tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post2423154575073915090..comments2024-03-28T22:28:01.028-07:00Comments on B/X BLACKRAZOR: Conan the Barbarian, B/X ThiefJBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03263662621289630246noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-56245020544267985822023-06-12T07:34:33.717-07:002023-06-12T07:34:33.717-07:00He never picked pockets or backstabbed anyone, but...He never picked pockets or backstabbed anyone, but hiding in shadows and climbing was a big part of what he was doing. This is the part of his life the movie picked up on. <br />Ruprechthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00139664977453444000noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-47450664797100266572023-06-12T07:30:57.751-07:002023-06-12T07:30:57.751-07:00Though, to be fair, most D&D characters are we...Though, to be fair, most D&D characters are well versed in burglary.<br />; )JBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03263662621289630246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-36256037581676498682023-06-11T17:25:07.507-07:002023-06-11T17:25:07.507-07:00In "Tower of the Elephant" he breaks int...In "Tower of the Elephant" he breaks into a tower to steal. In "God in the Bowl" he was robbing a temple. Both take place early in his career but he was definately a thief.Ruprechthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00139664977453444000noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-65531888993623466322017-07-31T13:49:24.967-07:002017-07-31T13:49:24.967-07:00@ Motley:
Admittedly, not all that often in Howar...@ Motley:<br /><br />Admittedly, not all that often in Howard's original stories (it's more incidental looting than picking pockets). I'm certain my perspective when writing this was influenced by the character as depicted in film and Marvel comics.<br />; )JBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03263662621289630246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-45415082659645918542017-07-31T08:25:15.847-07:002017-07-31T08:25:15.847-07:00but does he steal?but does he steal?Motley Strangerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04313254610357181827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-31897877844042679862013-12-02T04:28:49.517-08:002013-12-02T04:28:49.517-08:00Conan is almost always wearing at least chain armo...Conan is almost always wearing at least chain armor unless he is in the wilds. He wears FULL PLATE whenever he can in battlefield situations. He uses 2-handed melee weapons at times. He moves silently with utter perfection wearing a full chain shirt and criticizes others for not wearing enough armor. Your characterization, while clever, is wildly inaccurate to someone who knows the character well.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-38022989204327919332012-11-23T13:29:15.394-08:002012-11-23T13:29:15.394-08:00Thanks!Thanks!JBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08532311924539491087noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-55222235291191077512009-09-15T14:43:35.672-07:002009-09-15T14:43:35.672-07:00@Matthew:
So freakin weird that you ask about Gyg...@Matthew:<br /><br />So freakin weird that you ask about Gygax's Conan take in an old '80s Dragon mag...<br /><br />...Cuz I just snagged that issue at my FLGS, literally 5 minutes ago.<br /><br />It's from issue #36 from April 1980, in the From the Sorcerer's Scroll section.<br /><br />I'll post some of the article, at least the stats later for ya'll. I'm on my cell phone here and text entry kinda sux.yoyorobbohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08375340160423546919noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-76302806049428088042009-09-15T13:36:58.827-07:002009-09-15T13:36:58.827-07:00Now that I think about it, didn't Gygax do a w...Now that I think about it, didn't Gygax do a write up of Conan as a character in an old issue of Dragon back in the 80s?Matthew Schmeerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11348372645986806502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-36636767807382676092009-09-12T13:33:49.485-07:002009-09-12T13:33:49.485-07:00@ Akraysia...I find several of Howard's tales ...@ Akraysia...I find several of Howard's tales to be comedic; I like the one where Conan knocks himself out running into a wall while drunk. But in the final analysis, consider this: in D&D terms, Conan survives to a "high level" through a mixture of daring, cunning, and luck. The tales we read are only his "best adventures" (where he succeeded at the majority of his "rolls"). <br /><br />Personally, I am a fan of B/X D&D precisely because it CAN be used to model these iconic personalities...with a little bit of thought. <br /><br />By the way: cool thief class. ; )JBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08532311924539491087noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-18094274056860732322009-09-12T09:52:03.495-07:002009-09-12T09:52:03.495-07:00"I've always argued (to AD&D players)..."<i>I've always argued (to AD&D players) that Conan is the textbook example of a thief who dual-classes as a fighter later in his career... </i>"<br /><br />Yeah, in AD&D terms, the thief --> fighter dual class certainly makes the most sense when trying to stat up Conan.Akrasiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08734103159691571156noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-91644784429322895922009-09-12T09:50:22.835-07:002009-09-12T09:50:22.835-07:00Great post. An interesting and thought-provoking ...Great post. An interesting and thought-provoking take on Conan! <br /><br />Still, at lower levels, thieves have pretty lame abilities in B/X D&D (IMO), and it's hard to imagine a young Conan having only a 20% chance of hiding in shadows, or whatever. If so, Howard's tales would have been far more comedic! <br /><br />It is my dissatisfaction with the inability of classic D&D (whether 0e, Basic, or 1e) to model such iconic characters as Conan and the Gray Mouser that led me to design my own version of the thief class. (In case anyone is curious, it can be found here: http://akraticwizardry.blogspot.com/2009/06/thief-akratic-version.html).Akrasiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08734103159691571156noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-34382375366949870492009-09-11T06:12:05.077-07:002009-09-11T06:12:05.077-07:00"...he's a land-owning thief in his later..."...he's a land-owning thief in his later years..."<br /><br />That's how I see him, too. Hmmm...the idea of usurpation leading to Dominion may be something that should be included in my B/X Companion rules. What of the person who simply DISGUISES himself to look like the king? Or uses magic to mind-control a ruler? Hmmm...it's at least something that bears mentioning.<br /><br />Must ponder...JBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08532311924539491087noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-73928399214336464912009-09-11T04:02:32.167-07:002009-09-11T04:02:32.167-07:00Yeah, I've always argued (to AD&D players)...Yeah, I've always argued (to AD&D players) that Conan is the textbook example of a thief who dual-classes as a fighter later in his career... Take away dual-classing, add in the Dominion rules, and he's a land-owning thief in his later years. As interesting as barbarian cultures can be, they don't need a super-powered class ;)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-21576442626049478142009-09-10T13:26:39.631-07:002009-09-10T13:26:39.631-07:00@ Yoyo: Thanks. I actually have CB2 somewhere (wit...@ Yoyo: Thanks. I actually have CB2 somewhere (with Thoth-Amon!) so I’m aware of the OLD way of D&D “did Conan.” Personally I was never quite satisfied with it. I guess it always seemed like a cop out to me: “Oh, the characters of literature are too complicated to model in our game system, so we’ll break the usual rules to better model it.” Just bite the bullet and make him a strong Thief already! Hell, if you’re writing him up, give him max hit points per die. Lord knows, in B/X play 7 hit points per die is more than most fighters have (and 8 hit points per die, which would be the maximum for D6 +2 for Con in AD&D, is more than the average AD&D fighter as well!).<br /><br />@ Lord KG: I expect nothing less than your regular harping on the D4 subject.<br />; )<br /><br />@ Everyone Else: Glad I’m not the only weird one out here!JBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08532311924539491087noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-86814249106158080622009-09-10T12:34:12.086-07:002009-09-10T12:34:12.086-07:00I'm waiting for the character sheet. . .I'm waiting for the character sheet. . .Matthew Schmeerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11348372645986806502noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-543977069278958332009-09-10T12:20:33.700-07:002009-09-10T12:20:33.700-07:00Nice post, per usual.
If you're interested an...Nice post, per usual.<br /><br />If you're interested and don't have the mod to see this, here's how Conan is stat'd out in the 1984 AD&D module CB1 Conan Unchained!:<br /><br /><b><br />Conan!<br /><br />Fighter: 13<br />Thief: 7<br /><br />Hit Points: 100<br />Luck Points: 12<br /><br />STR: 18/90<br />INT: 14<br />WIS: 10<br />DEX: 18<br />CON: 18<br />CHA: 17<br /><br />Weapon Proficiencies: sword (all types), bow (all types), axe (all types), club, mace, dagger<br /><br />Secondary Skills: fletcher, forester, gambler, hunter, sailor, trapper<br /><br />Special: Conan is only surprised on a 1 in 8<br /><br />Equipment: leather armor, broad sword, dagger, 50 gp<br /></b><br /><br />I understand you're doing the B/X route here with him, but just as an additional take by TSR in 1st ed AD&D, I thought you might find some it interesting. I think I have some other stats for him, in other systems...I'll look now and hit ya back here again, if I find any.<br /><br />Oh yeah..."Luck Points?" Just something they used to allow for some more "superhuman" abilities of a stud like Conan. All characters could do these things, just some not as good as others. A character could spend Luck Points to try extra "heroic, amazing, or impossible feats." Ah well, that's how they put it, anyway.yoyorobbohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08375340160423546919noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-14692974500476645342009-09-10T11:32:31.688-07:002009-09-10T11:32:31.688-07:00From an OD&D or Swords & Wizardry standpoi...From an OD&D or Swords & Wizardry standpoint, Conan could very well be the ultimate justification for the Fighting Man class, in a system where there is no default Thief class, just smart, dexterous, lightly-armored Fighting Men with roguish dispositions.<br /><br />But yes, in B/X, I don't think a high-level thief with remarkable scores in Str, Dex, and Con would be an inappropriate representation of Conan, especially in a world of mostly 0-level humans. When you offer up archetypes like King Arthur or Siegfried as examples of what the Fighter class is supposed to represent, the distinction becomes even more appropriate.Alhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01682401446176099294noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-14211641786449379382009-09-10T10:58:23.267-07:002009-09-10T10:58:23.267-07:00Agreed. Conan is definitely a thief when brought o...Agreed. Conan is definitely a thief when brought over to B/X. Especially with how little armour he wears in most of his exploits.Dyson Logoshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14352404068239792475noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-27269818865059479892009-09-10T10:29:30.665-07:002009-09-10T10:29:30.665-07:00I agree with virtually everything you've writt...I agree with virtually everything you've written except for the d4 hit dice part. I continue to believe that thieves are fighting men who learned sneaking and skulduggery skills instead of advanced combat skills, not regular men who know thief skills. Conan is an extreme example of this, and I agree with Atom Kid that no single class really fits Conan.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-19602381466387908732009-09-10T09:42:02.496-07:002009-09-10T09:42:02.496-07:00I don't think that there is one class that Con...I don't think that there is one class that Conan really fits. Sure he was a thief, mostly in his early days. He was a barbarian brawler first, he was also a pirate (which is basically the same thing as a thief), a military commander, cheiftain and a king. <br /><br />I think the classes might be too restricting for Conan, but thief would work for his early days.Chad Thorsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15084711824869449643noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4143435314932633148.post-35741903946671742212009-09-10T09:39:56.063-07:002009-09-10T09:39:56.063-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.Chad Thorsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15084711824869449643noreply@blogger.com