D&D question

[bookzombie]

Hi all. I'm looking for some advice on the D&D front. Bear with me while I explain!

Having played some D&D for the first time in (gulp) about 25 years with badger2305 after WisCon I've, maybe foolishly, agreed to DM a game back home with pennski and some friends.

However, I've tried playing around with 4th Edition and frankly I'm finding the combat & character skills system too complex for a room full of people none of whom will have played anything later than 1st edition AD&D and several who have pretty much never played RPGs at all.

So I've been searching the internets to try and find some advice on converting 4th edition stats back to 1st edition AD&D and not really getting anywhere (1st edition to 4th, yes, 4th to 1st, not so much)

So I'm wondering if any of my gaming friends here know of any resources that might be useful that I haven't come across? I've got both sets of rulebooks so I could probably work something out for myself but I'm equally happy to find any short-cuts I can!

Comments

[themis1.livejournal.com]

I have a garage full of 2nd edition stuff ...

[bookzombie.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't mind having a look at some of that at some point; it's the only edition I'm completely unfamiliar with.

[themis1.livejournal.com]

You and Pennski really must come to dinner some time!!

[bookzombie.livejournal.com]

Definitely! Maybe sometime in September? August is pretty well booked but after that we're fairly free.

[andrewducker]

Interesting. Our group found 4th edition much easier for people to get their heads round, particularly the less geeky members of the group.

[bookzombie.livejournal.com]

Was your group familiar to RPGs already?

As I say I haven't played for a very long time and I'm just finding the whole additional skills and combat confusing. In the old days it just used to be 'save against' scores for magic and 'to hit against AC'. Now you've got passing attacks, special abilities to remember to use, checks against everything...Maybe I'm just getting old...

[andrewducker]

We had cards for abilities, and it was just a case of picking one from in front of you, saying "I do this", and rolling a die to do whatever it said. Simpler than 3rd edition, can't remember most of 1st edition.

The old way of "attacks are against AC, saves against other things" is replaced with a simpler "attacks are against different defences", which is more unified.

It is more complex for fighters than it used to be - because fighters used to have a terribly dull time of it "I hit it with my sword" was the total of your combat techniques. Having options was something we liked, we just wanted them simpler than 3rd edition :->

[epi-lj.livejournal.com]

Does it have to be D&D, or was that just a stand-in for role playing in general kn the conversation in which you volunteered? There are simpler, similar-feeling games. I've heard that the Dragon Age tabletop RPG is a good gateway for people who have played computer RPGs but not tabletop, for example.