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Hey everyone,
Based on a concern raised by Aubrey the Malformed in the "Enough with the comic book references already" thread, I started thinking about references to classic adventures in Dungeon and recent WotC products. On the one hand, they're fascinating and extremely cool for people who've been playing the game since 1e. On the other hand, they could make newer players feel a bit left out. So I was thinking that it might be a good idea to centralize information on where those references arise and exactly what they're referencing. That way, newer players will have the opportunity to go back and catch up if they so choose. I'll start off with an easy example of what I'm talking about.
3.5 Adventure: Expedition to Castle Ravenloft
Source Material: Castle Ravenloft (1e)
References: This 3.5 adventure is essentially a remake of the classic first edition adventure; the setting and primary antagonist, Strahd von Zarovich, are the same.
That one was really obvious and stated in the adventure's description, but I'm both woefully behind on my Dungeon reading and a relative newcomer to D&D in general.
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Bella Sara Charter Superscriber
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I like the idea of this thread, but think it's difficult to track down all the minutuae of D&D lore.
I didn't start playing until right before the release of 2e and also did not have a significant experience with the 1e classics. However, my experience is that you will get between 75-90% of the references made just by reading the modules listed in Dungeon's countdown of the 30 best modules of all time. I would almost recommend that approach rather than trying to catalogue individual references as they come up.
The remaining 10-25% of the references you would only get by having read every D&D product ever written, have a very good memory, and the intitials E.M.
Pfft... that guy only cares about that Greyhawk world... not at all like the sage George Krashos or Eric Boyd!
;-P
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The Top 30 modules is indeed an excellent compendium - it is how I recognise some of the references myself, since I have virtually no first-hand experience. And even for the uninitiated like myself, it is also a jolly good read. I wonder if Paizo ought to make it available as a free PDF or something, given that it is probably the best quick summation of D&D history in module form, as a service to the hobby.....
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If I recall, they even mention the old N1 - Against the Cult of the Reptile God! What a great adventure that was.
I think if people are feeling left out, these message boards are a great place to ask "why is there a stuffed shrew in the taxidermist's shop? Is that an in-joke? There are lots of old curmudgeons willing to show off their ability to reminisce about the good ol' days.
stuffed shrew?