M.A.R. Barker 1929-2012 (RIP)

M.A.R. Barker, author of the the Empire of the Petal Throne novels and games set in Tekumel passed away this morning in his home.

Minneapolis, Minnesota, March 16, 2012: Professor Muhammad Abd-al-Rahman (MAR) Barker, known to his friends as “Phil,” died peacefully in home hospice on March 16, 2012 with his wife Ambereen Barker at his side.

A Fulbright Scholar (1951) of vast accomplishment, Professor Barker is probably best known for his creation of the world of Tékumel which he developed for over 70 years and which has been compared to Tolkein’s ‘Middle Earth’ in its scope, sophistication, and complexity. Barker was a Professor of Urdu and South Asian Studies at the University of Minnesota during the period when Dave Arneson and Gary Gygax were developing Tactical Studies Rules’ (TSR) first role-playing games in the Twin Cities and Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. In 1975 Barker’s game “Empire of the Petal Throne” was the first role playing game published by TSR, Inc following the release of “Dungeons and Dragons.”

Role playing games set in Tékumel, have been published every decade since the 1970’s, including the 1983 ‘Swords and Glory,’ 1994’s ‘Gardásiyal,’ and 2005’s ‘Tékumel: Empire of the Petal Throne.’ Beginning with “Man of Gold” in 1985 Barker published five novels, several game supplements, and a number of short stories set in Tékumel. In 2008 Barker established the Tékumel Foundation as his literary executor to protect and promote his intellectual property.

Born in 1929, Barker graduated Magna cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Washington with a BA in Linguistics in 1951. He traveled on Fulbright Scholarship to India where he studied the Koraku, Korwa, Uraon and Jaunsauri languages of rural India and the Himalayas, and while on this trip converted to Islam. Upon his return to the United States, Barker was elected to the California chapter of the Sigma Xi Society for the promotion of research in science.

In 1959 he completed his Ph.D. by publishing the grammar and dictionary of the Klamath Indians of southwestern Oregon, which was used as reference material for Native American languages by the producers of the ‘Northern Exposure’ TV series during the 1990’s.

He traveled again to Pakistan in 1959 on a Ford Foundation grant where he studied the Urdu, Punjabi, Pashto, Baluchi, and Brahui languages. In 1961 he published an anthology of Urdu poetry. From 1961 until 1969 Professor Barker taught Arabic, Urdu-Hindi and linguistics at McGill University in Canada, and in 1970 spent a year sabbatical in Lucknow and Hyderabad where he worked on an advanced reader of classical Urdu poetry.

In 1972 the Barkers moved to Minneapolis, where Professor Barker chaired the Department of South and Southeast Asian Studies. He continued to teach at the University of Minnesota until his retirement in 1992.

In addition to Tékumel, Professor Barker was an avid student of Meso-American cultures including the Inca, Maya, and Aztec peoples. His creation of Tékumel includes elements of Central American and southeast Asian cultures, including religious pantheons, ornate pyramidal temples, and elaborate costuming.

Professor Barker is survived by his wife of 53 years, Ambereen. Details on memorial services will follow. In lieu of flowers, memorials to the Tékumel Foundation are preferred, visit http://www.tekumelfoundation.org.

Greyhawk City 3D

I ran across these over on cghub. They were having a design contest, and I just felt I had to share these images by AaronRogers

 

  

 

 

Prominent Geographical Features of Greyhawk - Rivers

Artonsamay River: This is one of the longest rivers on the continent. It is navigable from Redspan Town in Tenh all the way to Nyr Dyv.

Att River: A tributary of the Velverdyva, which is navigable to small craft well beyond Littleberg.

Blackwater: A tributary of the Dulsi.

Blashikmund River: A tributary of the Tuflik, which forms the current border between Ekbir and Tusmit.

Cold Run: A tributary of the Artonsamay, which flows south to join that river west of the town of Rookroost.

Crystal River: A tributary of the Veng.

Davish River: A very cold and rapidly running tributary of the Javan.

Deepstil River: A tributary of the Dulsi, which flows eastward through the Vesve Forest.

Dulsi River: A broad and deep inlet of Whyestil Lake, navigable to the fork of the Blackwater.

Duntide: A river rising in the Flinty Hills, which flows southward into the Gnatmarsh where it joins the Nesser.

Ery River: A tributary of the Selintan, which flows south of Greyhawk City.

Fals River: A tributary of the Velverdyva, which marks the northern boundary of Veluna.

Flanmi River: The greatest water in eastern Flanaess, its basin drains nearly all of the Great Kingdom, and most of the river and its tributaries are navigable by ship all the way to Rauxes, and by barge beyond.

Fler River: The principal inlet to Lake Quag, flowing from the Burneal Forest and the Land of Black Ice beyond. It is supposed that much of this river is passable to large craft.

Franz River: A tributary of the Nesser, which is navigable to Trigol. It forms the boundary between Nyrond and the County of Urnst.

Frozen River: A swift flow running mainly north from the Griff Mountains through the lands of Stonefist to empty into White Fanged Bay.

Grayflood: A tributary of the Thelly, which now marks the extent of land, claimed by the Iron League (Sunndi).

Harp River: One of the longest rivers of the continent, the Harp’s headwaters are in the Rakers, and its mouth is near Chathold in Almor where it empties into Relmor hay. It is navigable for about half its length.

Hool River: A tributary of the Javan, broad and with swampy banks.

Imeda River: A tributary of the Flanmi, which joins the latter at Rauxes.

Javan River: This river is the longest on the continent, beginning high in the Barriers and coursing southward for hundreds of miles before turning east and emptying into the Azure Sea above Monmurg in the Hold of the Sea Princes. It is usable by large vessels only to the town of Cryllor in the Good Hills of Keoland.

Jewel River: A river which rises just south of the Kron Hills and flows south through the Gnarley Forest, Welkwood, and Suss Forest to empty into the Azure Sea. It divides the Principality of Ulek from the Pomarj. About 150 miles of the waterway are navigable by large craft.

Kewl River: A tributary of the Sheldomar, which divides the Duchy from the County of Ulek.

Lort River: A tributary of the Sheldomar, which divides Gran March from Ulek Duchy.

Mikar River: A tributary of the Flanmi, which rises in the Lone Heath and flows through Grandwood Forest.

Nesser River: A long and exceptionally broad and deep artery, which drains Nyr Dyv. Despite many islands and numerous channels, the Nesser is so wide (over three miles on the average) that seagoing vessels can sail up or down its entire length if properly piloted. It forms the boundary between Nyrond and the Duchy of Urnst.

Neen River: A tributary of the Selintan River, which is broad but shallow.

Old River: A tributary of the Sheldomar, which bounds County Ulek from the Principality.

Opicm River: The eastern inlet of Whyestil Lake, which also rises in the Cold Marshes. It forms the boundary of the lands of Iuz.

Realstream River: A tributary of the Javan, which flows through the Dim Forest to join the latter waterway just below the town of Hochoch.

Ritensa River: A tributary of the Veng, which divides the Shield Lands and the Bandit Kingdoms from the territory of the Horned Society.

Selintan River: A relatively broad and deep channeled outlet of the western Nyr Dyv, it flows past Free City of Greyhawk into Woolly Bay, and is plied by considerable traffic.

Sheldomar River: A river, which divides Keoland from the Ulek States and is navigable from its mouth to the city of Niole Dra.

Teesar Torrent: An exceedingly swift river which rises in the North Province of the Great Kingdom and feeds the Harp below the Blemu Hills.

Thelly River: A tributary of the Flanmi navigable to the town of Nulbish.

Trask River: The Trask flows eastward through the North Province of the Great Kingdom to empty into the Solnor Ocean. The Town of Atirr at its mouth is a busy seaport.

Tuflik River: This is a long, westward-flowing river which has its headwaters in the northern end of the Barrier Peaks and divides Ket and Tusmit from the Plains of the Paynims. It is also the boundary between Ekbir and Zeif. The Tuflik empties into the Dramidj Ocean.

Velverdyva River: This river might be the second longest on the continent. There is debate whether the lower Fler should be called the Velverdyva. The river is the boundary between Veluna and Furyondy. It is open to large vessels to a point north of the Veluna City area, while barges can travel all the waters Thornward in Bissel (Fals River) or to Lake Quag (with some difficulty).

Veng River: This waterway is the outlet of Whyestil Lake and an inlet of Nyr Dyv. It is navigable along its entire length, being both deep and broad. The river forms the boundary between the Horned Society and the lands of Furyondy and is strongly patrolled by river craft, cavalry, and infantry.

Yol River: The Yol is a tributary of the Artonsamay, which rises in the Troll Fens and divides the Phostwood from the Nutherwood, forming the border between Tenh and the Pale. It is plied by barges from Wintershiven and those journeying to that city.

Zumker River: The Zumker is a tributary of the Artonsamay whose headwaters are reputed to be a large mountain lake in the Griffs. It forms a border between Tenh and the lands of the Bandit Kingdoms.

Prominent Geographical Features of Greyhawk - Mountain Ranges

CORUSK MOUNTAINS

 

The Corusks form a bow, the backbone of the Thillonrian Peninsula, which runs from the Solnor Ocean in the east, north and west and then southwest where the range terminates (Hraak Pass). While the lower parts of the mountains are inhabited by humans, various bands of evil humanoids and monsters of all sorts dwell in the central fastness. It is thought that this range possesses little in the way of valuable ores or gems.

 

CRYSTALMIST MOUNTAINS

The Crystalmist range is the highest on the Flanaess. It begins where the Ulsprue and the Barrier Peaks join and runs southeast to the Hellfurnaces. Beyond these mountains to the west is the Dry Steppes area, while several small states nestle against its eastern slopes where arms are thrust northward and eastward. Amidst the high peaks and weird valleys of the Crystalmists dwell many and varied monsters, tribes of humanoids, and many giants, ogres, and the like. Despite this fact, men often enter the range in search of precious metals and gems, for exceptionally bold and sturdy mountain dwarves also reside amidst these mountains. A great glacier in the middle of the range gives rise to the Davish River (which flows through Stench to join the Javan).

 

GRIFF MOUNTAINS

As the name implies, the peaks of these mountains are the habitat of many monstrous creatures. The Griff range extends from the western terminus of the Corusks at Hraak Pass, southwest and west for over 100 leagues. These mountains divide the Hold of Stonefist from the Duchy of Tenh and the Theocracy of the Pale below. Being only a trifle lower than the Corusks, the Griff Mountains are similarly uninviting to human settlement, although there are some sprinkled here and there, for these mountains do contain valuable mineral deposits. There is supposedly a small and beautiful land in the heart of this range. Ruled by a powerful prince, and protected from all invasions by magic and might, this tiny realm is said to have buildings roofed in copper and silver, gold used as lead is elsewhere, and jewels lying about on the ground.

 

HELLFURNACES

The Hellfurnaces range is part of the Crystalmist Mountain range, but it is active volcanically in many places, and thus its different name. As with the northern part of the chain, the Hellfurnaces are a hive of evil, being populated with all sorts of monsters, particularly those, which enjoy warmer temperatures, such as Fire Giants. There are reported to be whole labyrinths of passages under this range of mountains, these underworld highways actually going for scores, possibly hundreds, of miles in all directions.

 

YATIL MOUNTAINS

These mountains are clustered thickly for many leagues west and south of Lake Quag. They, along with the Barrier Peaks, divide the Baklunish portion of the continent from the rest – save in the north where western nomads have pushed across the top and beyond. These mountains form the boundaries of Ekbir, Tusmit, and Ket to the west. In and along their eastern slopes are found the Concatenated Cantons of Perrenland and the territory of the Olvenfolk (Highfolk). There are numerous humanoids and monsters dwelling within this range of mountains, but there also are some hardy demi-humans and mountaineers. The Yatils are quite rich in ore deposits and gems, although it is difficult to locate and mine such deposits.

 

MINOR MOUNTAIN RANGES

Barrier Peaks: This range stretches from the southwestern edge of Bramblewood Forest to the Crystal-mists. Its terminus of northern hills is so rugged and steep as to be regarded as basically part of the mountain chain. The Valley of the Mage is hidden within the central Barriers, and their southwestern end forms the western boundary of the Grand Duchy of Geoff. These mountains are infamous for their strange inhabitants. Of course, there are some dwarves dwelling in hidden places within the Barrier range, for they have many precious minerals and gems.

Clatspur Range: This small group of mountains below the Sepia Highlands borders the Vesve Forest on the west and funnels the southern portion of Lake Quag. These peaks have some valuable minerals, and Perrenlanders dwell in small villages in the lower ranges and valleys. There are few demi-humans found in the Clatspurs proper.

Drachensgrab (Mountains): The small Drachensgrab mounts are highlighted by several towering peaks, which thrust up from their center. The whole area is known to be filled with prized metals and fine quality gemstones, but many strange creatures of hostile nature live amidst the hills and mountains of the Drachensgrab. Additionally, it is speculated that some terrible curse is upon the area, and legends relate that some powerful being or beings will arise in anger if their resting-place is ever disturbed. The mountains are now the major stronghold of humanoid invaders holding the whole Pomarj area. These include ores, hobgoblins, bugbears, and numbers of ogres and ogre magi.
Glorioles: This is another lesser mountain range, which is found at the northwestern end of the Hestmark Highlands. The Rieuwood lies to the west of the Glorioles, and the Grayflood and Thelly Rivers above. The peaks and valleys of this range are the homeland of perhaps 10,000 or more mountain dwarves. These dwarves, despite an antipathy for elvenkind, have of late aided in the warfare being conducted by the Iron League against the invading forces of the Great Kingdom.

Jotens: The largest arm, or spur, of the Crystalmists is known as the Jotens, both because these mountains are very high and imposing, and also because they are the dwelling place of numerous hill giants and not a few stone and cloud giants as well. In all other respects this range is similar to the Crystalmists (q.v.).

Lortmil Mountains: This low chain of mountains, often fading into hills with age, contains several very imposing mounts nonetheless. It is the homeland of many sorts of demi-humans – dwarves, gnomes, mountain dwarves, and a few venturesome halflings, as well as scattered aarokocra tribes. These folk have acted in concert in the past to expel most of the humanoids and many of the vicious monsters from the Lortmils, and they are subjects of the small states, which have formed in the shelter of the range such as the Ulek realms and Celene (qq.v.). The Lortmil Mountain range contains some of the richest gem and precious metal deposits known, and the dwarves, gnomes, and halflings living in the region are reputedly as wealthy as princes.

Rakers, the: A southern arm of the Griff Mountains which runs downward into the central part of eastern Flanaess is known as the Rakers, as the tall, sharp peaks seemingly rake the skies. Their terminus, the Flinty Hills, is discussed elsewhere (see Hills and Highlands). Although infested with humanoids and fearsome creatures, these mountains also provide a home for a number of groups of dwarves and mountain dwarves. It is not known how much valuable ore is contained within these peaks.

Sulhaut Mountains: This range runs westward the place where the Crystalmists and Hellfurnaces meet. It separates the Dry Steppes from the ghastly Sea of Dust (q.v.). It can only be supposed what can be found in these mountains, for no certain information is available to us. Reports of Drow are not uncommon. A tortuous pass supposedly exists, enabling passage from the Dry Steppes into the Sea of Dust or eastward into the kindlier lands of the Flanaess.
Ulsprue: The lesser peaks of the Crystalmists, thrust northwest and north into the Plains of the Paynims, are known to the Baklunish as the Ulsprue, possibly for the people who dwell in the cup which these mountains and the Barrier Peaks form on the plains. No certain information regarding other aspects of this range is available.

Prominent Geographical Features of Greyhawk - Marshes and Swamps

COLD MARSHES

 

The vast stretches of fens and bogs north of the Howling Hills separate Blackmoor from the lands of the Wolf Nomads and the Rovers of the Barrens. Here rise the Dulsi and Opicm Rivers, both of which feed the great Whyestil Lake. There are said to be riches in the highlands to the south of the marsh, but only the very brave or extremely foolish venture near the place, for the Cold Marshes are most renowned for the vile creatures which inhabit their mires.

 

VAST SWAMP

The vee of land, which narrows to, but 30 leagues in breadth above the neck of the Tilvanot Peninsula is sunken in the center and cliffed along both coasts. This cupping causes water to form into standing pools and sluggish streams and flowages. The resulting morass of water and vegetation is known as the Vast Swamp. The upper swamps begin below the middle of the Hollow and Hestmark Highlands, which flank it to west and east. The swamp runs southward for well in excess of 200 miles, being over 150 miles across at the top and funneling down to only 30 miles breadth at the base where Spine Ridge rises. The movement of water in the Vast Swamp indicates that it gradually drains southward, hut there is no known river rising from the end, so it is thought that there are underground channels through which the waters run.
Certain desperate outlaws dwell within the Vast Swamp, and there are also native humans and humanoid tribes, bullywugs in particular, found within its bounds. Ferocious predators and loathsome monsters likewise consider this their domain. The men of Sunndi, and the folk dwelling in the hills to either hand, keep constant watch to assure that these denizens of the Vast Swamp do not roam beyond its edges. There are many tales and legends concerning this area, but the most likely is that of the lost burial place of the demi-lich, Acererak, who once ruled the morass and beyond into the cockscomb of Tilvanot.

 

LESSER MARSHES AND SWAMPS

Gnatmarsh: This comprises an extensive area of very treacherous wetlands which stretch along the east hank of the Nesser River from the Celadon Forest to below the joining of the Duntide. These bogs are home to many ghastly creatures and spawn myriad millions of biting insects during the summer months.

Hool Marshes: After the initial rush of the Hool River from the high lake and freshets in the Hellfurnaces, it begins to meander across the plains, and most of its length is surrounded by quaking mires and bottomless pools. This forms a natural boundary between the lands of the Yeomanry and the holdings of the Sea Princes to the south. These marshes are also home to renegade humans, humanoids, and many types of monsters.

Lone Heath: This great marsh gives rise to Mikar River east of the mighty Grandwood Forest. The area provides sanctuary to outlaw humans and demi-humans fighting the evil and oppression of the Over-king and his minions. Unlike most areas of this sort, evil things fear to enter the trackless Lone Heath.
Pelisso Swamps: These unhealthy stretches along the north coast of Hepmonaland are unexplored and who or what dwells there is unknown.
Rushmoor (Marshes): A long stretch of land east of the mid-Javan to the headwaters of the Sheldomar is known as the Rushmoors. This area forms part of the northern boundary of Keoland and is a part of the unclaimed region consisting of the central Dim Forest, eastern Oytwood, and the Rushmoors. Many dangerous creatures inhabit the marshes, and there are reports of humanoid bands there as well.

Troll Fens: The chill mists of the Troll Fens, located against the shoulders of the Griff Mountains and the Rakers at the head of the Yol River, cloak a place of unnameable horrors. The Pale carefully hedges the place with watchtowers and keeps, and strong patrols constantly ride the verges of the southern end of the Troll Fens to watch for unwelcome visits from the monsters and humanoid bands dwelling within. As its name implies, the fens are infested with particularly huge and vicious trolls in numbers.

Combat as Sport vs. Combat as War

A very thought provoking article over on EN World by Daztur. It explained in greater detail some of the philosophical difference in playing styles of the older editions more explicitly than I might have. The following text is lifted straight from that article.

[begin article]
[Very Long] Combat as Sport vs. Combat as War: a Key Difference in D&D Play Styles...

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…and how to reconcile them in 5ed.

On another forum I’ve been running in circles with fans of other editions about different D&D play styles and how different editions support them, but I think I’ve finally nailed a key difference that sheds an enormous amount of light about so many disagreements about 5ed development.

Without quite realizing it, people are having the exact same debate that constantly flares up on MMORPG blogs about PvP: should combat resemble sport (as in World of Tanks PvP or arena combat in any game) or should it resemble war (as in Eve PvP or open world combat in any game).

People who want Combat as Sport want fun fights between two (at least roughly) evenly matched sides. They hate “ganking” in which one side has such an enormous advantage (because of superior numbers, levels, strategic surprise, etc.) that the fight itself is a fait accompli. They value combat tactics that could be used to overcome the enemy and fair rules adhered to by both sides rather than looking for loopholes in the rules. Terrain and the specific situation should provide spice to the combat but never turn it into a turkey shoot. They tend to prefer arena combat in which there would be a pre-set fight with (roughly) equal sides and in which no greater strategic issues impinge on the fight or unbalance it.

The other side of the debate is the Combat as War side. They like Eve-style combat in which in a lot of fights, you know who was going to win before the fight even starts and a lot of the fun comes in from using strategy and logistics to ensure that the playing field is heavily unbalanced in your favor. The greatest coup for these players isn’t to win a fair fight but to make sure that the fight never happens (the classic example would be inserting a spy or turning a traitor within the enemy’s administration and crippling their infrastructure so they can’t field a fleet) or is a complete turkey shoot. The Combat as Sport side hates this sort of thing with a passion since the actual fights are often one-sided massacres or stand-offs that take hours.

I think that these same differences hold true in D&D, let me give you an example of a specific situation to illustrate the differences: the PCs want to kill some giant bees and take their honey because magic bee honey is worth a lot of money. Different groups approach the problem in different ways.

Combat as Sport: the PCs approach the bees and engage them in combat using the terrain to their advantage, using their abilities intelligently and having good teamwork. The fighter chooses the right position to be able to cleave into the bees while staying outside the radius of the wizard’s area effect spell, the cleric keeps the wizard from going down to bee venom and the rogue sneaks up and kills the bee queen. These good tactics lead to the PCs prevailing against the bees and getting the honey. The DM congratulates them on a well-fought fight.

Combat as War: the PCs approach the bees but there’s BEES EVERYWHERE! GIANT BEES! With nasty poison saves! The PCs run for their lives since they don’t stand a chance against the bees in a fair fight. But the bees are too fast! So the party Wizard uses magic to set part of the forest on fire in order to provide enough smoke (bees hate smoke, right?) to cover their escape. Then the PCs regroup and swear bloody vengeance against the damn bees. They think about just burning everything as usual, but decide that that might destroy the value of the honey. So they make a plan: the bulk of the party will hide out in trees at the edge of the bee’s territory and set up piles of oil soaked brush to light if the bees some after them and some buckets of mud. Meanwhile, the party monk will put on a couple layers of clothing, go to the owl bear den and throw rocks at it until it chases him. He’ll then run, owl bear chasing him, back to where the party is waiting where they’ll dump fresh mud on him (thick mud on thick clothes keeps bees off, right?) and the cleric will cast an anti-poison spell on him. As soon as the owl bear engages the bees (bears love honey right?) the monk will run like hell out of the area. Hopefully the owl bear and the bees will kill each other or the owl bear will flee and lead the bees away from their nest, leaving the PCs able to easily mop up any remaining bees, take the honey and get the hell out of there. They declare that nothing could possibly go wrong as the DM grins ghoulishly.

Does that sound familiar to anyone?

Some D&D players love the tactical elements of the game and well-fought evenly matched combat within it while other players prefer the logistical and strategic elements and if only end up in evenly matched fights if something has gone horribly wrong. These two kinds of play styles also emulate different kinds of fantasy literature with Combat as Sport hewing to heroic fantasy tropes while the Combat as War side prefer D&D to feel like a chapter of The Black Company. This was really driven home by one comment from a Combat as Sport partisan talking about how ridiculous and comedic it would be PCs to smuggle in all kinds of stuff in a bag of holding so they could use cheap tactics like “Sneak attack with a ballista!” However, sneak attacking with a ballista is exactly what happens in Chapter Forty-Eight of Shadows Linger (the second Black Company book) and the Combat as War side think that’s exactly the sort of thing that D&D should be all about.

While either form of D&D can be played with any edition, it works better with some editions than others. A lot of people have played TSR editions from more of a Combat as Sport Mindset and a lot of later TSR products seem to consist of trying to frog march poor Croaker into heroic fantasy, but TSR-D&D mostly sucks at Combat as Sport. It’s not easy to gauge what would be a good fair fun fight for a given party and the same fight could end up as a cakewalk or a TPK, melee combat is repetitive, there’s one-hit kills etc. Also a lot of elements of TSR-D&D design that drive Combat as Sport people crazy, really tie into the Combat as War mindset. Things like tracking rations, torch usage, rolling for wandering monsters, etc. are important for this kind of gameplay since they make time a scarce resource, which is vital for strategic and logistical gameplay since if the players have all the time in the world so many strategic and logistical constraints get removed and without those constraints you get all kinds of problems cropping up (most notably the 15 minute adventuring day). As Gygax says, in all caps no less “YOU CAN NOT HAVE A MEANINGFUL CAMPAIGN IF STRICT TIME RECORDS ARE NOT KEPT” (DMG page 37), which sounds like crazy moon logic for people who like Combat as Sport gameplay but is a central factor in making Combat as War gameplay work.

With 3ed the game shifted a bit towards Combat as Sport and then shifted a good bit more with 4ed (although you can still certainly run 4ed as a Combat as War game with heavy use of things like rituals, but the main thrust of the game is towards Combat as Sport). In 4ed it’s easy to tell what’s a good fair fight for a given party and combat rarely goes in a direction that the DM completely didn’t expect and there’s tons of fun combat variety. However, the 4ed focus on balancing combat at the encounter level rather than the adventure level (or just not balancing it at all and running a sandbox) runs directly counter to Combat as War gameplay. In order for a combat encounter to be well-balanced nothing that happens outside of that encounter can matter too much. This means that in order to get proper encounter balance, the impact of strategic and logistical gameplay must be muted as if having stuff that happens outside of the combat make a huge difference in the difficulty of the encounter, then there’s no way to guarantee fun balanced fights. Hence Encounter Powers, hence Healing Surges (sure starting combat with half of your healing surges sucks but not as much as starting it with half of you hit points), hence not having any classes that are designed to be below par at tactical combat, hence a lack of abilities that are useless in some fights but “I win” buttons in other fights, hence a lot of Sports and War dislike for the few bits of 4ed design that don’t fit well with balancing combat at the encounter level (notably Daily Powers). Of course 4ed is not doesn’t do this 100%, but it comes a lot closer than any other edition. However, the whole line of thinking runs counter to Combat as War thinking, the whole POINT of Combat as War gameplay is to make the playing field as unbalanced as possible in the favor of the party, so mechanics that are built around balancing combat at the encounter level just get in the way. In addition, 4ed removes a lot of items from the Combat as War gamer’s bag of tricks and it’s much harder to rat **** the opposition with 4ed powers than 1ed spells, since they’re specifically written to be resistant to be used for ratf**king and the lack of specific information about specifically how 4ed powers work in real-world terms make it hard for Combat as War players to use them to screw over the opposition instead of beating them in a fair sportsmanlike match since it’s hard to figure out exactly how to use 4ed powers for off-label purposes.

But probably most importantly, 4ed combat just takes too damn long for Combat as War players. If you’re going to spend your time doing sneaky rat bastard Black Company stuff before combat starts, then having combat take a long time is just taking time away from the fun bits of play. Also if combat takes a long time you just can’t have the sort of attrition-based gameplay since there just isn’t time to have 5 combats in five hours with plenty of time for other stuff aside from combat and a break for pizza as well. 4ed thrives on big flashy set piece battles and that doesn’t work well with Combat as War gameplay since the best kind of combat for those players is having the enemy die like a chump in the first round (with a good admixture of the PCs running and screaming in terror in the first round).

OK, now how can we reconcile these two different play styles in 5ed. Having the tactical rules be an add-on module for the Combat as Sport people is an important first step, this lets the people who like that have fun with it while the Combat as War people can use the simpler combat rules to get combat over quickly. But I think that the Combat as War people could use a DM-side add-on module as well with ideas to emphasize strategic and logistical thinking (the “Fantasy F**king Vietnam” Module basically). How monsters are written up also matters a lot. In the getting the honey from the bees adventure, specifics of monster ecology and biology don’t matter that much for the Combat as Sport side, but just look at how much they matter in the Combat as War side (does smoke keep giant bees away? how much territory will one hive of giant bees patrol? what time of day is the owl bear at home in its cave? do owl bears love honey? will thick clothes and mud help against the bees? will the owl bear fight the bees or run away? how far will the bees chase the bear if it runs). Of course the DM will have to answer a lot of these questions, but monster write-ups can help a lot. Finally, the spells that appeal to each side are different with the Combat as Sport side’s favorite spells being boring to the Combat as War side and the Combat as War side’s favorite spells being far too quirky, situational and unbalancing for the Combat as Sport side. Hopefully some ways will be found to reconcile the two sides.

Combat as Sport: valuing the separate roles of the quarterback, linebacker and wide receiver and what plays you can use to win a competitive game.
Combat as War: being too busy laying your end zone with caltrops, dousing the midfield with lamp oil, blackmailing the ref, spiking the other team’s water and bribing key members of the other team to throw the game to worry about all of those damn squiggles on the blackboard.

Or:

Combat as Sport:

 

Combat as War:





[end article]


Personally I think both have a place at the gaming table depending on the mood of the game, players and DM as well as how best it would suit the storyline. In all fairness I do tend to lean towards the Combat as War moreso than Combat as Sport, but there is room for both at the gaming table. The real trick is knowing where and when to use them in any given encounter.

Greyhawk in Dragon Magazine in 2012

This from Chris Perkins editorial blurb at Wizards;

"This year in the magazines, we’re taking a break from the Nentir Vale “points of light” setting to shine a light on the Forgotten Realms as well as some of our other popular worlds, past and present. You’ll see more Eberron articles, more Dark Sun articles, and even some content for Ravenloft, Planescape, and the World of Greyhawk. But the Realms, in particular, will receive a lot of love."

Now while I do have a lot of Forgotten Realms material my first love will always be Greyhawk. This dates back to the release of the Greyhawk Folio back in 1980. Greyhawk was the first published world I traveled into and explored with my friends. My longest campaign to date (8 years) has been set in Greyhawk. Lately I have been re-visiting the 'Gygaxian' Greyhawk where possible. By that I mean I have forgone the use of 2ed material in favor of customized "City of Greyhawk" maps. I'm not dumping all of the later material, but in my version of Greyhawk "The Greyhawk Wars" never happened. I'm currently gaming with a group and the campaign start date was 575 CY. We'll see where the campaign leads to from there. We've already made it to 576 while exploring the Temple of Elemental Evil.

But getting back to the Dragon articles, I'll be waiting to see what if any new material they will be putting out, or are they just going to update the old material they already have like they did with the 4ed Hommlet release.