Dungeon Masters Guide for 1E D&D: Still Relevant 40 years later 

I owe my love to English literature to the 1E D&D books. They contributed massively to the expansion of my vocabulary. I remember, back in the late 80's, when I started using Gygaxian terms in my essay papers; words like "betwixt", "milieu" and "antithesis of weal". I'm pretty sure that's when my English teacher began developing a brain aneurysm.

1st edition Advanced Dungeons and Dragons DMG is still amazing. My mom bought it for me back in ‘79. I spent a long time reading it and generating dungeons. It’s the ONLY edition I’ve ever played. Still play. Talk about value. EGG created a masterpiece. He painted the cover like that to leave space for the spine lettering. :)

Hats off to the great illustrators of that book: Dave Trampier, Erol Otus and the others who helped stir the imaginations of so many people.

What's often lost in modern versions of the game, is that even without special skills, abilities, feats, etc., a character with above-average attributes was ALREADY an above-average individual, hence the potential to be a hero. There is more to be said about a certain cultural shift in regards to the removal of the 3D6 Bell Curve (as opposed to the flat linear checks we've been accustomed to) then could be addressed here. This also explains the obvious disconnect in future editions in trying to justify a base class (such as 'Fighter') inclusive of other, obviously more powerful classes. 1st Ed. required (nay, demanded) you to randomly roll attributes and THEN choose a character class based on those rolls. Sometimes a Fighter was all you could be, with Palladin and Ranger unattainable to those with weaker scores. The Barbarian class introduced much later in Dragon Magazine was the first time a player could choose a class BEFORE he rolled, insuring the dice would give him favorable characteristics appropriate for the class.

I still have mine! And I have many others. Early 80's was just the most awesome time ever! Yes, it was an awesome part of MY life - I turned 15 in 1980 - but it was just a better time for everyone back then. Especially compared to now. 😔

I started dungeons and dragons with second edition. Since then I’ve played third edition and fifth edition and now I’m greatly appreciating advanced dungeon dragons by Gary Gaag first edition. thank you for giving such a beautiful overview. This book is by far a secret of useful knowledge. In every addition forward of Dungeons & Dragons. Understanding this you understand what has changed over the game and Gary did with Gary did. It’s amazing and very useful. in fact, we really didn’t need any other additions then first addition I would gather.

The first edition books also had an earnestness to them that later editions, more refined as they were, simply lacked

I recommend DMs of all editions to have a 1e DMG, as the disease tables and the essays on ecomics, ecology, etc, are still useful

I cut my teeth on this book. This is where it all began. I traded a bunch of Nintendo stuff to a friend for his copy. It didn't have a cover. I used some sticker paper to keep the binding. I read it over a summer and I'm sad that I never captured the Appendix N feel from this book after high school. By that time everyone was playing Vampire. When I went back to D&D, it was like running The Avengers. The baked in setting of 3rd edition was just not firing the valves in my head. I love your channel. Thanks!

I still have my original books and sometimes miss playing AD&D. Thanks for sparking some of the old memories.

Was having the Blues tonight. Thanks for posting this video, something to wash away the filth of sorrow........ man...

I got my copy Christmas day 1982. One of the best presents i ever got

What’s great about the original AD&D edition: it was a mess of rules, but you sifted through them, pulled what you liked, and created your own game within the game. No two gaming groups played by the exact same rules, which made joining or forming a new group exciting!

Between my older brother & I have many of the 1977 copies of The Dungeon Master Guide & as well as The Player Guide of D & D & Modules of the Game.

We're all still playing the game and loving it. No problem comparing editions to each other: we all have our special loves. But it's a grand game no matter what edition you're using, no sense hating on other editions

After all these years I still remember that page 75 is where the all important to hit charts are located.

One of the few rules that we added in several campaigns was the Arduin Grimoir critical Hit and Fumble tables. You needed to adjust them slightly by weapon use but it was pretty easy to do. Other than that there were some spells from other games or supplements that were adjudicated using the DMG for play.

when i bought this book back in the day.... i carried it around with me in my book bag all the time. i carried it in my bag all thru middle school and high school. it was my favorite book period. today, i have it on my shelf along with the reprint. it's a fascinating piece of work and influenced me heavily all through my young life. it captured my imagination in a way that no other book had.

The 1E DMG is still my favorite DMG! So much useful stuff in it! And who can forget Papers and Paychecks or "Get Dave a Beer"!

I still have all the AD&D first edition books, and always will.

I just purchased replacements for my old copies of the DMG and Deities and Demigods. Already bought both vintage Monster Manuals and the Fiend Folio. I don't even play, never really did. The art, especially David Trampier, was always the appeal for me. Incidentally, the cover art was Sutherland's illustration of one of the stories from Arabian Nights.

I love both covers for this book. I had to have them both. This version was the first DandD book I ever owned as a kid. But, my DM had the other cover making it desireable to me in a nostalgic way. I love 1st edition so much. As good as 5e is, there's something truly special about 1st e.

This is the most useful book for any edition of D&D, and for other games as well. I have trained several new DMs in my years, and as part of their desire to get better, I always loan them one of my spare copies of the DMG so they can look through and see how much one book can stimulate their minds for creation. All of them have ended up getting a copy of their own and agreeing with me that it is eternally useful, whatever kind of campaign or adventure one is building. Love it.

I first read the Black box by myself, having picked it up at a yard sale. But my friend in junior high had this book and I was fascinated by it. I finally got my own a couple of years later and it's remained my favorite D&D reference to this day. I love high gygaxian and reading through Gary's words, The DMG is interesting and was full of secrets to find. I always felt like it was written just for me

After I stumbled upon your review a few months ago I made a point to obtain a copy of the original tome of knowledge and I can't thank you enough for recommending it so emphatically. I was brought in to the hobby in 5e and journeying back through the editions has been a joy beyond measure as I have been able to learn the heritage of this glorious game. Thank you for shedding a light upon these forgotten gems, I don't know where I'd be if I hadn't stumbled into the OSR.

My mom bought me this and the other three original books as a bribe to go to junior assembly (manners and dance class). Gary Gygax was an insurance salesman and that's why he was so interested in the idea of luck and chance. Even if someone does everything right and is very prudent and responsible, there's always luck.

The cover is perfect. The rough and inconsistent artwork throughout all the AD&D books challenges the reader to imagine these things, as opposed to subsequent versions which spoon fed a stylized and often times boring aesthetic.

Just stumbled apond your channel. Brings back alot of good memories playing when I was a kid kept me out of a lot of trouble growing up. Thank you and well-done a New sub.

1st edition all the way to Eastern Adventures is how I still play to this day. I had a subscription to Dragon Magazine throughout the entire 80s and use many of the supplements in these.

I was a Second Edition / AD&D player, but man this was fun to watch. The original game that changed the world.

Sloppy, disjointed, chaotic mess...and still the definitive edition. There's just so much...more than what later D&D editions would bring to the table. Even now I'm impressed by the sheer amount of information included there. It's still my go to volume for designing unique and rare magical weapons and infernal tomes. The chapter on these virtually guarantees that no two 'Wands of Orcus' will resemble each other in differing campaigns, thus maintaining the mystery and excitement of discovering one for the first time.

Regarding the cover, I must admit I never looked at both sides of the cover as a single drawing. Great observation.

I used the appendixes of the DMG along with the Events and Encounters chapter of the Oriental adventures campaign book (and several tables from other sources, including issues of Dragon Magazine) to build a kind of random adventure machine. With this system I was able to play an entire long-run campaign with no dungeon master. Any time I had insomnia I would just play random generated dungeons, wilderness exploration, and loot tinkering. Because humans could retire old classes to pick up a new one it wasn't that hard to reach ridiculous levels (assuming your character managed to avoid death or level-drain.) This, folks, is how I used the random adventure machine to play from 1st level 300th. I really loved that character, but I never did get around to naming her. Oh well.

Such of jumble of tiny text and numbers. No idea how I figured it all out as a kid. I do remember we thought that "open doors" applied to EVERY door. "Sorry, you failed to turn the handle."

Excitement of playing D&D pulled me into reading. Purchasing the DMG was a huge investment for me at the time. I had already tried DM'ing. So getting this tome had a huge impact on me and my games. I still have all my original books.

I started playing in 1980. The 1e DMG has not lost any of its luster since I first read it, back then. I've been playing 2e since it was first published, in 1989, but I still use my 1e DMG... All the time. When my three sons turned 13, I gifted them the core books for both 1e, and 2e, inviting them to join in playing our family 2e game: 2e relies so heavily upon 1e books, that without them, they would be at a disadvantage. There are subtle things which were lost in the translation, so 1e books can fill in those blanks. My sons have discovered how useful their 1e DMG's are, over the course of the past 19 years. They often pull them out at my table, to look up key elements of their PC's magic items they have forgotten. The magic item listings are perhaps the most often used portions of the 1e DMG, for all of us, at my table. It is so convenient! 1e rules were written before the PC culture developed. It is not fair to view these rules through our current version of cultural rose-colored glasses. Don't worry, we are always wearing rose-colored glasses -- the tint changes over time, however, along with our views on what is acceptable, and what is not. For example, the scantily, to completely naked, women in the artwork, is not exactly welcome, today. You do not see fully nude women in today's D&D books. That is a cultural, and marketing, shift. Remember the Satanic Panic of the early 1980's? I still have the mental scars from that nonsense. When D&D Next/5e took off, I was concerned: the old wounds from the Satanic Panic ached. It seems as though the rose tint has shifted far enough that the S/P is gone for good. Back around 2003-2005, however, I was questioned on D&D being Satanic, again. It put my position within an organization, in jeopardy, since I freely shared that I played, "that game." I offered to show the material which inspired the S/T nonsense, so that I could demonstrate how irrational, and false, it was. My superior declined the offer, taking my word for it. Culture changes, and we usually change our attitudes with it. The 1e art, and male-centric tropes, are not politically acceptable, today. I am OK with that. I returned to play 1e rules, around five years ago. I ran the one-off game with my sons, and friends. We were all a bit stunned by what was missing from the game, compared to our 2e games. Still, it was very close, and it was very fun and challenging. Cheers!

I followed the standard path commonly trod back in the day; started out with OD&D, "graduated" to AD&D and moved to the shiny new 2e when it came out. While 2e is still my favorite edition my game is really a hybrid of all the early stuff. It's maybe 85% 2e, 10% 1e and the remainder OD&D with a few house rules sprinkled in. As you say, whatever edition you play it's great to have the original 1e DMG! Gary was really a treasure, and while his prose could be rambling and hard to follow there was a free-form whimsy to the early days. Stuff wasn't overly codified and everything felt new. Later on and especially in 5e the magic is gone and things have settled into well worn tropes so it's good to go back to beginning. Those early days really caught lightning in a bottle! Thanks for a good video.

What a fun reminder on how good the 1st edition game really was. Gygax will always be the final authority on AD&D for me :)

1st-edition is complicated stuff, and you see a glimpse of the "paper computer" way of doing things in the 70s and 80s before computer games generated the dungeons and monsters, internalized the hit points and modifiers stuff and hid them out of sight. This was a past when fans read it all; there is little "fluff". It should challenge us not to dumb down RPGs, but to build up ourselves personally to the point we can handle this stuff. Learn speed reading, learn the multiplication table if you didn't already. Gygax insisted on uniform adherence to the rules, no modding, because that made tournaments possible where many tables played the same adventure and you could objectively decide who got through the scenario the best, or so it was hoped.

The Campaign section is by far the greatest tutorial for GMs and DMs of any flavour. Gygax knew how to weave a fabric for a story. As always, you hit that nail with expert skill and accuracy. Thank you so very much.

I've done a few "random roll" dungeons from the DMG tables. The "two ogres" treasure lesson inspired a lot of treasure troves that were mixed and needed sorting and decisions on what the PC's would carry off, and I loved the charts on various herbs, dungeon room types and gem types.

I recently stumbled across your channel, and I've really been enjoying the content! I've been watching your retro reviews of the S series of modules and then I kept watching; this is really taking me back. Cheers!

A touchstone for 40 years. I've read everything in there two or three times,. A lot of the advice and principles in this book have served me well in other editions and even other games.

From one DJ and DM to another, thanks for your videos. I watch them all. I still play 1e with my group. I'd love to see a video on the 1e Manual Of The Planes. Thanks! Hopefully you can get back to work soon.

"Note that there's not a bit of Tolkien anywhere" ...yet it's listed right there, under Tolkien, J.R.R.

One subject that I never get bored of. You did a great job on this one Captain!

The Captain knows his epic D&D lore !

Ahhhhh The nostalgia in this video is so beautiful! I remember getting this book back when it was released. The artwork style captivated me and I would find myself coveting the book like it was a prized heirloom.

As always Captain,great video.This one is especially dear to me as this,along with 2nd edition AD&D,is the edition I prefer to play.(I actually use an amalgamation of 1st/2nd edition AD&D along with Advanced Labyrinth Lord and Osric).Thanks for the new upload.You're the man.Happy gaming.

I love my Dungeon Masters guide!!! Awesome video!!

You really should do a review of the infamous Chivalry & Sorcery 'Red Book'. If there was ever a more magical, concise, detailed and eminently unplayable tome, this would be it.

I can't believe after over 30 years looking at cover and I never realized it was one congruent picture, aside from what you pointed out of course. I knew this was going to be a good video!

Excellent. I still use Appendix A, C, and D for the solo aspect where you can create your own dungeon as you go when I'm bored sometimes.

45 years and I still use it! I've decided to start a 1st edition campaign! With all the trimmings! I recently got my millennial relatives into 5th edition(a few of them played 3.5) but I think it's about time to bring back the old school! At least they will have to use normal math instead of the worthless new math. DnD was a game that requires thinking not a tablet or a phone or even an app. Paper pencil and dice!

Bought my first coppy in the late 70's, later bought a second copy with the new cover when the first one's binding fell off from use. Still have em both and a ton of other stuff collected over the last 40 years.

Thanks for revisiting this Cap, I can still remember when I first stat down to fully read my DMs guide and how that led to my launching my first true campaign in AD&D. Hope you and your family are staying safe!

I have 3 points on this. Firstly this book is still very useful today regardless of what edition you play. Secondly the design of the secret door that can lead to different areas depending on how it is opened is a lost art that needs to be revived. And finally ability scores ALWAYS go in the big box!

I had forgotten most of those details! Thanks for doing this video. I just pulled my copy of the shelf (the revised edition with the wizard opening a pair of massive vault doors to reveal a treasure pile) to have a look. One thing in particular I noticed was the description of the front cover... it still references the older cover! But now I know to keep an eye on those appendices for reference in my future games, whether they be D&D, Pathfinder, or even Call of Cthulhu or others. Thanks for the video and the inspiration.

I remember the charts best. Every class had its own charts. I also enjoyed the random dungeon generation tables.

Still have my first edition books after all these years. :)

Been playing since 1976.Lots of memories.Thanks.

Great video! Appreciate the overview 👍

Definitely the best thing about this book is the text. It feels like Gary is sitting right next to you, trying to explain how this cool game works. It feels like a conversation, after reading it you feel like you know the guy. It's a big contrast to the text on current editions, with lots and lots of rules but no soul.

This is a magical book. You open it to a page, any page, start reading and BAM, you now want to play some D&D!

This is excellent! I never even knew the Dungeon's Master Guide was one picture on the front and the back?!

Thanks for the great video! Came from 5e, and wanted to learn the earliest version of D&D.

The best Xmas gift I ever got.

Gods I love the old retro art so much passion

The DMG is available print on demand again from DriveThruRPG! Just ordered through your link Cap'n. Bought the more expensive high quality paper one, both because hey, it's the DMG, want this awesome as possible, and out of hoping it gives you a bigger cut. BTW, the standard paper hardcover + PDF is $25, that's a Natural 20 value if I've ever seen one. Even the fancy-pants one I got was $43. Compare that to the fortune they want for the original print online.

I still use the Mercenary Unit generator, the section on mercenary NPCs and the section on Sages all the time. And the Treasures section, while rather disjointed, is a wealth of information for any campaign.

I'd love to see you do a video series on creating a campaign. It would be a great source for experienced and novice DMs alike. You could start from choosing the world and setting, plot elements of the campaign, then what modules to use and why. How you adapted a module to the campaign. It would show us how other dms think and that's always a great tool.

1st Edition: The Only Edition

I always look forward to you vids. Keep 'em coming. They have always been some of the first recommendations I click on. One thing I can say about the AD&D 1e DM's Guide, it's a far denser book than its modern counterpart, that's for sure. I love the make the artifact your own aspect, not to mention the herb and apothecary appendices. There are so many useful 'tables' in it, especially those Religious furnishings and articles, M-U furnishings, and an example of a mini-dungeon within. Appendix N drew me in, though; it invited me to try "new" books that I'd probably never have experienced, otherwise.

Most valuable things in this book for me: 1) The magic item lists, especially the artifact & relic lists - as you said, the only place many of those items ever appear. Ideas in just those pages for a hundred campaigns, and written with style that later books don’t always match. 2) The Example of Play section, which showed you how to turn this chaotic mess of rules and judgment calls into something that flows and is comprehensible and fun. I doubt I ever would have gotten a game together if not for that passage.

My brother added his own tweak to the AD&D base game that was a big hit with us: a critical hit chart, and critical miss chart. If you rolled a natural 20, you got to roll again and see what 0-99 the results were to the opponent. And on the other end, a natural 0 was a critical miss and a roll to see what happened to you. I once did the impossible, rolled a 0, then a 00, and chopped my own head off. Otherwise, we played it by the book. Good times!

I miss old-school D&D so much . . .

2:00 - you have EXCELLENT taste in modules!

I just started switching to 5e from AD&D - looking forward to playing again.

Probably worth a re-read. It was like a love letter from the creators.

I love the book a lot. I'm up to 7 copies of it on my shelf. 😁

From back in the day mechanics were hidden from players instead of exploited by players. It will just never be the same to me.

Still have mine, and still running my campaign using 1st edition rules. My world has evolved a lot over the decades!

Yep, it's pretty much the OSG bible. Those tables are full of ideas.

My favorite D&D alongside the BECMI.

Some of my best days were spent with this book and my friends.

I've had this book since the early 80s and I jut discovered that it was one continuous painting on the cover.

I laughed when you said gambling games should be included under random traps table G! Very funny, sir.

I love your videos. Small audience, high quality content.

Great review! Although I'm a 2E DM myself, I think the 1E DMG is great and full precious advice on running the game. I check it frequently and every time I seem to find something new.

I think the full cover isn't meant to be interpreted literally. It's just a conglomerate series of scenes melded together into a single painting.

I recently ordered the 1e core books and unearth arcana (hardcover)! so excited to get them! I might even try to run the game

I always thought the succubus towards the end of the book was one of the best illustrations in 1st edition AD&D. Was disappointed years later when I noticed it was basically just a tracing of Gustav Dore's Myrrha, with bat wings added.

Excellent commentary on a true classic' I began playing in my mid 20''s in the late 70's and loved the organic feel of the name. As the game progressed I purchased te 2nd Edition material as well. While somewhat interesting it felt too polished. I stopped playing in the early 90's and subsequently wanted to get back into playing. I have the 5E edition and I just find the heart and soul of the game is missing. Thank god I still have all y old editions as upon seeing your video I am definitely going back to the basics. Perhaps I can recapture some of the magic of playing.

Wonderful video. I sometimes pull out the original DMG just to read some of Gygax's prose. He had a very unique style of writing, the clarity of which is hard to match.

I'm really enjoying your introduction to the video Content so far. I bet you'd be a person that would be really enjoyable to play d&d with. 👍

I have lent this book to more new dungeon masters than I can remember and I have only ever gotten it back once.

Love your new profile pic, Cap. Well played, sir.

Wow! So many memories of being 14 and 15 years old!

The strongest relevance of the 1E DMG that should be true today, but causes probably the biggest rift in the game is, that it says the rules should be followed wherever possible. They are not carved in stone and handed to DM's atop a mountain. Gygax goes on later in the book to essentially tell the DM that if a rule doesn't fit the situation, or they simply don't like it... screw it... make that shit up. "How does encumbrance work in your game?" "How do we resolve initiative?" "Do we play; everyone moves - then combat, or is it move and attack at the same time, done in turns?" Back then "Homebrew" was a word only used to describe amateur Beer making. Every game I played in was recognisably "AD&D", but always with a few changes. Each DM came up with their own ways to fill in the blanks. In over 40 years I have never, ever, not once, played in a game of 1E AD&D where the DM used the Weapon vs Armour Type Adjustment table. So House Rules were not only common, they were expected. Hard and fast adherence to the rules as written is, in my opinion, one of the banes of the modern game. Gygax was all about the experience at the table, and the most useful advice he ever gave was, (and I'm paraphrasing from memory here, so rules lawyers... I apologise if it's not exactly precise...) "A good DM only rolls dice for the noise they make."

I think the cover looks awesome now that I've seen the back of it. I probably still prefer the cover I grew up with but now I am going to have to check to see what other of those early books have wraparound covers. I think the Monster Manual cover is about the most brilliant looking thing I've seen in my life. I thought that for sure when I first seen it back in grade 2 and I still sort of think it now.