of the Dragonlance modules and later works such as Ravenloft and Pharoah we get a decided shift from a more classical style of adventuring to a more storydriven one. 

T1 Village of Hommlet & S2 White Plume Mountain both 1979

C1 & 2 Hidden Shrine & Ghost Tower 1979

B2 Keep on the Borderlands 1979

And, of course, there were other modules that came after the 1983 mark that could certainly be said to have been more classic in approach than traditional. But that is a post for another time. 

Q1 Queen of the Demonweb Pits & A1 Slave Pits of the Undercity 1980

S3 Expedition to Barrier Peaks 1980

What I found to be the case in running these adventures, though I have not run them all, was that it really didn't matter how the characters went about attacking the challenges present, or navigating the location. At least it didn't matter storywise. A story would very naturally arise out of the player's interactions with the environment and the denizens thereof. They didn't need to follow a narrative to be "successful". A single foray into part of the location which ended with at least one party member still living and able to bring some form of treasure back to civilization was a success. It was never really a pass/fail mission.

A2, 3, & 4 The end of the Slaver Series 1981

Even though many of these adventures began as tournament modules, as the Slaver Series famously did (the telling of which in Dragon magazines subsequent to the Gen Con that year are the stuff of epic gaming tales), and had a definite winning and losing game group, the fact was you still measured the distance you got and what you were able to accomplish point wise. The A series and others clearly present a "situation" that the characters are supposed to approach and resolve. But the unfolding campaign in actual play was so potentially "sandboxy" that they played in perfectly classic style.

U1 Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh and I1 Dwellers of the Forbidden City 1981

X1 Isle of Dread and X2 Castle Amber 1981

Palace of the Silver Princess B3

By '82 things were beginning to change. And we begin to see an even greater level of attention to story, or narrative arc that characters were supposed to follow in an adventure. Most of the adventures published this year were still basically classic in mode however and for this reason I would include them in what I call the classic tradition. 

B4 The Lost City & N1 Against the Cult of the Reptile God

I2 & 3 Tomb of the Lizard King & Pharaoh

Danger at Dunwater U2, The Forgotten Temple of Tharizdun WG4

X3 Curse of Xanathon

Again, I feel the need to make clear, that these modules are not void of story or narrative. Though it was common, a la B2 Keep on the Borderlands that the setting is a massive monster lair out there waiting for the adventures to stumble across. Some of these adventures had clear goals. But the goals were more of the "save the princess" variety, than follow this chain of events to a satisfactory conclusion. There are some adventures on this list that I would personally exclude as strictly "classic" in nature, but of we take 1983 as a hard line this is what results. There are certainly others out there published after '83 that would be considered more classic than traditional as well, and some that trend towards later styles of play. These are, after all, arbitrary classifications we impose on a past that did not really understand them. They are just the kind of ideas I find useful in exploring the game and it's transformations over the years. 

AD&D Appendix N: John Bellairs' "Face in the Frost"

 

I should make a caveat before starting into this, but John Bellairs is one of my favorite young adult authors. However, though I had read numerous middle grade titles I had never read Face in the Frost. And if you were to have asked me back in the day if I thought Bellairs was a "children's author" I would have equivocated. His writing appeals to some rather "adult" topics, and though his protagonists are decidedly middle graders, their demeanor and personalities were very mature for their age. This novel is definitely written for adults. Middle graders could of course tackle it, but the themes here, the characterization, and the scenery and settings are written to a rare intellect. And to top it all off, this novel was included by Gary as a seminal work of the D&D oeuvre. 

In Face in the Frost we have on display some of the same fantastic-real world setting that is common to fantasies of this period. Indeed, drawing on historical figures such as Roger Bacon, and Prospero (though no the one you're thinking of). Starting rather comfortably in a cozy, if weird, Bellairsian home the story sets off with some "odd goings on" in the wizarding world that hints at potentially dark forces at work. And weird here expands to encompass not only the home, but to the whole world and adventure these wizards set off upon. Shrinking spells, crystal balls, illusions galore and magic books are just some of the classic eldritch tropes so well known in D&D. 

But what this book grants, perhaps with the exception of Vance's Dying Earth series, is the flavor of D&D wizarding more than any other. The idea of a wizards "sanctum", the bizarre nature of magic itself, the almost comical reality that magic creates, and the literally no-holds barred possibilities that such magic generates are perfectly captured by the magical adventure of Face in the Frost.

I think this is noteworthy. Gary Gygax is known for not being rather fond of magic users. Whether this is due to Howard's, and his scriptoral kin's, tendency to write spell workers as the bad guys; or because he felt a personal love for mighty fighting heroes is up for debate. Others have said it was due to the magic-users potential to become too powerful, and Gary was always looking for opportunities to clip their wings. Even Tim Kask has made the point that he had to argue for giving magic-users an unerring strike via magic missile, saying "give the poor magic-user something!" Because Gary wanted to make them have to roll to hit with their one effective damage causing spell at low levels. 

But I don't think Gary "hated" magic-users. Maybe I'm wrong, and I certainly wouldn't want to take umbrage with someone as wise and experienced as Tim Kask. But you have, according to Gary, in works like this one, and others, the clear idea of what D&D wizardry could be. Mysterious, weird, comical, yes, but also very, very powerful. If you're looking for potential archetypes while playing a magic-user you need look no further than works like this and others in Appendix N. Face also provides for would be DMs, above and beyond other works, what an adventure might look like for high level magic-users. With an opponent and the associated weird setting to match their skills and abilities. Gary was fond of constructing such adventures, which in my mind bring to memory White Plume Mountain, Tomb of Horrors, and his later Dungeonland and The Land Beyond the Magic Mirror. 

Finally, what some OSR games have tried to regulate, namely the weird and dangerous element of magic in old school fantasy is already there in the spirit of AD&D as well as the rules themselves. The DMG held tables for insanity, potion miscibility, magic item destruction and malfunction. And nothing short of the DMs imagination inspired by works like Face in the Frost can sculpt the warp and weft of a world where magic is very much indeed a strange and unusual power that few dare lay hold of. What has inspired later OSR developers has been that few actual rules enforce the weirdness or danger of magic. Gary left this to DM and player imagination. And for those looking for the heart of it, Face in the Frost delivers in spades.

I might also pay homage to the creation of sinister, sorcerous villains in Melchior. Able to plane shift his enemies, wrap the world in perpetual winter, and create and place all sorts of magical obstacles in the way of our protagonist Prospero and his erstwhile companion Roger. It takes more than a simple bag of hit points to challenge high level wizards, and Melchior is the kind of villain such players need to challenge their mettle and thrill their adventuring chops. And, moreover, we have the wizard's guild, though this idea of wizarding brotherhoods is at home in several works in Appendix N, that come to his rescue near the end. This too is a cool idea to use when crafting high level challenges for magic-users. One would want to be careful of too much deus ex machina with such a device, but used strategically it has much potential. 

I hope my love for this novel has not been too much on display, but not since my reading of The Fourth Dimension by Rudy Rucker has my mind felt like it was under the influence of actual magic. I can not recommend it highly enough. It is one of those books, however, that I'm protective of. I dare not share it with those who might not appreciate it's fine vintage. I so wish Bellairs had written more fantasy like this. Ah well, Lewis Barnavelt is a fine companion to spend time with. 

Losing the Fire

The other day I came across a little video on social media of two guys siting outside, and the one turns to the other and says, "I just feel like I'm losing my fire, you know." To which the other guy nods sympathetically, and the first guys continues, "I used to have this raging inferno inside me for life. Like a bonfire of passion to embrace the world, chase my dreams, and get all that I could out of life, right?" And the first guy, still nodding says, "Yeah, yeah." And the first guy goes on, "And now, now it's like all I have is a tiny spark, buried deep inside, like a little candle guttering in the wind that I have to shelter from the wind of life. I have to stay inside, not go out or the wind will just snuff it out." And the clip cuts out with the second guy still nodding.

I identified with this on so many levels. I wanted to mention it in regards to gaming.

Let's face it, making it from this:

To this ... 

Is not a bridge too far, and many of us went from pre-teen to teenage/college gaming fairly reliably. But to make it onwards to this:

Or even this ...

Can be a much harder journey. Time, careers, relationships, stress, responsibilities and much, much more vie for time with your desire and will to sustain a gaming group. My journey here was easiest with my students first and my children next. But if those avenues evaporate as your children grow up and move on, you might find yourself struggling to hit that last phase ...

If you have managed to do that, seriously count your blessings, and accept my deepest admiration. 

And I'm not saying it is some impossibly difficult achievement. Though it may be harder for some than others, it is doable. I am my own worse enemy in this regard. The real challenge is to kindle the fire sufficiently to make it happen. Don't sneeze to hard, you might snuff my candle.