From 2012 into 2017, there was a pretty cool Thread here, talking about Gary Gygax's 17 Steps to Role Playing Mastery. Those Steps are contained in his 1987 book, Role-Playing Mastery.
Folks jumped in and out, and it grew to over 650 posts before I finally let it dwindle out. We moved outside just the 17 Steps along the way, and there's some great discussion. You can find the whole thing here:
Gary Gygax & Role-Playing Mastery
In one chapter of the book, he lists 11 Tactical Mastery Tips. I had broached the first two near the end of the Thread. I figured I'd start up a new Thread here, to talk about his take on Tactical Mastery. I'll follow the same format I did for the Role-Playing Mastery thread. I'll kick it off with the Intro I used for that one. Then the next post, I'll cover Tip One. Hopefully some folks will jump on board.
Only rule is to be civil. We had a great discussion and no one was ever a problem. You really should click over and check it out, if you've got some time.
Gary Gygax's 11 Tactical Mastery Tips
If you're reading this post, you probably know that Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson co-created Dungeons and Dragons circa 1973-1974. Unfortunately it was not a long-lasting partnership and lawsuits would ensue. While both were instrumental in creating D&D, it is Gygax who is remembered as the Father of Role Playing.
In 1987, Gary Gygax put out a book entitled Role-Playing Mastery, which gave instructions on how to excel as a player in role-playing games. At that time, there were essentially two versions of Dungeons and Dragons. The Original, or ‘Basic’ game, had evolved under Tom Moldvay’s rules development. Gygax, meanwhile, was focused on Advanced Dungeons and Dragons, or ’AD&D’. They were marketed as separate rules systems and 2nd Edition AD&D would not be released until 1989.
Gygax had been pushed completely out of TSR (the company he cofounded to print the first set of D&D rules) by December 31, 1986, so he was no longer associated with D&D when this book came out.
In an interview not long before he died, Gygax was asked how he’d like to be remembered and replied:
“I would like the world to remember me as the guy who really enjoyed playing games and sharing his knowledge and his fun pastimes with everybody else.”
This book, which he wrote about twenty years before his death, reflects that philosophy. On a side note, he wrote a companion book that came out in 1989, Master of the Game, which focused on the Dungeon Master/Game Master side of role-playing.
They are both interesting reads; partly because he takes the subject so seriously. And bear in mind that PC gaming consisted of titles like Ultima IV, Wizardry, and Bard’s Tale. Pool of Radiance, the first of the gold box series, was a year away. MMORPGs weren’t even conceived of yet (yes, I know MUDs existed). But computer gaming was a very different world. People RPGd by sitting around a table together. And Gary Gygax suggested how they could be very good at it.
So, next post will begin a look a Gary Gygax's 11 Tactical Mastery Tips.