Robert

by Robert Plamondon

First published in Dragon Magazine #45, January, 1981.

Note: This is the first of two related articles, both published in Dragon #45. The other is Dungeon Ventilation Clears the Air.

Players in dungeon adventures are often confronted with situations involving poison gas, heavy smoke, and various magical clouds. Dungeon Masters who have to do the refereeing on gas attacks find no help in the existing rules, even for such basic questions as, “How long until the smoke clears?”

Three Different Types

First, let’s take a look at what we’re dealing with. The three kinds of noxious vapors normally encountered in dungeons vary considerably in nature and deadliness, so they should be examined separately.

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By Robert Plamondon

First published in Different Worlds #17, December 1981.

Most players that have played D&D long enough can recite the magic item powers from memory, While 1 have never heard anyone say disgustedly, “Oh, it’s just another Throne of the Gods,” the appearance of an over-familiar magic item may induce terminal boredom in veteran players.

The standard cure for this malady has been to invent new magic items. While this works fairly well, it puts all the burden on an already overworked GM. The search of the clever player to find out every possible application of his magic items’ powers is much more creative. Many magic items and spells have some very powerful applications that never occurred to the game designers. Finding a new use for old magic is as useful as finding new mage and a lot less dangerous.

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by Robert Plamondon

First published in Different Worlds #16, November, 1981.

Players In fantasy role-playing games constantly search for new and more potent weapons. In any long-running campaign, the players will eventually work their characters up in power to a point where they can have just about anything they want. In some campaigns, a preferred weapon by high-level characters is a hand-held nuclear fusion device, called by weapons buffs the “thermonuclear hand grenade” (THG).

This paper discusses the proper role of the thermonuclear hand grenade in a fantasy role-playing setting.

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By Robert Plamondon

This article was originally featured in Different Worlds #11 (February/March 1981).

Perhaps the most crucial adventure in fantasy role-playing is the first game, when a novice player with no experience plays a first level character and enters into a dungeon scenario.

In spite of its importance as a means of hooking people on FRP games, the low-level adventure is often casually thrown together by Game Masters because it’s “only first level,” and doesn’t hold his attention the way Asmodeus’ bedroom torture chamber does.

This leads to discouraging or boring first-level dungeons, even when run by competent GMs. To help rectify this problem, I have some suggestions for running a first-level dungeon, which apply equally to all versions of Dungeons & Dragons, and most of the other FRP games as well.

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