Here is my miniscule corner of the internet to document my journey with a game that has brought me much enjoyment: Tunnels & Trolls. Why Tunnels & Trolls, particularly an old version of it, when there are so many games out there to be had? Well, partially because I'm an old crud. I like old games (not to say that Tunnels & Trolls has stayed a "dusty" game from the past...the new Deluxe verison is an amazing work). I never really made the transition into newer systems; I own many, and I always end up going back to the original older material, and I see no reason to change. But, regardless, T&T is all I need.
First, the system brilliantly lends itself to concepts that I've decided are desirable in a role-playing game. The most important factor here is abstraction. The rules themselves are based upon an abstract approach, meaning that if you grew up like I did, where the lion's share of the burden was on the dungeon master to make the game "their own," then this system is the perfect choice. As a kid, this is where being poor might have been a blessing. I couldn't afford all of the supplements that were published for the big-dog game at first, AD&D 1st edition. We got along on the Holmes "blue book" and added a lot to it. We made a lot of stuff up ourselves—our own character classes, our own monsters, and our own campaign worlds. We had to make it our own, and we were somewhat disillusioned when we finally got the hardbacks of the big game, only to find out that we were doing things wrong. By this time, it was canonized, and, though I had one buddy to run T&T with (he had a copy of the 5th edition), nobody but he and I would play it here and there. It always felt more liberating than the other game somehow—more free, more wild, more spontaneous.
Yes, I know; I've heard it before: Tunnels and Trolls has problems. I always encounter people's complaints about T&T and how it suffers from illogical flaws within the mechanics. Some of these complaints are valid, but I'd argue that those apparent flaws are simply opportunities for one to interpret the problem as one sees fit. Tunnels & Trolls has never been Dungeons & Dragons, and I think that is the biggest problem with people who approach the game. Gygax's invention left little room for interpretation. The exquisite completeness of that game might have just been a detriment, not an asset (at least it seems that way now, being older and looking back on it). In fact, I'd go as far as to say that if you are new to T&T and coming from a game like D&D or AD&D, you are going to have to give yourself an adjustment period—a length of time to reset your brain in such a manner as to make some sense of the game itself. It IS an entirely different beast. If you try to impose the philosophy of another system on top, you will be strongly disappointed, and this brings me to the second thing that I really appreciate about this game.
A lot of what is out there is simply a variant of Dungeons & Dragons, at least in the most rudimentary form. Tunnels & Trolls is not. It is unique. You must come at this without the baggage of the other game. Yes, it shares concepts as far as the setting, basic attributes, and weapons but this game doesn't function fundamentally the same way. Many OSR games are simply a re-skinning of D&D, and I don't find that they work so hot for solo play as they weren't designed that way. Luckilly, we're in an era where soloing has become a thing, so there ARE good solo options out there to be had (I have many of them), but, you know what? Tunnels & Trolls did this already, and they did it back in '77 or so. Tunnels & Trolls is brilliant in its simplicity. It can be as easy as you want it to be, having only 3 or 4 basic rule elements to make it function. For this reason, I'm running the 4th edition currently. All versions of the game are excellent, and you won't find any other system with a similar lineage that has stayed true to its original rule set. There are only minor differences in all of the versions, from the first alliteration up to the "Deluxe" edition. In other words, it really matters very little which version you decide to play, as they are all very easily compatible. Perhaps the most popular edition currently remains the 5th edition. Only time will tell what Rebellion Unplugged does with it (the company that recently purchased T&T).
There's some "inflation" that occurred between T&T 4th and 5th, similar to D&D original and basic version to advanced versions. This means, in T&T 5th, weapons do more damage, monsters then tend to get number-fatter, and your character attributes are beefier. For example, warriors get double their armor protection (!). Roll you up a dwarf warrior, and you got an iron fire plug, buddy! Things get more elaborated on in the Deluxe edition, as it adds a lot more possibilities without changing the original rules much. I have and like them all, but I find the 4th edition to be the "sweet spot." Weapons do less damage, monster ratings can be run a little less pumped, and, most importantly, because of the way T&T is constructed, you have fewer dice to manage at the table. Once you get this edition down pat (and it won't take long at all), it facilitates speed at the gaming table. There's not as much to keep track of, which is a good thing.
T&T embraced the imagination on a more fantastic level, in my estimation, than the game that inspired it. I find it refreshing that Ken St. André's approach to this game is "put it in if you want to, leave it out if you don't." Anything is possible in the world that you design. T&T encourages house rules. You can do that without any guilt of not playing the game "as it was intended to be," for this is exactly how it was intended to be, and that's spelled out clearly in the rules.
On this next point, few seem to agree with me, including T&T players. People have whined for years about the lack of a bestiary. Those are cool in concept, but wouldn't you rather design your own monsters? I know I would. As simple as the system is, there's no reason not to. Apparently, few feel this way. It must be me, but I love the fact that I have to do some work, use my imagination, and really come up with things like this. You want spaceships? Add them in. Want firearms, skills, superpowers, self-destructive magic, laser guns, or psychic powers? Drop them right on in. In fact, do you like the rule aspects of other games or want to steal the monsters from them? You can do that easily with T&T. You ain't got but a few or no gaming friends? No problem! Run solo. T&T was the originator of the concept as we generally accept it. You can do all of this easily with T&T, and more. With Tunnels & Trolls, if you can imagine it, you can do it, and, perhaps more importantly, the game designer himself gives you permission to do so. This last point may seem trivial, but it isn't at all. To this day, people get into endless debates over whether or not some idea or concept was intended to be in the system of their choice. In fact, if it "isn't in the book," then "you can't do that." This game, from the get-go, way back in the olden days of the 1970's, said to hell with that. Do it if you want to! That's a pretty big deal if you stop and think about it.
