Into the Maze of Peril

summary:

old school D&D literature

Into the Maze of Peril

ETSmith 1213331494|%e %b %Y, %H:%M %Z|agohover

This doesn't directly relate to any of the games currently being run via folks here, but I can't figure out where else to put it.

Some of you may recall me mentioning a novel by J. Eric Holmes, the writer of the original D&D Basic book, based upon his game sessions and entitled "The Maze of Peril". Well, I got a copy and posted some initial info about it on the NerdNYC boards. It should have some interesting insights into how the narrative of the game was actually envisioned back in ye olden days.

Re: Into the Maze of Peril

James_Nostack 1213631926|%e %b %Y, %H:%M %Z|agohover

that's pretty sweet. does it read at all well?

for some reason, I am intensely mistrustful of people who throw "Dr." around all the time when engaging in pop culture entertainment stuff. I'd be curious to know how this guy's career turned out.

Re: Into the Maze of Peril

TavisAllison 1214788777|%e %b %Y, %H:%M %Z|agohover

I really liked reading Maze of Peril! Keep in mind I have a major thing for Zenopus's Tower, the sample dungeon which Holmes wrote for the Blue Box. But that only covers about the first quarter of the book, and is so different that it's hardly a writeup of Holmes' adventures (he ran it for his sons, which as the dad of a 6-year-old I totally dig).

Still, I think it's an enjoyable read - free of pretense, short, and with a number of interesting situations. Holmes also seems to have been an interesting guy - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Eric_Holmes. I guess I prefer people who insist on their Dr. title to people who use pseudonyms to keep their gaming work separate from their professional reputations, although I agree both are dodgy.

I'm also greatly enjoying Quag Keep, which lots of people think is terrible, and I dug the early-80s RPG-turns-real setup of Joel Rosenberg's Guardians of the Flame, so I think I'm inclined to think highly of novels that offer a perspective on how roleplaying used to be.

last edited on 1214789121|%e %b %Y, %H:%M %Z|agohover by TavisAllison + show more