AC1 "The Shady Dragon Inn" (1983) by Carl Smith contains a roster of ready-to-use NPCs, along with a fold-out map of the Shady Dragon Inn, the first in the "AC" line of D&D game accessories (some of which are also suitable for use with AD&D).
Title page to "The Shady Dragon Inn" (1983) by Carl Smith
Carl Smith was a game designer at TSR in the early 1980s.
He also wrote N2 "The Forest Oracle" (1984), and "Guardians of the Tomb" in Dungeon #1 (Sept/Oct 1986), in which the following mini-bio appears:
Though his true love lies in Westerns, Carl Smith has been active in fantasy and science-fiction gaming for years. He was a part of the DRAGONLANCE design team for TSR, Inc, and worked on CA1, Swords of the Undercity, an AD&D module set in the LANKHMAR universe. He is currently a freelance writer and contributing editor for Model Retailer magazine.
Dungeon #1 (Sept/Oct 1986)
Design Origins:
Years ago, I asked Frank Mentzer on Dragonsfoot:
Where the heck did Carl Smith get all those NPCs to populate AC1 The Shady Dragon Inn? I've always wondered if they were from an old OD&D campaign of his, since the Dex and Con scores are reversed throughout.
There are a lot of tantalizing place names scattered here and there. Do you know if these were from an actual campaign or were they just pulled out of the air?
posted on Dragonsfoot, (October 7, 2009)
Smith definitely had a knack for names, and the mini-bios are gems.
A few years ago, a list of place names from AC1 "The Shady Dragon Inn" was posted on Dragonsfoot:
Clear Water, Sternmont, Glenroe, Black Coast, Stonehill, West Haven, Abbey Temaraire, Whitemount, Far Isle, Greendale, Wildwood, and Deep Hollow.
posted on Dragonsfoot, (January 27, 2018)
Characters:
As mentioned above, ability scores are listed as Strength, Intelligence, Wisdom, Constitution, Dexterity, and Charisma, which is the order used in OD&D and Holmes Basic.
Many characters are described to possess helmets, an item from the equipment list in OD&D and Holmes Basic (as well as AD&D) but not in B/X or BECMI.
Levels range from 1-14, as the D&D Companion Set would not be released until the following year. However, it appears that various editions of the Expert Set rules were used.*
*see Which BECMI D&D Expert Rulebook do you have? posted on Wayne's Books, (October 28, 2019) for a comparison of the two versions
Spell progression for clerics is taken from BECMI (the same in both versions), although spell progression for magic-users and elves are listed as per B/X.
Finally, thief skill progression is taken from the 1981 Cook/Marsh edition or 1st printing of the 1983 Expert Set rules (before thieves got "nerfed").
What to make of all this?
Perhaps Smith devised stats as per OD&D/Holmes, wrote a first draft using B/X, and someone updated saving throws and clerical spells using the 1983 revised Expert Set rules.
Special Characters;
From left to right: Zarak the evil half-orc, Raven the cleric, Kelek the evil sorcerer, Zargash the cleric, Skylla the evil magic-user, Fox Fingers the thief, and Warduke the evil fighter. Artwork by Timothy Truman, Jeff Easley, and Larry Elmore
Warduke***** appeared on the cover of Dungeon #105 (December, 2003), wherein the character was brought into Greyhawk lore and underwent a 3e update, in "Critical Threats".
*****name and character design a dark take on Mike Grell's "Warlord"
Finally, many of the special characters recently appeared in the "The Wild Beyond the Witchlight" adventure module for 5e:
The Shady Dragon Tavern:
The Shady Dragon Tavern is where all the members of the Adventurer's Guild meet. Members of the Guild gather here to swap yams, chat with old friends, or make contacts for the next adventure. All classes and levels of members mingle freely, from novices to experts, and from fighters to halflings.
The Shady Dragon Inn (1983)
"The Shady Dragon Inn" by Carl Smith, from Polyhedron #16 (Jan/Feb, 1984).
A two-page article appearing in Polyhedron #16 describes the staff of the Shady Dragon Inn, along with a more complete description of the Inn itself.
Floorplan of the Shady Dragon Tavern, from Polyhedron #16 (Jan/Feb, 1984).
The original map is in 25 mm scale.*
*see also The Shady Dragon Inn (Dungeondraft Timelapse)
Quagmire!
Tower of Doom:
There's a Shady Dragon Inn located in the town of Nemiston in the Republic of Darokin, in the "Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom" video game (1994) by Capcom.
Credits:
Editing: Michael Williams
Product Design: Ray Silbersdorf
Art: James Holloway et al
Cover Art: Larry Day
From day 1 playing D&D with a secondhand copy of Moldvay Basic in 1983 my group used character sheets where CON came before DEX. Even now that seems the 'right' way to me. I never realised its origins in Holmes and 0e.
ReplyDeleteYes! I believe the swap between Dex and Con originated in 1e and was replicated in B/X.
DeleteI didn't know about the Polyhedron article w Shady Dragon Inn material. Great write-up!
ReplyDeleteCool, right?
DeleteAnd thanks for that post covering the differences between the two versions of the BECMI expert rulebook - it made writing this post a lot easier!
Fantastic work. Thank you so much for all of these well-researched write-ups on the old B/X and BECMI era modules. You're a hero!
ReplyDeleteThanks - I'm glad you're enjoying them! My goal is to capture a lot of this information before it disappears.
Delete