On another forum someone recently asked the question: “I’m one of those old schoolers who hasn’t played since AD&D was still fairly new. What’s the best way to jump back in?” The first recommendation he got was to start playing D&D Encounters, and I chimed in with the recommendation to consider Labyrinth Lord or Swords & Wizardry. All of which got me thinking…
- The game that is currently produced as “Dungeons & Dragons” doesn’t bear that much resemblance to the game I started playing 36 years ago.
- The games that actually do bear a significant resemblance have names that aren’t “Dungeons & Dragons.”
So in the first case we have the label but not the substance, and in the second we have the substance but not the label. Ah, well….
Yes, that is a remarkable contrast.