Seligman on Holmes Basic

As I've written previously, the earliest reported public availability for Holmes Basic is at Origins 1977, which ran from Friday July 22nd to Sunday, July 24th at Wagner College on Staten Island, NYC. This weekend is the 40th anniversary of this event!

The above information is from a convention report by Bill Seligman (who has a blog here) in the August 1977 issue of the APAzine, The Wild Hunt (via Jon Peterson and Playing at the World).

Lee Gold is now offering pdf copies of early Alarums & Excursions issues (ordering details are here), and in these I found that Bill also included a convention report in issue #25 (8/16/77) as part of his contribution, "I WOULD HAVE MADE A GREAT PLATINUM DRAGON #10". Note that APAzines are compilations of mini-zines made by each contributor. 

As part of this report, Bill had several paragraphs devoted to the new Basic Set. First, he addressed Holmes directly as part his comments made to previous A&E contributors:

Eric Holmes: the new revised D&D is written extremely well, at least. Kudos to you, sir, at least future DMs will not have to struggle with what we had. (numbered page 3 of Seligman's mini-zine, unnumbered page 83 of A&E #25)

Second, his information & thoughts about the new set:

But now, for some even bigger news: THE NEW REVISED AND TRULY PROOFREAD VERSION OF D&D IS OUT!!! Well, not the whole thing, just the basic version, for $10.00, This includes dice, a dungeon geomorph (yuk) and a set of pre-allocated rooms for 1-3 levels (yuk). The whole set is designed for setting up to third level characters and up to the third level of the' dungeon. Further versions of D&D will expand the current one to the Nth level. The next D&D book to be put out will be on monsters — there will be 378 of them. It will be out in October [actually published in Dec - Z]. Future releases will be an advanced D&D playing volume, a Dungeonmasters guide, and a revised Gods, Demi-Gods, and Heroes, each of which will be 8'-1/2 by 11 inches and bound like a paperback.

What I think of Basic D&D-- it is far, far better written than the original. There are a lot, more examples. Including examples of melee, spell use, encumberance, and setting up a dungeon level. Naturally the spell system and combat system is the Gygaxian one — what did you expect? Kask [at Origins] justified this too -- he said that D&D is based on Vancian magic, and that it restricts high-level mages, who would otherwise control the whole game. I wish they had not included the geomorphs and dungeon example, since too many neo-DMs will use them with no individual changes when they first start out. However, if you are starting a D&D campaign, from the 1st level, then get this book. It is available w/o dice, geomorphs, pre-allocations, and box for $5.00, with for $10.00. 

One thing though -- in the monster encounter charts, they list creatures like Leprechauns and Troglodytes which are not listed in the monster descriptions. Kask said that if a person never saw a Lucky Charms commercial or read a fairy tale there was nothing he could do --but normally somebody could work up something for those monsters. I disagree - assuming a true neo, he would not be able to assign the monster any hit points that were reasonable - he would not even really understand what hit points were for. But, Kask said, Leprechauns would be explained in the next book. (numbered page 4 of Seligman's mini-zine, unnumbered page 84 of A&E #25)

1978 review from Gallimaufry #12

Review by Ken Bain, pg 7, Gallimaufry #12, Jan 1978 (click for larger view)

Above is a screenshot of an early review of Holmes Basic from January 1978, about six months after it was first published in the US. The review comes from Gallimaufry #12, a Diplomacy zine out of the UK that ran from 1976-1979, edited by Steve Doubleday. Scans of all of the issues can be found here at the UK Diplomacy Zine Archive. According to Google, "gallimaufry" means a "confused jumble or medley of things". The review is by Ken Bain, with a short response by Doubleday. Being in the UK, the review is most likely of the first UK edition of the Basic Set released in Dec 1977. In this edition, all of the artwork from the US version was replaced; see the foreign editions page for more info.

Cover of the first UK edition of the Holmes Basic Set, art by John Blanche. Source: Acaeum

A photo from Games Day III (17 December 1977) in White Dwarf #5 (Feb/March '78), pg 15, confirms that the UK version of the Basic Set was available in Dec 1977:

The original caption reads: "Dubious characters handling dubious material! From left to right, Bill Howard, Tony Ball, Don Turnbull and Rob Thomasson". However, Turnbull is actually the one wearing the plaid tie.

I've taken the liberty of transcribing the Gallimaufry review here:

Ken Bain's review:

"This is the revised package of Dungeons and Dragons rules produced by TSR Games and for beginners constitutes a much better explanation of what the game's about and how to run expeditions than the original.

The original rulebooks seem to have been taken by the editor of this package (one Eric Holmes) and sorted out so that the single large-format rulebook that comes with the boxed set are parts of the original basic three volumed rulebooks and also some of the more useful parts of some of the supplements. E.g. theives are given as a character class. Many of the matrix tables have been much simplified and hence easier to use, involving less throwing of dice though decreasing variety in such things as wandering monsters. A possible disadvantage is the restriction to levels 1-3 - anything beyond being dealt with in "Advanced Dungeons & Dragons", which I've not seen yet. But for beginners I feel this not of great importance, as there's enough to keep one occupied for some time getting to grips with the first three levels. I've not got beyond the first level in Steve's dungeon yet....."

Ken wasn't a fan of the "low impact" dice. Source: Flickr

The rest of the package consists of a set of rather poorly-made polyhedra dice, a set of Dungeon geomorphs for when you don't feel like mapping a Dungeon from scratch, or if you want a change, and a set of things called "Monster and Treasure assortment". The purpose of this is to assist in dungeon construction and it can be used as an aid in getting expeditions going in partially-made dungeons. Basically it is a list of monsters and accompanying treasure, to be used in populating as yet empty rooms if a party stratys into an incomplete section of the dungeon. I've not tested this yet, but it looks fairly easy, is divided into levels. Monsters and treasure are determined on the throw of percentile dice. This is no more difficult than having to check for Wandering Monsters.

Overall, I found it a much more cohesive presentation of the basic rules than the original three-booklet affair (not to mention the four supplements) that enables one to start playing much more quickly and with more confidence. The presentation is much improved, especially by describing things such as monsters in alphabetical order and having a set descriptive format. I can't say how well it acts as a basis for the later booklets in the revised system as I have yet to buy the next one. As an introduction to D&D I'd give 9/10; the only reservation being the geomorphs, which are not explained and printed in light blue on a white background - not providing much contrast. Still, nobody's perfect -- not even TSR games."

Steve Doubleday's comments:

"Thanks for that review, Ken. I must say that I found it easier to find my way round this introductory booklet than than the original three-booklet set. I don't quite endorse what Ken says about running a Dungeon on the basis of this new set. I found the spell listing in particular rather limited. When I find or seed treasure in a dungeon, I like there to be a possibility of some high level spell-scrolls around the place. I didn't like the large format..its seems to me that TSR have traded the disadvantage of having to change from one booklet to another for an unwieldy 10 x 8 booklet that must get dog-eared beyond redemption pretty quickly. However, these quibbles ... apart, I thought that it was an excellent introduction, especially for someone who would not have access to regular sessions of D&D. I believe it costs around £7.00 - £7.50, and it should be available from most decent London Games Shops. If you want to know one which is fairly central and not far from a tube station, try Games Centre...in Hanway Street close by Tottenham Court Road station."

A contemporary Games Centre ad from White Dwarf #4 (Dec/Jan 77/78)

The first advertisements including the UK Basic Set appear in White Dwarf #5. Here's a portion of the Games Workshop ad from that issue showing "Dungeons & Dragons (revised edition inc. Poly Dic, M& Ass. and Geo. 1" for £7.50: 

1980 Review from Complete Book of Wargames

Jeffrey Fleming (http://transuranic-design.blogspot.com) has kindly provided me with a transcription of a 1980 review of the Holmes Basic Set:

The Complete Book of Wargames, by the Editors of Consumer Guide with Jon Freeman, published by Simon & Schuster, 1980 (excerpt)

Dungeons & Dragons, Basic Set (1977)

PUBLISHER: TSR Games, Inc.

SUGGESTED RETAIL PRICE: $9.95 (boxed)

SUBJECT: Fantasy role-playing rules are provided for an initial campaign.

PLAYING TIME: This is discretionary; typically, four to six hours.

KEY FEATURES: With the addition of a few new spells, this is straight Dungeons & Dragons— but only part of it. Essentially, this is a condensation and reorganization of material from the first three rule books plus the supplements that directly pertain to starting a Dungeons & Dragons campaign. Only things appropriate to the first three character levels are included, so all the charts and tables are truncated. Also, included are a set of play aids useful for the beginner: polyhedral dice, a monster and treasure list for random encounters, and a set of “dungeon geomorphs”—uncoded modular sections that can be arranged in different ways to construct a dungeon setting quickly.

COMMENTS: Basic Dungeons & Dragons is only a starter set and effectively obsolete a few weeks after you get a campaign going. It was written (“edited,” if you prefer) by someone outside the TSR establishment who knew a noun from a verb, and the difference shows. It’s still a long jump short of perfection, but you can read this and generally understand what’s going on. The playing aids are useful, if only as examples. It’s still preferable to participate in an ongoing campaign, but if you must venture into RPG country without a guide, this is the first place to visit.

EVALUATION:

            Presentation—Very Good

            Rules—Good

            Playability—Good

            Realism—Fair

            Complexity—6

OVERALL EVALUATION: Good but incomplete.

I've added a new section to the website that will cover contemporary reviews.

A few thoughts:
This is a review of one of the earlier printings of the Basic Set. The Geomorphs and M&TA were gone by the second edition of Nov 1978, so this review was a bit out of date by the time book was published. By 1980, the Basic Set was already on to its second module (B2). 

The recognition of Holmes' editing skills is nice, though a bit harsh on the grammar of the LBBs, which I don't think are as poorly written as commonly perceived. Holmes, after all, in many places uses language directly from the LBBs.