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May 24, 2013, 2:17pm

Original D&D Discussion :: Dungeons & Dragons (1971-1978) :: Holmes Basic D&D (1978) :: Holmes Treasure Types

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Topic: Holmes Treasure Types (Read 178 times)

Vile
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Holmes Treasure Types
« Thread Started on Sept 22, 2012, 1:15am »

I was just making a list of which monsters have which treasure types in Holmes (as you do), and my suspicions are confirmed: Not all the types are needed! Bear in mind this is based on the monster list from the January 1978 printing (still looking for a later edition copy). I and T, and most of the individual treasures (except J and L) are all left unused. Also, I think a gelatinous cube should have something more meaningful than "Variable", maybe something like I (hey, an entry for I!) with a caveat that any organic magic items like scrolls have already been digested.

TREASURE TYPE A: Bandit
TREASURE TYPE B: Bugbear, Carrion Crawler, Ghoul, Hydra, Nixie, Wight
TREASURE TYPE C: Blink Dog, Gargoyle, Gnome, Harpy, Hell Hound, Lycanthrope, Minotaur, Ogre, Owl Bear
TREASURE TYPE D: Cockatrice, Displacer Beast, Hobgoblin, Lizard Man, Manticore, Mummy, Orc, Purple Worm, Troll
TREASURE TYPE E: Doppelganger, Elf, Giant, Griffon, Spectre, Wraith
TREASURE TYPE F: Basilisk, Chimera, Medusa, Shadow, Vampire
TREASURE TYPE G: Dwarf
TREASURE TYPE H: Dragon
TREASURE TYPE I:
TREASURE TYPE J: Berserker, Kobold
TREASURE TYPE K:
TREASURE TYPE L: Goblin
TREASURE TYPE M:
TREASURE TYPE N:
TREASURE TYPE O:
TREASURE TYPE P:
TREASURE TYPE Q:
TREASURE TYPE R: Pixie
TREASURE TYPE S: Pixie
TREASURE TYPE T:
NO TREASURE: Black Pudding, Djinni, Giant Tick, Gray Ooze, Green Slime, Hippogriff, Horse, Ochre Jelly, Pegasus, Rust Monster, Skeleton, Unicorn, Yellow Mold, Zombie
VARIABLE TREASURE: Gelatinous Cube

« Last Edit: Sept 22, 2012, 6:21am by Vile »

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DungeonDevil
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Re: Holmes Treasure Types
« Reply #1 on Sept 22, 2012, 3:44am »

An Exalt for thee! Fascinating analysis!

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YE AULD SKÜL

Zenopus
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Re: Holmes Treasure Types
« Reply #2 on Sept 22, 2012, 10:02am »

This is probably a result of the multiple hands (Holmes, Gygax, others at TSR) that worked on the Basic set rulebook.

Here's what I wrote about this in the Errata thread (in response to your question Vile

):

* * * * *

While we are on the Treasure Type Table, here's some trivia:

The OD&D table has types A-I, the Holmes table adds types J-T, and the Monster Manual adds U-Z.

The new types in Holmes may have been added by Gygax or TSR. In the first printing of Holmes (1977), most of the new Treasure Types are not used - only J (Beserker, Kobold), L (Goblin), Q (Stirge) and R,S (Pixie) are assigned to particular monsters. The 2nd edition of Holmes (Nov 1978, after the Monster Manual) adds more monster entries, and some of these are given the unassigned Treasure Types - J-N, Q, R and S are given in various combinations to Gnolls, Huge & Large Giant Spiders and Giant Ants. No monsters in Holmes were ever assigned O, P or T - in the Monster Manual these are used, but with monsters not found in Holmes.

* * * * *

Rick Marshall at Oaths & Fates described the Basic rulebook as a palimpsest, in that it's OD&D as edited by Holmes and then overwritten and to in places by Gygax and TSR editors.

These are the kind of things that give Holmes its charm. It's a window into the development of AD&D from D&D.

« Last Edit: Sept 22, 2012, 10:12am by Zenopus »

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"Story tellers are always careful to point out that the reputed dungeons lie in close proximity to the foundations of an older, pre-human city, to the graveyard, and to the sea.”
- Holmes rulebook

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Vile
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Re: Holmes Treasure Types
« Reply #3 on Sept 22, 2012, 10:54am »

Holmes archaeology is a fascinating hobby.

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