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Post by Falconer on Jan 26, 2008 17:43:20 GMT -6
Just curious whether Svenny or anyone else could tell us how closely AiF resembles the way Dave actually ran/runs his Blackmoor games. Much appreciated. Thanks!
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Post by boomer on Aug 1, 2008 23:38:37 GMT -6
I would be curious to know this as well Falconer. I still have my copy of AiF (with signatures) and have had great fun running it.
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Post by havard on Aug 3, 2008 17:56:40 GMT -6
Any information about the AiF would be appreciated Havard
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Post by gsvenson on Aug 3, 2008 19:20:26 GMT -6
Dave could answer this better than I can. It was published years after I had stopped playing. While I have a copy, I did not really use it...
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Post by havard on Aug 5, 2008 10:12:13 GMT -6
Here's an image of the cover that I nicked off ebay. I also found this interview where Dave talks about Adventures in Fantasy. In a somewhat related discussion at Dragonsfoot, this also came up: Posted by Kellri@DF: Some of this, the last paragraph in particular is ofcourse mere speculation on Kellri's behalf, but any light you guys can shed on any of this would be of interest! Havard
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jrients
Level 6 Magician
Posts: 411
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Post by jrients on Aug 5, 2008 11:22:27 GMT -6
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Post by havard on Aug 5, 2008 12:54:14 GMT -6
Wow Jeff, those tables are awesome. Dragons with elephant heads! I would never have imagined.
Thanks for sharing!
Havard
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Post by boomer on Aug 6, 2008 17:11:15 GMT -6
I'm afraid I'm pretty thick when it comes to uploading images and such, sry. I'll see what I can do and scan something from my set for perusal.
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Post by xerxez on Jun 18, 2011 21:39:11 GMT -6
I know I'm reviving a very old thread here but I must say that I just read the rules of AIF entirely through and I am impressed with a very beautiful and well thought out game.
Arneson's perspective on elves and on the divisions of faery and human magic are exactly as I would prefer to run a campaign--not very Tolkienish at all, and much more in the Germanic fairy tale traditions.
I think this is a rules set that would work well with any fantasy setting or even a "real world" Dark Ages Northern European setting.
I love his treatment of magic spells and points, and the section on the personalities and characteristics of Dragons is absolutely phenomenal.
I will be printing this up, and I can see using this for an upcoming campaign.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 18, 2011 22:03:43 GMT -6
Dave Arneson was a genius. I didn't know the man personally, and I regret this deeply, but judging from his activity here on this very forum he was a great guy.
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Post by Finarvyn on Jun 19, 2011 4:54:05 GMT -6
He was a great guy, at least in all of my interactions with him and from stories told by others. Very creative and innovative. AiF is one of those games that I've never actually played but I should some time just to get the feel of it. It's a fun read, though.
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Post by xerxez on Jun 19, 2011 18:21:21 GMT -6
I stayed up reading these rules again last night and I printed up the most necessary pages and tables as I definitely intend to run some games.
And I'm thinking about doing something I've never done before, using a historical setting--Northern Europe, allowing for Christian and Pagan characters.
Arneson's grasp of medieval cosmology and culture is very impressive to me. One of his magic items is a holy crucifix which of course has powers over Vampires and faery beings. His treatment of Vampires (Lamias) is very different--this is the vampire mostly of Slavic legend and not Hollywood.
The game would lend itself very well to a pure fantasy setting as well but it is true enough to medieval customs and social structure, as well as "real" mythology that I think it possible to go the route of a historical game. I am aware that Pendragon is probably the better system for a strictly historical game but that would be an altogether different flavoring than AIF.
It will be difficult to choose the exact time period--feudalism needs to be the norm, so post Constantine-- and the church needs to be prevalent enough to be a unifying force. But the whole of Europe should still be broken up enough to remain the dark and mysterious world of the pagans, letting the Celtic and Germanic fairy tales come to life.
Looks like I began studying medieval history just in time.
No hobbits of course. Elves are diminutive creatures closely related to dwarves, and are generally hostile to Man or at the very least cruelly indifferent. They dwell permanently in a separate realm called Faery where a single day there is a hundred years of human time--yet some do live on the Material Plane. Like all the faery races (Elf, Troll, Dwarf and "Faeries proper", quotations mine) they cannot go about or fight well in sunlight, they are repelled by Christian symbols and rituals, and iron weapons do double damage to them, Dwarves excepted from the latter clause only. However, all including trolls are powerful magic users who use songs and runes instead of ritual spells.
As for character types, there is no class system and not really much of a highly developed skill system either. Instead there is an educational system of character development with very generalized skills (including magical training) and you develop your character along the lines you wish, gaining XP and further ability through using your desired craft, be it swords or sorcery, or, if you wish, as some other occupation. If you wanted a thief type character, you would simply develop those abilities and play as a theif, getting better and better. There is no ranger class, but you can have the skills of a forester/huntsman.
I think it allows for alot of unique and original character ideas, especially when you allow for characters choosing their own historical period race and culture.
Anyone with ideas for such a campaign, especially as related to history, please share.
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Post by xerxez on Jun 19, 2011 18:22:43 GMT -6
P.S. I also like that character advancement is largely a matter of actual social progression within the feudal structure.
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Post by aldarron on Jun 20, 2011 13:11:11 GMT -6
Arneson's grasp of medieval cosmology and culture is very impressive to me. One of his magic items is a holy crucifix which of course has powers over Vampires and faery beings. His treatment of Vampires (Lamias) is very different--this is the vampire mostly of Slavic legend and not Hollywood. Heh, well, he did have a degree in history.... Don't know if you caught this thread. odd74.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=blackmoor&action=display&thread=4591
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Post by xerxez on Jun 20, 2011 19:03:25 GMT -6
Aldarron
I figured as much. It shows in his game focus--this is a very cool game!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 21, 2011 8:18:26 GMT -6
Dave Arneson was a genius. That's a word I hate to just throw around, but yeah it seems like he was. A game-genius at least. I love the stories of what he used to do to players! ;D
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Post by Deleted on Jun 21, 2011 10:03:01 GMT -6
That's a word I hate to just throw around, but yeah it seems like he was. A game-genius at least. I love the stories of what he used to do to players! ;D As do I, but I felt in Arneson's case it was applicable.
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Post by havard on Jun 21, 2011 11:00:49 GMT -6
I like DuBeers
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Post by ckutalik on Jun 21, 2011 16:27:26 GMT -6
I have to admit that I was a little disappointed with AiF after reading FFC (I won both in the same steal of an auction). Much of what I found really interesting about FFC (the domain-level play, the experience rules, Blackmoor) get no further development or feel like steps backwards.
I do agree though that the social advancement rules and the education rules are quite nifty.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 9, 2011 19:53:41 GMT -6
Just letting you know that ebay has a copy of the First Fantasy Campaign paired with a copy of Adventures in Fantasy. See my ebay thread in the General Forum for the link.
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