Advanced Dungeons & Dragons CB1: Conan Unchained! by David “Zeb” Cook (TSR, 1984)

Before TSR created the Conan Role Playing Game with its own rules and conventions, they released two Conan adventure modules for use with AD&D, but with a few interesting rules additions, including Fear Checks, Luck Points, and more lenient Healing rules.

This adventure was written by the legendary David “Zeb” Cook and illustrated by the incredibly talented Jeff Butler. As I’ve had the pleasure of meeting both gentlemen at several conventions, I managed to get the book signed and personalized by each of them. It would be epic if I could get Arnold to sign it. 😉

[Click the images for Conan-sized versions.]

 
One thing that I was wondering, if Zeb or Jeff can recall — who did the maps? The Vilayet Sea map looks like Sutherland’s work to me, but there is no cartography credit in the book.

I have the sequel, CB2: Conan Against Darkness!, but the Sonja one, RS1: Red Sonja Unconquered, has eluded me my whole life, and now I’d have to rob a bank to get a copy.

TSR’s Conan Role Playing Game was pretty cool. It was sort of like Marvel Super Heroes, but fantasy. But I prefer the AD&D rules.

Dungeons and Dragons B2: The Keep on the Borderlands by Gary Gygax (TSR, December 1979). Art by Jim Roslof

2024 is the 50th anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons. Forty-three years ago, in 1981, on a Saturday afternoon, I ran the The Keep on the Borderlands for my dad. His magic-user, Gandalf, had a dwarf henchman named Fili. They explored the Caves of Chaos and were victorious.

To think D&D was only seven years old at the time. Pictured above is my original KotB as well as Dad’s character sheet, which I had filled in.

Advanced Dungeons and Dragons Dungeon Masters Guide
by Gary Gygax (TSR, 1979). Cover by David C. Sutherland III

Above and below are pics of my original Dungeon Masters Guide, which I purchased at Walden Books, with my paper route earnings, forty-two years ago. I had been running Holmes Basic D&D, and it was time to get Advanced.

In the last 18 years, I have had the opportunity to meet many of the icons of the hobby — writers, editors, artists, cartographers — so, I have accumulated quite a collection of autographs and sketches in my original, well-loved volume.

Happy 50th, D&D!

Dungeons & Dragons Dungeon Geomorphs , Sets One, Two, and Three (TSR, 1976-77)

Dungeons & Dragons Geomorphs were an excellent utility designed to provide gamers with “an endless number of combinations with which to create your D&D Underworld…”

The idea was that you could cut them apart, place them down, and puzzle them together as you see fit. These were created by the co-creator of D&D and his eldest son, Ernie, in 1977.

Sample geomorphs

Now, my sets are incomplete, and some are written on, but it’s still great to have them. In fact, I daresay, one could put together quite a mega-dungeon with these geomorphs.

Have you ever used these in your games? Or, for that matter, have you ever made your own with pencil and graph paper?

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Jeffrey P. Talanian’s last article for Black Gate was a review of the ShadowDark RPG. He is the creator and publisher of the Hyperborea sword-and-sorcery and weird science-fantasy RPG from North Wind Adventures. He was the co-author, with E. Gary Gygax, of the Castle Zagyg releases, including several Yggsburgh city supplements, Castle Zagyg: The East Mark Gazetteer, and Castle Zagyg: The Upper Works. Read Gabe Gybing’s interview with Jeffrey here, and follow his latest projects on Facebook and at www.hyperborea.tv.