Today I was thinking, what sort of adventure counts as an HB sort of
adventure?
Today I was thinking, what sort of adventure counts as an HB sort of adventure? Is it style, flavor, only uses things in the original 48 pages, or a mix of these things?
"HB sort of adventure" could be as different as a completely non-D&D game that is in the spirit of HB (or it could be a straight HB game). An "HB adventure" uses the HB rules overall, but could be a new module with monsters and items in the spirit of the original.
If I showed up to a convention game, the above would be what I would expect. It's up to personal taste how far you could take "spirit of." In my case, pretty far: for an "HB sort of adventure," it could be either a different mechanic (Holmes Hack?), or a different setting (HB rules, but set on Mars). Change both, and it's way harder to point to the "spirit" that makes it HB-like.
(In all seriousness, for the community, that is almost certainly best. I was answering the question with my own internal opinion, as the question felt like a poll to get people's take on it.)
If I had to define what makes a game Basic I would say ease of play. Most of the house rules I've heard about I think Dad would've approved of. Don't be shy about new monsters or spells or character classes even.
I'd say a mix of all 3 things in the original post..mostly style (simplicity) and flavor (swords & sorcery, a la ERB / REH / CAS / Fritz Leiber but with Moorcockian weirdness and Law vs Chaos as the cosmic backdrop). I wouldn't be a slave to the original 48 but I'd hew closely to it (ie. keep most, and not add or change so much that it was no longer recognizably Holmesian).
I'd include at least some of the Holmesian tropes from the blue book - ancient evils, lost races, evil sorcerers (both as living antagonists and long gone ones as plot drivers), mysteries to be solved, giant / monstrous animals, rough towns (a la Mos Eisley from Star Wars) as opposed to faux-medieval versions of the modern suburb, and "everyday fantasy" (for example, monstrous races being commonly accepted - a la Dave Trampier's underworld trade town in the Wormy comic, or some of the Judges Guild CSIO / Wilderlands material).
Probably something that sounds like a Boinger and Zereth story.
ReplyDelete: )
I'm curious to know the comments on this thread. I tend to wonder if the holmes sample dungeon come into play? And I'd guess "things from the 48".
ReplyDeleteMy gut take:
ReplyDelete"HB sort of adventure" could be as different as a completely non-D&D game that is in the spirit of HB (or it could be a straight HB game). An "HB adventure" uses the HB rules overall, but could be a new module with monsters and items in the spirit of the original.
If I showed up to a convention game, the above would be what I would expect. It's up to personal taste how far you could take "spirit of." In my case, pretty far: for an "HB sort of adventure," it could be either a different mechanic (Holmes Hack?), or a different setting (HB rules, but set on Mars). Change both, and it's way harder to point to the "spirit" that makes it HB-like.
I wouldn't want to put any limitations on it. If the author says that it is for Holmes Basic, that's good enough for me.
ReplyDeleteZach H - Challenge accepted.
ReplyDelete(In all seriousness, for the community, that is almost certainly best. I was answering the question with my own internal opinion, as the question felt like a poll to get people's take on it.)
If I had to define what makes a game Basic I would say ease of play. Most of the house rules I've heard about I think Dad would've approved of. Don't be shy about new monsters or spells or character classes even.
ReplyDeleteI might.. might.. try my hand at writing an adventure for pdf release. Free, of course.
ReplyDeleteFor one thing, it starts at the front door of the dungeon and ends when everyone who is still alive makes it back out again.
ReplyDeleteInteresting question, but I'm not sure I can distill the sense of it in my head down into a short set of words.
ReplyDeleteI'm writing up a new short adventure too. It has been playtested once so far.
ReplyDeleteUsing Futura font and B2 style stat blocks with DX stats will help make any adventure feel of the era.
ReplyDeleteSee Monster Mountain. It's a 1-page dungeon built of Legos but written up Holmes style: http://zenopusarchives.blogspot.com/2015/05/beyond-door-to-monster-mountain.html?m=1
ReplyDeleteI'd say a mix of all 3 things in the original post..mostly style (simplicity) and flavor (swords & sorcery, a la ERB / REH / CAS / Fritz Leiber but with Moorcockian weirdness and Law vs Chaos as the cosmic backdrop). I wouldn't be a slave to the original 48 but I'd hew closely to it (ie. keep most, and not add or change so much that it was no longer recognizably Holmesian).
ReplyDeleteI'd include at least some of the Holmesian tropes from the blue book - ancient evils, lost races, evil sorcerers (both as living antagonists and long gone ones as plot drivers), mysteries to be solved, giant / monstrous animals, rough towns (a la Mos Eisley from Star Wars) as opposed to faux-medieval versions of the modern suburb, and "everyday fantasy" (for example, monstrous races being commonly accepted - a la Dave Trampier's underworld trade town in the Wormy comic, or some of the Judges Guild CSIO / Wilderlands material).