Top "Appendix N" literature

[Finarvyn]

I was looking at Appendix N (okay, for DCC RPG inspiration, but the reason isn't important) and was thinking about which of the authors or books on the list were most influential to me.

I tried to recreate Appendix N exactly, although some of the options had to be tweaked to fit in the "poll option" boxes. I thought about adding an "other" to the poll, but decided just to stick to the original Gygax list. Anyone with an "other" can give it a shout-out here or start a new thread on it.

I'm curious as to what are your Top Five from the list.

Mine would be, in no particular order:
* Robert E Howard (Conan, Solomon Kane)
* Fritz Leiber (Lankhmar series)
* Michael Moorcock (Elric, Hawkmoon, Corum)
* Roger Zelazny (Amber, Dilvish, Shadowjack)
* JRR Tolkien (Hobbit, Lord of the Rings)



EDIT: I nearly forgot Tolkien until I voted, so I had to remove Burroughs (Mars, Venus, Tarzan) from my "top 5."

[Deleted]

had to vote for lovecraft (along with leiber, tolkien, howard, moorcock)

[Falconer]

Tolkien, Burroughs, Lovecraft, Vance, and de Camp & Pratt. Runners up, Anderson (especially for The High Crusade) and Howard.

[Deleted]

Is anyone aware of any scholarship on Appendix N on the web? Like several others I have been revisiting it due to advocacy from Joseph Goodman and the DCC RPG.

Where Appendix N lists only an author or series, does anyone here recall conversations that might narrow the recommendation to one or a few books?

Thanks!

David

[pessimisthalfling]

I'd say:
1-R.E. Howard
2-H.P. Lovecraft
3-Lord Dunsany
4-JRR Tolkien
5-Michael Moorcock

[coffee]

I had to go with Burroughs, Howard, Moorcock, Tolkien and Zelazny.

And speaking of Burroughs, I came across this today:

www.buzzfeed.com/johncarter/9-surprising-things-you-didnt-know-about-edgar-ri

[tavis]

I asked Gygax about Frederick Brown at EN World, as this is the author whose inclusion I found most mysterious. IIRC he remembered having read Nightmares and Geezenstacks, but not what about it was an inspiration specifically.

Here's a post I did about Weinbaum, who I'd also considered a mystery.

My own top 5 - one part personal reading tastes, one part what I think is most influential - is Vance, Anderson, Bellairs, St. Clair, and Leiber.

[Falconer]

Back in 2003, I made a webpage to catalogue what Appendix N resources were available in-print and inexpensive at the time. I haven’t updated it recently, but I still think it’s a pretty good starting point. FWIW, at the time, Gary made the following remarks about my page:

Excellent source for the inexperienced fantasy and fantastic fiction fan:)

I suspect a lot of the books not listed by you as available new can be found in used form through half.com I recently picked up a paperback copy of THE EYES OF OVERWORLD for under $2!

You might want to add Fred Saberhagen to the list of recommended authors--the series that includes THE BROKEN LANDS was inadvertantly omitted by me.

A more recent author is Tetty Pratchett. His "Diskworld" series is well worth reading by FRPG buffs.

Seems to me that the author of THE BLACK COMPANY is another good one, but it's been a while since I read that book.

I only managed to read Glen Cook's first book, but if the balance of the series is of the quality as THE BLACK COMPANY, those books should be added--and I need to go forth and buy them for winter reading!

You should add to the list for Sterling Lanier THE UNFORSAKEN HIERO, the excellent sequal to the initial novel, HIERO'S JOURNEY. Sterling is a friend of Andre Norton's BTW.

[cleverkobold]

My top 5 in order are...
1. Leiber
2. Lovecraft
3. Burroughs
4. Moorcock
5. Howard

Tolkien and Dunsany are close runners up.

[stevemitchell]

Brackett, Burroughs, Howard, Lovecraft, and Moorcock. And Henry Kuttner should be on the list, if only for The Dark World (but also for Elak and Raynor).

[talysman]

Is this overall, or at a specific point in time (influences when starting gaming, or influences right now?)

I went kind of mixed. Burroughs, Leiber, Lovecraft, Moorcock, Tolkien. Tolkien was an enormous influence on getting me into fantasy, but he hasn't been much of an influence on me for the last decade or so; I ought to read him again to see how my reactions have changed. Moorcock and Burroughs had a stronger influence on my actual gaming, when I started; Leiber and Lovecraft have more influence on my style, these days.

It's also interesting to think about the exceptions. For example, I haven't read either of the Poul Anderson stories listed. But I did read his Operation Chaos, right around the time I started playing D&D, and it was an important influence on how I interpret efreeti and salamanders.

[ckenp]

Nov 27, 2012 13:58:54 GMT -6 talysman said:

For example, I haven't read either of the Poul Anderson stories listed.

It could be argued that "Three Hearts and Three Lions" is the quintessential piece of fiction for inspiring D&D roleplay (from said list). I highly recommend it.

The great tragedy of Appendix N is the absence of Clark Ashton Smith, who I will argue is the best of them all.

[kesher]

The Face in the Frost is an awesome, underread book...

[Red Baron]

Jun 21, 2011 12:59:54 GMT -6 tavis said:

I asked Gygax about Frederick Brown at EN World, as this is the author whose inclusion I found most mysterious. IIRC he remembered having read Nightmares and Geezenstacks, but not what about it was an inspiration specifically.

I thought it was because Brown's stuff was so inventive and weird, even if it's not fantasy. There's talking mice, yetis, and aliens disguised as donkeys. I would even hazard a guess that Yehudi was the inspiration for the unseen servant spell.

[geoffrey]

For pure fun I picked the following five in this order:

1. Clark Ashton Smith (an obvious oversight on Gary's part)
2. Jack Vance (The Dying Earth only)
3. R. E. Howard
4. A. Merritt
5. Fritz Leiber

[jmccann]

For me:
REH
Leiber
Lovecraft
Moorcock
ERB

I had Tolkien instead of Burroughs at first, but I think in an important sense Burroughs is more influential from the point of view of influence on RPGs. Obviously a lot of Tolkien is taken as normative in terms of setting, races and so on, but I think the action of ERB is closer to RPG play.

[scottenkainen]

Ooo, I wish I'd been around in time to vote on this. Mine are

1. Tolkien
2. Burroughs
3. Dunsany
4. Anderson
5. Merritt

[cleverkobold]

My top five in order are
1. Leiber
2. Lovecraft
3. Howard
4. Burroughs
5. Dunsany

Had Clark Ashton Smith been on the list, my top five would read
1. Leiber
2. Smith
3. Lovecraft
4. Howard
5. Burroughs

Either way, Moorcock and Tolkien are close runners up.