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"1st edition feel" is the interpersonal dynamic that comes from a friendly competitive game in an atmosphere of mutual trust… both sides have agreed to 'play fair' and trust the other side to do the same…. A game in which the participants are operating under this sort of 'social contract' will have the "1st edition feel" even if the rules being used are 3rd edition (or GURPS or HARP or whatever else); likewise a game in which the DM abuses his power in order to punish the players, or in which the players are munchkins and rules-lawyers who are constantly arguing the DM's rulings, or for that matter a game in which there is no sense of competition and the DM and players are simply engaging in a collaborative storytelling effort, won't have the "1st edition feel" even if the 1E rules are being used. Regardless of version, there is an element of trust that must exist between gamers in order for the game to work.

No funky races for PC's. Standard PHB races, which is to say, Tolkien races plus gnomes…. Greyhawk/Tolkien meanings of races. Halflings are hobbits, not kender. Gnomes are… not steampunk little tinkers. Archetypal warriors and spellcasters, not blood magus of the yadda-yadda order. No Forgotten Realms stuff. Rangers are not Drizzt, they are Aragorn. Merchants are delivering wine, not magical bunny rabbits. No magical street lamps -- no street lamps at all, since we're talking medieval here, but if there were street lamps, they'd burn oil…. Demons are demons and devils are devils…. No spikey armor. Armor looks like armor. Classic storylines. Meet in the tavern, loot the dungeon, steal the McGuffin, save the kingdom from the lizard men, that sort of things. Not a bunch of kender droppings about the outer planes, clockwork monsters from the ancient wars, or whatever new nonsense them young kids are up to these days.

For me, “first edition feel” is adventures and settings that reflect heroes and exploits like those of Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser, of Conan, of Sinbad. Did I have long elaborate story arcs? No, just enough to get the players from one adventure setting to another in most cases, but there were recurring villains and the adventurers often became involved in local politics (as tends to happen when you’re the richest bad-arses in the land), so the net result was they created their own story arcs by their actions. Did I have pages and pages of cultural notes? No, but the different lands and races were distinct from one another and their economies reflected their geography enough that life in a port town was quite different from life in a desert oasis caravan stop.

"1e feel"… goes back to a time when RPG's were… often "survival of the luckiest"…. 1e AD&D was a case of "Survival of the least stupid." Either you were able to think laterally and use spells creatively to solve the unique challenges posed by the dungeon, or your character died. Equally, clever play should generally be rewarded with success, wealth, experience and so forth. Your players have to have faith in your game master, never obsess about the rules, and have a rip roaring time playing.

It was for the feeling of adventure and danger and the wonder of magic and demons and the rest. I never looked at the map of Oerth and thought, "this isn't logical, the migration patterns should have put people here...", or questioned why the ancient builders of the Tomb we were exploring had so many crazy tunnels. 1e AD&D was an adventure game, not a sociatial and geopolitical simulator with perfectly accurate and logical dungeon construction. It was about fun and adventure, and that does not preclude roleplaying or having a history for a particular place or person.

Adventurers should want to survive to the next day, or at least want to plan tactically. They should be smart enough to run away. Yes, in video games you can reload a saved game, players need to understand that this is pen and paper gaming. Role-playing can mean negotiating or it can simply mean playing your character in a manner that hints of a small sense of self-preservation. Do NOT "clear the level." The video game mentality just does not work. NPCs and higher level intelligent monsters are presumed to be played intelligently. They also run away to slay the PCs another day. It is a game. In order for a game to be fun there has to be some risk based on the rolling of the dice. There is a thrill in knowing the DM has missed with all of his NPCs 2 rounds in a row and is due for a crit or solid hit any time now ... and you only have 8 hp left. Yes, no matter how well prepared you are, bad rolls can doom a party…. PCs are willing to run away and plan thoroughly before returning (meanwhile NPCs are planning as well)… encounters generally demand careful, intelligent, and organized play from a group of characters.

Dungeons are classic settings for heroic swords and sorcery adventuring. Turning your party loose in a dungeon to explore it and cleanse it of evil (and treasure) is a time-honored tradition. Dungeons, however, do not need to be tied to “hack and slash” adventuring. Instead, the best use of a dungeon is as a dramatic setting for storytelling. Rather than have your players simply bash in door after door looking for monsters and loot, design a purpose for the party to delve into the dungeon. Give them a quest or a goal to give them direction and a sense of accomplishment. It keeps their dungeon adventuring focused and keeps the tension high—there is a risk of failing to accomplish their mission. The DM has to send you there for a reason--rescuing a princess, finding a specific artifact or item, killing a specific monster, whatever.

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