 Dungeons & Dragons 1977 Basic Set box cover | |
| Author | Based on the work ofGary Gygax andDave Arneson J. Eric Holmes (1977 version) Tom Moldvay (1981 version) Frank Mentzer (1983 version) Troy Denning (1991 version) Doug Stewart (1994 version) |
|---|---|
| Genre | Role-playing game |
| Publisher | TSR, Inc. |
Publication date | 1977, 1981, 1983, 1991, 1994 |
| Media type | Boxed set |
TheDungeons & Dragons Basic Set is a set of rulebooks for theDungeons & Dragons (D&D) fantasyrole-playing game. First published in 1977, it saw a handful of revisions and reprintings. The first edition was written byJ. Eric Holmes based onGary Gygax andDave Arneson's original work. Later editions were edited byTom Moldvay,Frank Mentzer,Troy Denning, and Doug Stewart.
TheBasic Set details the essential concepts of theD&D game. It provides the rules forcharacter creation and advancement forplayer characters at beginninglevels. It also includes information on how to play adventures inside dungeons for both players and theDungeon Master.
The originalDungeons & Dragons Basic Set was published byTSR, Inc. in 1977.[1]
TSR hired outside writerJohn Eric Holmes to produce theBasic Set as an introductory version of theD&D game. It incorporates game concepts from theoriginal 1974D&D boxed set plusSupplement I: Greyhawk.[2] The rulebook is intended forcharacters oflevels one through three, with rules for adventuring in dungeons, and introduces the main concepts of the game;[2] it explains the game's concepts and method of play in terms that make them accessible to new players ages twelve and older who might not be familiar with the rules and structure of tabletop miniatureswargaming. Although theBasic Set was not fully compatible withAdvanced Dungeons & Dragons, players were expected to continue play beyond third level by moving toAD&D,[2][3] which was released beginning later that year. Holmes preferred a lighter tone with more room for personal improvisation, while Gary Gygax, who wrote theAdvanced books, wanted an expansive game with rulings on any conceivable situation which might come up during play, and so could be used to arbitrate disputes at tournaments.[2]
The firstBasic Set was available as a 48-page standalone rulebook featuring artwork byDavid C. Sutherland III, or as part of aboxed set, which was packaged in a larger, more visually appealing box than the original boxed set, allowing the game to be stocked on retail shelves and targeted at the general public via toy stores.[4] The boxed set included a set of polyhedral dice and supplemental materials.[2] In that same year,Games Workshop (U.K.) published their own version of the rulebook, with a cover byJohn Blanche, and illustrations by Fangorn.[2] The boxed set containedgeomorphs, lists of monsters and treasures, and a polyhedral dice set as supplemental materials.[5]
For a period in 1979, TSR experienced a dice shortage. Basic sets published during this time frame came with two sheets of numbered cutout cardstock chits that functioned in lieu of dice, along with a coupon for ordering dice from TSR.[6] The rulebook also included a brief sample dungeon with a full-page map. Starting with the fourth printing in 1978, the two booklets of maps, encounter tables, and treasure lists were replaced with themodule B1In Search of the Unknown;[2] printings six through eleven (1979–1982) featured the module B2The Keep on the Borderlands instead.[2]
Jon Peterson, forPolygon, highlighted thatDave Arneson sued TSR overBasic Set royalties in 1977 – Arneson was only being paid royalties for theBasic D&D rulebook included in the boxed set and was not paid for the "cover price of the wholeBasic Set".[7] Peterson wrote "as Arneson's lawsuit loomed, TSR made a very pointed substitution to the contents of theBasic Set: they rotated out theDungeon Geomorphs andMonster & Treasure Assortment booklets, replacing them with Mike Carr'sIn Search of the Unknown module. [...] It was a good idea to target a module at beginning dungeon masters — but it also had clear implications for the legal situation. Previously, when Arneson sought a 5% royalty on the whole contents of theBasic Set, he was effectively asking for money that was going into Gygax's pocket. Now, he would instead be asking for money earmarked for his friend Mike Carr".[7] Carr received royalties forIn Search of the Unknown when the module was sold alone and when it was included in theBasic Set. After the September 1979 disappearance ofJames Dallas Egbert III,Dungeons & Dragons received "mainstream notoriety. And with that, sales of theBasic Set rose dramatically. Right before the steam tunnel incident, theBasic Set might have sold 5,000 copies a month. By the end of 1979, it was trading over 30,000 copies per month, and only going up from there".[7] Following Carr's financial success due to his module being included in the boxed set, Gygax changed the module included with theBasic Set toKeep on the Borderlands which was a module he wrote.[7]
After the release of theAD&D game, theBasic Set saw a major revision in 1981 by editorTom Moldvay.[2] The game was not brought in line withAD&D but instead further away from that ruleset, and thus the basicD&D game became a separate and distinct product line fromAD&D. The former was promoted as continuing the tone of originalD&D, whileAD&D was an advancement of the mechanics.[8]
The revised version of the set included a larger, sixty-four page rule book with a red border and a color cover byErol Otus, the adventure B2The Keep on the Borderlands, a set of six polyhedral dice,[2] as well as a marking crayon.[6] The book came drilled with holes so that it could be used in a three-ringed binder, and the full set of off-white polyhedral dice came in a heat-sealed bag with a small wax crayon for coloring the numbers on the dice.[9] The revised rulebook was visually distinct from the previous version: the Holmes booklet had a monochrome pale blue cover, while the Moldvay rulebook had a bright red cover.[10]
With the revision of theBasic Set, distinct rulesets for higher character levels were introduced as expansions to the basic game.[11] Immediately following the Moldvay version of theBasic Set was the accompanying release of anExpert Set which was edited byDave Cook withSteve Marsh that supported character levels four through fourteen, with the intent that players would continue with theExpert Set.[2][12]
Peterson commented that "becauseKeep on the Borderlands would ship with the MoldvayBasic Set, at the height of theD&D boom in 1981, it became one of the most widely known modules inD&D history, selling 750,000 copies a year. It might never have served as the gateway to adventure for so many players if it hadn't been for a certain legal dispute and its consequences".[7]
In 1983, theBasic Set was revised again, this time byFrank Mentzer, and redubbedDungeons & Dragons Set 1: Basic Rules. The set included a sixty-four pagePlayers Manual,[13] a forty-eight pageDungeon Masters Rulebook,[13] six dice,[2] and in sets in which the dice were not painted, a crayon.[6] The 1983 revision was packaged in a distinctive red box, and featured cover art byLarry Elmore.[2] Between 1983 and 1986, the system was revised and expanded by Mentzer as a series of five boxed sets, including theBasic Rules (red cover),Expert Rules (blue),[14]Companion Rules (teal, supporting levels fifteen through twenty-five),[15]Master Rules (black, supporting levels twenty-six through thirty-six),[16] andImmortals Rules (gold, supporting Immortals, characters who had transcended levels).[17] Instead of an adventure module, theBasic Set rulebooks included a solo adventure and an introductory scenario to be run by the Dungeon Master.[2]
The rules for the game were little changed from the Moldvay set, but the presentation was overhauled into a more tutorial form, to make the game easier for younger players to learn.[18]
The10th Anniversary Dungeons & Dragons Collector's Setboxed set, published by TSR in 1984, included the rulebooks from theBasic,Expert, andCompanion sets; modulesAC2,AC3,B1,B2, andM1Blizzard Pass;Player Character Record Sheets; and dice. This set was limited to a thousand copies, and was sold by mail and atGenCon 17.[2]: 147
In 1991, TSR released a new version of theBasic Set, labeledThe New Easy-to-Master Dungeons & Dragons Game and nicknamed the "black box". This version was principally designed byTroy Denning and made few changes to the game. It included support for characters up to fifth level instead of the third-level limit of priorBasic Set versions.[19]
The rules are presented twice, once in a 64-page rule book, and again in theDungeon Card Learning Pack, a set of 48 cards that also includes four-page supplementary mini-adventures. Inspired by theSRA reading program,[19] the front of each card features a discussion of a single facet of the rules, such as non-player characters, hit dice, or initiative rolls. The back of the card describes a brief scenario to illustrate the rules discussed on the front.[20] The set also includes aDungeon Master's Screen which doubles as a folder for the cards, fold-up cardboard pawns, a color map sheet, and dice.[20]
TSR published theDungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia the same year, compiling and revising the rules from theBasic,Expert,Companion, andMaster Rules box sets to allow players to continue beyond the black box.[19]
A final version of the set entitledThe Classic Dungeons & Dragons Game was produced in 1994. Edited by Doug Stewart, it removed the tutorial cards of the "black box", incorporating the material into sidebars within the single 128-pageRules and Adventure Book. The set also included a Dungeon Master's Screen, a set of six plastic miniatures for players, 24 foldable cardboard enemy standees, a poster map, and a set of dice. It was packaged in a tan-sided box.
In the 1980 bookThe Complete Book of Wargames, game designerJon Freeman reviewed the 1977 edition and commented: "Basic Dungeons & Dragons is only a starter set and effectively obsolete a few weeks after you get a campaign going". Having called the originalD&D set "the most illiterate display of poor grammar, misspelling, and typographical errors in all of professional wargaming", Freeman was pleased that this edition had been written "by someone outside the TSR establishment who knew a noun from a verb, and the difference shows". Freeman gave this game an Overall Evaluation of "Very Good", concluding: "It's still preferable to participate in an ongoing campaign, but if you must venture into RPG country without a guide, this is the first place to visit".[21]
Clayton Miner reviewed the 1981 version of theBasic Set forPegasus magazine #1 (1981).[9] Miner commented that "the book is a vast improvement over the earlier version. Better organization and well written rules are the main features of this edition".[9]
Anders Swenson and Douglas Law reviewed theDungeons & Dragons Basic Set andDungeons & Dragons Expert Set forDifferent Worlds magazine and stated that "the newD&D Basic andExpert Sets should be a smooth introduction to the hobby of adventure-game playing for vast numbers of new players and an enjoyable addition to the libraries of experienced players. We recommend this version of the game over the previous editions, especially for beginners, because it is clearer, better organized, and more refined".[22]
Games magazine includedDungeons & Dragons, Basic Set in their "Top 100 Games of 1981", noting that it "is actually a set of books that tell you how to create adventures in a magical fantasy world".[23]
Games magazine includedDungeons & Dragons, Basic Set in their "Top 100 Games of 1982", describing it as "more than a game, it's a cooperative exercise limited only by the players' imaginations. For advanced players there are dozens of excellent supplemental books, adventures, and playing aids".[24]
Doug Cowie reviewed the 1983 version of theBasic Set forImagine magazine and gave it a positive review.[13] According to Cowie, while the rules stay the same, thus allowing those with the older version to continue using their sets, the presentation has changed. He approved of the fact that "at long last",[13] a game company released a product that explains to someone new to role-playing games how to get started. Cowie ended his review by stating that "Basic is a lot closer to the spirit of the original game than is the rambling, unwieldy and sometimes pompous Advanced" and that "for one-off dungeon type games I would recommend Basic to anyone, beginner and veteran alike".[13]
Ken Rolston reviewedDungeons & Dragons: Basic Rules Set 1 forDifferent Worlds magazine and stated that "Is theBasic Rules Set complete? Technically yes - the package contains ample material for many hours of gaming. However, theExpert Rules are really necessary if a regular gaming group develops. Personal observation indicates that young players will go through the set's three character levels in no time at all, and the gamemaster will certainly want access to high er level rules to handle the non-play er character antagonists in his adventures. Nonetheless, this is an excellent introductory package, perfect for youths and casual beginners - good-looking, smooth-reading, right-spirited, and reasonably priced."[25]
In a retrospective review ofDungeons & Dragons Basic Set inBlack Gate, Scott Taylor said: "In the 'box' I had it all, the player's book with the classes, the experience charts, and the equipment. The dungeon master's booklet provided the finer points of the rules, the monsters, and the treasure I'd be able to find after hard-fought battle".[26]
Scott Taylor forBlack Gate in 2014 listed the Mentzer editionBasic D&D Boxed Set byLarry Elmore as #2 in The Top 10 TSR Cover Paintings of All Time.[27]