cyclo pe at ro n.blo gspo t .ca http://cyclo peatro n.blo gspo t.ca/2010/03/gary-gygaxs-whitebo x-o d-ho use-rules.

html

Gary Gygax’s Whitebox OD&D House Rules

At the beginning of our World Oranj Whitebox OD&D game I started picking
through various common house rulings in order to put together my own initial
set of house rules. My personal list is based on rules I use in Classic D&D
games (currently, Labyrinth Lord) and also on rules I've read about but never
tried (see the excellent house rule lists by Philotomy and Delta). During this
exercise I paid special attention to Gary Gygax’s house rules, which I attempt to
compile here. T he topic of Gygax’s OD&D house rules pops up on a regular
basis in game f orums, and some of what I summarize here will be old hat to
many readers. My goal was to sif t through the chit-chat and identif y some of
the specif ic rulings originating f rom Gygax himself . An important caveat is that
Gygax was constantly tinkering with his house rules, meaning that any reported
house rules should not be considered the f inal word.

I f ound two main sets of Gygaxian house rules. T he one that is most f requently
discussed in game f orums appears to originate f rom Robert Fisher, who
compiled the list af ter questioning Gygax about a game run in 2005 (someone please correct me if this citation
is inaccurate). T he rules were:

* Only use the three little books - none of the supplements.

* Ability scores rolled as best 3 out of 4d6. Arrange scores to taste.

* All PCs get 1d6 hp/level. HP rolls are rerolled on a 1.

* Fighters get +1 HP/die. All PCs get +1 HP/die if Con > 14.

* Fighters do +1 damage if Str > 14.

* Dex doesn't af f ect AC. (It does af f ect missile attack "to hit" rolls.)

* PCs start at 3rd level.

* PCs are unconscious at 0 hp. T hey can go as low as level +1 bef ore death. (e.g. a 4th level f ighter can be
brought as low as -5 hp and just be unconscious.) A healing potion or cure spell restores them immediately.

* 1d6 f or surprise. 1=1 round. 2=2 rounds. 3 or more=no surprise.

* PCs must declare actions bef ore initiative. Casters must declare the specif ic spell being cast.

* 1d6 f or initiative. A tie means simultaneous combat.

* A casting caster who loses initiative will lose his spell if hit.

* No training necessary to gain a level.

* To acquire new spells casters must f ind scrolls, spellbooks, or a f riendly higher-level caster.

* Clerics don't need spellbooks. (T he original books can be read to imply that they do.)
 * Gary IDs most magic items immediately (charging large sums of money when they return to town to rest &
recuperate f or this service). (T his is because the players are anxious to get back into the dungeon & don't
want to bother with in-town adventures.) Potions must still be tasted to ID, though. Unusual items require a trip
to the striped mage.

T he second set of rules comes f rom a f orum posting that Gygax himself made in 2007:

* ST R > 14: +1 to hit and +1 to damage if a Fighter

* INT > 14: +1 1st level m-u spell

* WIS > 14: +1 1st level cleric spell

* DEX > 14: +1 to AC, and +1 to move silently

* CON > 14: +1 HP per HD (same as a Fighter class gets, +2 if a Fighter)

* CHA > 14: +1 (positive) on reaction checks

* HPs: Characters are only unconscious at 0 HPs. For each level a character may have a minus HP total equal
to the level, so a 1st level PC is dead at -2, a 2nd level at -3, etc.

* When taking damage allow -1 HP per character level (f rom a GenCon XL report posted by Gygax)

Another quote directly f rom Gygax (ENWorld, September 2006), shows that he maintained the 1st level cleric
spell house rule:

"I run three-booklet OD&D now and again myself , adding some house rules to make 1st level PCs a bit more
viable and allowing Clerics a spell at 1st level if their Wis is 15 or higher."

Gygax's house rules are interesting because most of them make characters stronger: the ability modif iers are
all directly or indirectly positive, it’s harder to die, clerics don’t need books, magic items are instantly identif ied,
no training to level-up, etc. One of the big advantages f or players is the -1HP damage reduction per character
level (!). Overall, Gygax seemed to be f airly liberal in giving out little bonuses to player characters.

T hese bonus-oriented house rules strongly imply that Gygax f elt that by-the-book Level 1 characters in OD&D
were too vulnerable. T he main reason to implement most of Gygax's house rules would be to decrease
mortality and make the characters slightly more powerf ul. A small number of gamers – almost exclusively
experienced retro-role-playing enthusiasts - enjoy high-mortality low-level D&D play because of the special
kind of challenge and excitement it of f ers. I like this kind of gaming myself . In my experience, however, most
casual role-players are bummed out by seemingly random or premature character death. Gygax seemed to be
interested in accommodating this latter group.

Gygax’s house rules are also interesting f rom a game evolution perspective. We can outline character strength
in early D&D thusly:

* Original OD&D: Low baseline, low positive modif iers.

* Gygaxian OD&D: Low baseline, medium positive modif iers.

* Classic D&D: Medium baseline, extreme negative and positive modif iers.
Having played Classic D&D since the early 80s, I now f ind myself increasingly pref erring the Gygaxian OD&D
model because it seems to be the most f un f or my current players, and theref ore f or myself , the DM. It
decreases low-level mortality to a manageable level where there's an exciting tension but players are not so
cautious as to make the game tedious. It f ocuses on “+” modif iers, which are psychologically more f un f or
players (e.g. nobody likes having to take -1 or -2 to their to hit roll every single time). Also it's mechanically
simpler and f aster than Classic D&D because players don’t have to juggle multiple “-“ and “+” modif iers.

In general, I think it’s better to start with a lower baseline and add to it, as opposed to starting with a higher
baseline and being f orced to subtract. T his goes f or many things, including rules complexity itself . It’s just more
f un that way…