Today's slick Adobe Indesign presentations are works of art in their own right, and it was a reason I collected as may Pathfinder books as I do (and the D&D 5 ones are pretty too). But they are almost unnaturally slick and polished in a way that I can only describe as 'Christmas coffee table books looked at once' and then left on the table as a prestige item.
I have owned games with such high presentation values I read them once and never played them. Video games too, so slick and full of themselves that I feel I just can't get into them and give them the time they 'deserve' just based on their slick style and flashy looks.
Familiar and Accessible
There is a level of familiar here that inspires me to play. Instead of pushing us away with production values our own creations could never attain, the simpler B/X style books with an occasional in-joke or strange piece of art is a more populist and accessible presentation and it appeals to me on a practical and game-creator level. The typography and layout isn't pretentious, it is familiar and welcoming. The books aren't coffee-table art pieces, they are working guides and feel like they are meant to be used. They are beautiful to me in an entirely different way than fancy art and slick layouts - they are beautiful in their utility and beer and pretzels 'pick up and play me' style.I think another thought on this 'beautiful in a different way' feeling I am having with these books is everything is right where I expect it to be. I can find a rule quick. When I am looking for a rule, I always pick up the right book. The book on character creation is all you need to create characters. Spells are over there. The referee lives out of the core rule book, and these rules are so familiar that book is almost never needed outside of the rare special situation that comes up.
I can't wait for the upcoming B/X Monsters book, and I hope we get lists of magic items and treasures somewhere down the road. Another reason I can't wait is that I am a completest in collecting things, which means I will buy every book in this series no matter what. Druid, Bard, and Illusionist book? I know they are not B/X, but I am in. Planes book with demons and strange extra-worldly places? I am buying. I know at a certain point the original B/X source material will run out, but elaborations and 'how would B/X do this' done on the vast ocean of new B/X content would certainly be welcome to see, at least by me. And I also get this feeling of there are games in development based on these books that I will want to check out as well. Patience!
But yeah, there is a transcendent beauty here beyond presentation. Simplicity. Modularity. This feels like a well put together programming API for a computer programming language, but in this case for B/X gaming and as a base for all sorts of cool creations. Include what you want, and put aside what you do not want.
A Limited Focus Game Feels Good
Also, there isn't everything one would expect in these books, since they aren't everything and the kitchen-sink creations. Cleric spells go up to 5th level, and magic users go up to 6th. But...my 7th and 9th level spells! I can't play this! Well, that scholarly presentation style and 'sticking to the source material' thing comes up and if those weren't in the original inspired by source material they don't have a place in a digest-style summary of what the original books were all about.So the spells go up to 6th? That was 98% of the spells used in my games over the years so I don't really feel anything is left out, and I actually like that limited focus, and I have had several players who would welcome the high-level bad guys not being able to pop a wish spell. If I ever needed the higher level spells, Labyrinth Lord or any other B/X game is right there with them handy. Played as-is, this feels like a more gritty, medium-magic, and balanced version where spell-casting (and magic items) don't dominate the game as much as later editions.
Spells are still the 'magic I win button' in many situations, but I like them limited in uses, and I like their casters to be fragile. I also like a more limited spell list and forcing players to 'deal with what this world gives you' instead of having every favorite D&D 3.5 and Pathfinder choice at their hands in Hero Lab.
This B/X world has 34 cleric spells and 72 magic user spells, which would be quite a lot in a video-game. They are all the classics. Be creative and make due. Less is more and I get this feeling with less choices spellcasters will actually be more effective because there are less distractions and more impetus to be creative with the spells you do have. With my Pathfinder collection I feel 80% of the game dozens of books in are options I never use nor want (or will ever use).
It is a strange feeling when I think about it, I could play and run campaigns in B/X Essentials and not feel I am losing anything with a more-focused game. Plus, the game is built to expand, so if you want more just pull exactly what you want in.
Want Choices? Stay in B/X
Besides, if I want choices I will play Labyrinth Lord and have it all, relatively speaking, and still have a more focused and limited-choice game than a D&D 3.5 style game by far. Even when I want choice and complexity I can stay in a B/X framework with another game, and I do not lose anything at all. I am not switching rules systems and having to relearn everything, or deal with games that require a level of (time investment) system mastery that I feel are designed to keep you locked in because of money, time, and effort spent.If I switch between B/X Essentials or Labyrinth Lord (or any other B/X system) I am not losing much, and they are all really mostly compatible with each other. I could play Barrowmaze Complete (designed for Labyrinth Lord) with B/X Essentials and it all just works. Spells work. Monsters can be pulled out of Labyrinth Lord and work. Traps work. Saves work. The hit points and AC scale is the same. Damages are mostly the same. Special magic items in LL and not in B/X work. The amount of times you really need to tweak or fix something I feel will be very, very low. Maybe there is a difference in a spell as written, but if you are playing B/X, use the B/X version.
The real difference? Labyrinth Lord goes up higher in levels compared to B/X Complete. Most classes go to 20 in LL versus 14 in B/X. If you play the higher-level areas of Barrowmaze this may come into play. You could always allow progression past 14 in B/X and crib from LL if that ever came up, no problem and that is what I would do.
The Focus is Creating
Whenever I buy something I always ask myself, "Can I picture myself running this?" I feel this one is a yes. But the real focus here is as a base for other games, and I feel that is where this series excels. If we were presented infinite options like a Labyrinth Lord, this would be less-useful as a base for creating new things. Again we go back to that simple computer programming API. Well-designed computer programming languages have this elegance to them, this simplicity, and this modular nature - and I see this here. Want to write a B/X sci-fi game? Really, 90% of your non sci-fi base rules specific work is done for you here, and all you need to do is extend and expand on options.
I would love my computer language to do everything for me and give me every option, but in doing that the language gets heavy and tied to specific file formats and functions. Here? This is a great, generic, basic system that covers adventuring, combat, and creating characters. It is presented in a modular format where you can totally cut out the fantasy elements. That is what you need to get started creating anything else, and the beauty is excess and extraneous options and fluff are not included. You add those, or you build a new game and do something new without being weighted down.
That's why I love this game and how it is presented and designed.
More soon as I open the books and read further.
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