tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2170237526012357403.post152457540522240271..comments2024-03-15T11:16:44.045-04:00Comments on Delta's D&D Hotspot: Gygax on ConanDeltahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00705402326320853684noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2170237526012357403.post-6340559674322261912017-06-03T23:01:10.097-04:002017-06-03T23:01:10.097-04:00That's a good point.That's a good point.Deltahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00705402326320853684noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2170237526012357403.post-14645757305921126682017-02-13T17:12:21.084-05:002017-02-13T17:12:21.084-05:00I would have to go through the stories one by one ...I would have to go through the stories one by one to confirm this, but at least in the original REH stories, Conan usually runs away wildly from monsters, only fighting them as a last resort, if at all. He flat-out runs away in 'The God in the Bowl' and 'A Witch Shall be Born', and I believe he collapses a stone wall on the Iron Golem in one story. I'm sure Robert Jordan had him mowing through monsters in his books. javaapp@gmail.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11705405327567936243noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2170237526012357403.post-69608427565031144572016-04-24T18:24:25.308-04:002016-04-24T18:24:25.308-04:00Nice. :-) Reminds me of Frank Miller's motivat...Nice. :-) Reminds me of Frank Miller's motivation for "Dark Knight Returns" to maintain Batman as older than himself. Deltahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00705402326320853684noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2170237526012357403.post-60035890908606733272016-04-24T16:17:57.823-04:002016-04-24T16:17:57.823-04:00Not sure why Conan has to be proficient with every...Not sure why Conan has to be proficient with every weapon he uses in the books. Part of why a high-level Fighter is so powerful is that he can pick up anything and be able to hit most people with it - of course, the most difficult-to-hit ones he will draw his primary weapon for. <br /><br />It'd also be interesting to see a combat simulator match between the various monsters Conan fights vs. various Conans, to see (based on the combat outcome in the books) about what level Conan would have been at the time - and whether the single-class Thief assumption could actually work. <br /><br />I also wonder whether the fact Gygax was 42 at the time of writing affected his treatment of Conan's physicality in his 40s being on par with 25. A little defiance?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2170237526012357403.post-39279761414422935112015-10-22T13:23:49.592-04:002015-10-22T13:23:49.592-04:00I think that he may have done this write up for fu...I think that he may have done this write up for fun.lobocastlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16984912823297100482noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2170237526012357403.post-955141406677524122010-06-17T02:52:04.818-04:002010-06-17T02:52:04.818-04:00Its interesting to note that even Gary Gygax fell ...Its interesting to note that even Gary Gygax fell into level bloat at times. <br /><br />Otherwise I really can't disagree with Matthew on the the issue, Conan is a 10th or so level thief with a high STR and CON <br /><br />If multi-classing is allowed for humans ala the Lankhmar Supplements I am OK with something like a 10/10 fighter --thief too.<br /><br />Rules breaking messes like this and Gord however, well -- just yuck.5stonegameshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10694550968360550229noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2170237526012357403.post-41083821311520916282010-06-09T04:23:00.281-04:002010-06-09T04:23:00.281-04:00I agree that stuff like the UA Barbarian class was...I agree that stuff like the UA Barbarian class was a wrong move. I do think it's interesting to see the origins of that class here: as an attempt to encyclopediacally document everything Conan ever did.Deltahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00705402326320853684noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2170237526012357403.post-54247553380923523122010-06-07T19:10:03.726-04:002010-06-07T19:10:03.726-04:00I have a lot of respect and love for Gygax. This ...I have a lot of respect and love for Gygax. This sort of stuff though. Let;s say it was counter-productive.Matthew Slepinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04056247825064943944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2170237526012357403.post-51720680450481376172010-06-05T04:07:17.649-04:002010-06-05T04:07:17.649-04:00There's a point there in that Gygax, in his so...There's a point there in that Gygax, in his solo-AD&D phase, was prone to creating a lot of not-so-playable cruft like the random bonuses, psionics, skills, etc. seen here. <br /><br />However, I think that there's a quality kernel of classes, levels, and abilities shown here in the table. Every time Conan is mentioned by name in D&D (in <i>Chainmail</i>, <i>Gods Demigods & Heroes</i>, and Dragon #36), there's agreement that he's primarily a high-level fighter, and a thief secondarily.<br /><br />You'll probably appreciate the weirdness of Gygax's priorities at the time from this standout quote from the article:<br /><br />"Please let me know if you detect any <i>glaring</i> errors—and notice I emphasize the word <i>glaring</i>; I don’t particularly care if you rate him as a 14th-level Thief or a 22nd-level Fighter, for there is no profit in quibbling over this sort of detail. For example, if Conan used a sling with skill in a story, and I have, in fact, omitted this weapon from the list of those he uses with proficiency, that is a <i>glaring</i> error!"Deltahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00705402326320853684noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2170237526012357403.post-90744341153183197782010-06-04T21:31:59.497-04:002010-06-04T21:31:59.497-04:00@Matthew - I think the same sort of attention to d...@Matthew - I think the same sort of attention to detail (one might say obsessiveness) that gave us long lists of polearm types and prostitute encounter tables will lead inexorably to articles like this.Treyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04647628467658839351noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2170237526012357403.post-23996293521851842662010-06-04T18:29:14.687-04:002010-06-04T18:29:14.687-04:00I can't figure out why Gygax would want to pre...I can't figure out why Gygax would want to present characters like this. The effect of reading that article (and others like it) was "Gee, D&D really isn't very good at this sort of thing." They basically go out of their way to show how the rules fail to accommodate the character (or, his very inflated version of the character IMO).<br /><br />It took me decades to be able to say, "Hey, you can basically do Conan as 10th level thief and call it good."Matthew Slepinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04056247825064943944noreply@blogger.com