Confessions of a Wee Tim'rous Bushi

We're currently making some rules changes relating to spell acquisition and magical research in our Old-School Essentials and AD&D games. The most notable of these changes would allow spellcasters to switch spells during play.  According to the Dungeon Masters Guide for 1st-edition AD&D, it takes 15 minutes per spell level to memorize each spell at the beginning of the day. I intend to use this time requirement to allow players to switch spells that have not been cast . This means that spellcasters faced with a problem during an adventure can hit their spell books or meditate in order to prepare the right spell for the job. It is my belief that, without this, many limited-utility spells simply will not be memorized or come into play, and that players are less likely to come up with interesting magical solutions to their immediate problems.  I feel this doesn't undermine the "feel" of Vancian magic, nor does it provide unlimited access to magic. After all, once

Anyone who is familiar with the 1st edition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons will know that there is much more to the combat round than first meets the eye.  Those coming to AD&D from original or basic versions of the game won't easily grock the game's combat, nor will those coming from later editions. This is largely, but not solely, due to the disordered presentation of the rules. I don't intend to get into the minutiae of AD&D combat here, but if you're interested, a comprehensive reordering of the rules (with references) can be found at: https://idiscepolidellamanticora.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/addict.pdf In this post, I'd like to take a look at the simple d6 initiative mechanic with reference to OSRIC (which in my opinion is a remarkable revision/reiteration of the 1st edition rules (and too often unfairly maligned)). Most older editions of, or variations on, D&D simply require each side to roll a d6 to determine the order of initiative, with t

 Here's the latest episode from my podcast as I wrap up "season 3". https://anchor.fm/menion/episodes/The-Road-Goes-Ever-On-e1ek52t

I started podcasting as "Confessions of a Wee Tim'rous Bushi" about two years ago, and haven't really felt the need for a blog - at least, not until now.  As we enter spring 2022, I feel it will be necessary to write down some of my ideas to support the podcast, as well as more concrete explanations and examples of some of the ideas I gloss over verbally. This - an announcement of intent - is the first such blog post.