[net.games] AD&D Easy to learn???

steve@sri-unix (10/24/82)

Brad Templeton (?) claims that the combat system of AD&D is easy
for a novice to learn.

I find that to be (to be diplomatic) completely contrary to fact.
In fact, the combat system of AD&D (including the inconsistent
and entirely too complex magic system; not to mention the vast
array of weird dice) is the
single aspect of the game most likely to scare novice's off.

How could ANYONE think the AD&D combat system is easy to learn?
In fact I have NEVER seen anyone even USE it! It takes 35 pages
in the DM guide to describe!

   Sigh...

   Try Fantasy Trip!

   Steve Den Beste
   Tektronix
   [ucbvax|decvax]!teklabs!tekmdp!dadla!dadla-a!steve

p.s. If it is so easy to learn and use, why is that no-one uses it?
I don't look for realism in my system, I look for playability.
The latter is good enough, but AD&D doesn't have EITHER.

bstempleton (11/01/82)

What I meant by easy to learn is that for the average novice, you can
sit down at the table, and the DM will say to you "Roll a 20 sider."
You roll it, and for a while, the DM can look up your table and tell if
you hit.  You still get the sense of doing something, ie. rolling a die.

Sure there is more complex stuff.  But a novice can play with what I just
described.  I really don't care how difficult the combat system is for the
DM to learn, almost any system will be less complex then designing a good
campaign.  How difficult it is to play - that's another, much more important
matter.

Brad Templeton

CSvax:Physics:els (11/02/82)

     I've been d&d'ing for five years, and in the intervening time have
made several attempts to conform with the "mainstream" by learning AD&D.
Thank God I was never stupid enough to actually buy the books!!  I suppose
that if I had the time (eons!!), I could probably master it, but it just
isn't worth it.  D&D reached its peak with Greyhawk, and has been sliding
ever since!  Not only is AD&D too complicated for the novice, I think that
it is too involved for a master as well.  AD&D completely misses the 
original idea behind D&D, minimize time spent on preliminaries and maximize
time spent playing!


                            A purist (for D&D),
                          
                            els[Eric Strobel]
                            pur-ee!pur-phy!els