The Rundown

I am writing this Thursday morning, though I don't intend it to post up till Sunday. The holidays have caught up to me and my time over the next week or so will be fairly occupied.  Yes, I'll be checking emails, responding to comments, etc. but I doubt I'm going to get much posted before the New Year, unless it's a "happy Christmas" missive or something.

In deep diving the Unearthed Arcana these last several weeks (has it only been since Thanksgiving? My how time flies...) I've found that it isn't all bad. True, it is mostly bad, but that's still better than I expected to find. It's interesting to wonder if my pained memories of UA's indulgences (so awful in implementation 'back in the day') may have been part of what prevented me from taking up the torch of 1E far sooner than I have...that those indiscretions of my youth may have left a bad taste in my mouth putting me off the AD&D game and leading me down the road of B/X play, obstinately turning up my nose at the better game for years. If so...how sad. It's certainly true that my enthusiasm and fire for 1st edition was stoked immensely with the realization that I could simply play the game with the original (three) core books, that I need not adapt the entirety of the line.

Well, whatever...water under the bridge. I am immensely enjoying my game as is, and...

[pause, as I take my first sips of coffee in some nine days. Apologies: I got back from Mexico on the 8th, fully addicted to caffeine and had to (once again) go through the rigamarole of breaking my dependency. This involved quite a bit of excruciating withdrawal symptoms as well as a seven day juice fast...I just started eating again yesterday, but this my first morning with a freshly brewed pot of decaf. Mmmm...]

*ahem* As I was saying, my game is immensely satisfying the way it is now, but with my new broad-minded attitude, I think it no great crime to add the good from the UA to my campaign.  Keeping in mind that I have yet to examine...let alone curate...the spell lists and magic items; here is the current list of items from the Unearthed Arcana that I will henceforth be including (presented in the order in which they appear):

• (page 8) Non-human characters who choose to single-class in a class that they could normally be multi-classed have their maximum level limits raised by +2.
• (page 13) Armor permitted updated as per the table. New weapons, where added, as per the table. Old weapons (thieves using short bows?): NO. New weapons that are not a part of the campaign (staff slings and hand crossbows, for example) are ignored. Yes, assassins can use a shield and still perform an assassination attempt. Likewise, if a character wishes to pick up and keep a weapon they can't use, I'm generally okay with it.
• (page 14) No cavaliers. However, see my new Bogatyr class which WILL be part of the campaign. They are generally only found east of the Cascades.
• (page 17) I don't mind there being a 15th level Grand Druid (good luck getting to three million experience points!). My own campaign setting has a 14th level Great Druid, but I'm sure he/she is beholden to a higher power...there's always someone bigger. No hierophants as of yet (and maybe never).
• (page 18) Barbarians are being added, as much a "sub-race" of humans as a "sub class" of fighters. The class is largely unchanged from how it appears, save that there are no attribute requirements for entry. In my campaign, there aren't many "barbarian tribes;" you'll find them in the frozen lands to the north (British Columbia), in some of the deeper jungles to the south (Oregon), and in the mountains of the Idaho Deathlands (to the east)...basically, the farther away you get from "civilization" (Washington State) the more barbaric the humans you'll find. 0-level human types the barbarian replaces in the MM (cavemen, dervishes, nomads, and tribesman, etc.) remain 0-level, d6 hit point type creatures. NOTE: a barbarian may only receive x.p. from a "sold" magic item if it is an item they could normally use (as per the table on page 20). Otherwise, the barbarian receives NO SHARE in the x.p. gained by the party (though they may give the barbarian a cut of the money received).
• (page 22) Ranger's "giant class" opponents updated as listed. No other changes to the ranger from its appearance in the PHB.
• (page 22) Thief ability armor adjustments for wearing armor other than leather now added.
• (page 23) Thief-Acrobats now added, as written.
• (page 26) Field plate (as per the DMG) remains a part of the game, but is not available for purchase in every one-horse town. All new weapons added, with the EXCEPT for the hand crossbow and staff sling (both are Drow weapons, first appearing in the D-series of modules; perhaps they are available for purchase/learning in the Underdark). I see no reason to include the buckler...isn't that just a "small wood shield?"...but the spiked buckler is okay.
• (page 27) New weapons get their bonuses. As there is no "full plate" armor, only AC adjustments to 1 are considered. Full plate may be added in the future as "jousting plate" or "tournament plate" but it will be bulky armor and have a movement rate of 6". "Field plate" is the fitted plate armor that is worn on the battlefield for real combat.
• (pages 28-31) All spells will need to be reviewed before being implemented. When choosing spells to cast, players are restricted to spells found in the PHB. All UA spells will require spell research to acquire, though they may be found on spell scrolls or in certain grimoires (see S4: The Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth). No cantrips.
• (page 72) "Appendix VI" of the WotC re-print. As stated, armor penalties are implemented as listed. Thieves and their subclasses may NOT perform "thief skills" when wearing armor heavier than studded or elfin chain. Bards wearing magical chainmail are penalized as if wearing elfin chain. All multi-class options are ignored in favor of the (standard) PHB lists.
• (page 75) Armor and encumbrance for new armors as per table. Field plate provides no bonus other than a high armor class (if "jousting plate" is permitted, the same will hold true)...no "damage absorption."
• (page 77-78) New weapons as described with the exceptions already listed.
• (page 79) I am still deciding how to use/implement spell books in my campaign.
• (page 80) Illusionists acquire spells as per the DMG; there is no read illusionist magic in my game and no such spell is required to read illusionist spells/scrolls. There are no cantrips.
• (page 80) Cost of magic-user/illusionist spell casting: these rates are a little low (in my opinion), but they form a good starting basis for negotiation.
• (page 82) Combat penalties in darkness are adopted. Ignore all references to faerie fire (spell is used as per the PHB). 
• (page 84-106) New magic items will be reviewed as needed, although magical field plate, full plate, and elfin chain should all be cut from the lists...sorry!

I have not yet reviewed the appendices. My base impulse is to ignore Appendix Q: Weaponless Combat (I'm happy with the DMG, thank you very much), but Appendix R: Non-Lethal Combat looks interesting. I do not allow demi-human clerics as PCs, nor do I care much about their gods, so Roger Moore's Appendix S: Non-Human Deities is absolutely worthless to me...it's just crap filler. Appendix T: Pole Arm Nomenclature (from Dragon Magazine #22!) is helpful but provides no actual game mechanics.

Aaaaand...that's all she wrote. Happy holidays, folks!