Hello June ’22 via Castle Amber!

Allegedly Stranger Things is using more D&D villains in the current season so I decided to go with an adventure that I have fond memories of…Castle Amber because I picked up the new 5E conversion at Chupacabrcon. Back in the Summer of 1982, my brother got this adventure mainly to be included in my numerous afternoons on the porch playing D&D with mutual friends. Brian never liked the game, he hated it and probably still does, but he was a good sport then and played along.

Then I replayed it again in 2000, converting it to 3E on the fly since my style of play had evolved from dungeon crawling to story telling/roleplaying. It took much, much longer and the adventure’s design flaws were exposed unless we played it a la 1982 again, the dungeon crawling way: kick in the door, kill the monsters, loot the treasure, repeat. Amber would work great for a video game such as LEGO whatever and the numerous Baldur’s Gate stuff I enjoyed on my PS2. However, when you’re trying to create a different experience or in my opinion, superior, then it’s a bit of a mess as the residents in nearby rooms and hallways aren’t deaf to the scuffles the players instigate. Despite the various takes a DM can go with, Amber was a good time and it provided a great opportunity for my friend Jeremy to get a replacement character after his first character bit the dust early.

Everybody also loves the cover art, a giant attacking and smashing a tower! I’m so glad D&D’s rules have evolved to re-enact it. Back in 1982, it wasn’t very clear how to handle a creature as huge as the Colossus (its name) to make it challenging, interesting or semi-accurate. With 3E, the (re-)designers were able to work out rules for scale or size. Twenty years later, it’s even more fun thanks to technology providing all the accessories to make the encounter even more fun: a battle-mat (a cross between graph paper and a dry-erase board); affordable minis, mini buildings and well-made dice. You could probably throw in background music via your cell phone.

One day, I hope to get this right! For now, I guess I have to reminisce about the Summer of 1982, before Global Warming made playing a table-top game on the porch anywhere, unbearable.

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