Creating an adventure Old-School Style with BX D&D

Here is the game we played with this adventure: • Actual Play - BX D&D -...
In this video, I use the system for creating dungeon adventures presented in the 1981 version of Basic Dungeons & Dragons (BX). We roll randomly, filling each room, and use the randomness to create a fun D&D adventure.
Welcome to Bandit's Keep where we play a variety of tabletop role-playing games!

[@GoodRogue]

This material helped me go through the writer's block. Thanks, Daniel!

[@BanditsKeep]

Glad it helped!

[@Grimlore82]

I love how the algorithms have found this channel. I have been listening to your videos at work, and just never stop.

[@BanditsKeep]

Awesome, thank you 🙏🏻

[@roguishowl3915]

Agree, what a gem of a channel.

[@davemills7717]

I liked Lin Carter's Years Best, I always thought it was funny that one of his always ended up in there. Eudoric's Unicorn in #3 and Sandmagic in #6 still stand out in my mind 30+ years later

[@BanditsKeep]

How to get on a “years best” list? Write it yourself 😊 - that being said I have enjoyed his stories and have read several of his standalone novels as well.

[@Lowe505]

Moldvey is my favorite version of D&D because of its versatile style. Adding to the B/X rules is easy and i consider Basic D&D to be a template for any rpg. Updating Basic is easy as well just add a ascending AC and thats it.

[@BanditsKeep]

For sure, my favorite version as well

[@swirvinbirds1971]

So true... My friend made his own wild west rpg using the same basic rules template. I believe TSR's Buck Rodgers RPG basically did the same thing as well.

[@misterschifano]

Why does everyone seem to hate descending AC? Is it because BX makes it seem like you need the whole to-hit table handy? Because you really don't need it. That's why AD&D 2e re-expressed the whole thing as THAC0. And sure, that's another game, but most D&D players are pretty smart and could figure it out themselves just by looking at how the to-hit matrix works. The player rolls, adds the factors they know about, and tells the DM what they got. Then the DM adds the target AC and any other player-unknowns and compares to the player's THAC0. That's it. Like, ascending AC is fine too, if you like it better, but IMO descending is actually easier on the player because they only need to know their bonuses.

[@merchantmaker1771]

​@@misterschifano Isn't that still true for ascending armor class though?

[@misterschifano]

@@merchantmaker1771 Yes. It's the same thing, it's just is the number + on one side or - on the other. That's the point I was making... people act like it's so different but it isn't, really. I prefer descending simply because there's a public hard target... if I do actually roll my THAC0, I can usually straight tell the DM I hit-- and over the course of a few sessions that helps me do my part to move combat along.

[@TodSteinbauer]

I was 8 years old in 1976 when the basic Red box edition was released and I was hooked.

[@BanditsKeep]

Nice

[@erikmartin4996]

I completely forgot about this section of the book. Haven’t played B/X since 83

[@LogHewer]

Just found your channel and I'm loving it. Truly enjoy the old-school d&d content. Thanks for sharing! Most channels focus on short, zippy videos to address one specific thing and wrap it up quickly. I like to sip my coffee, peruse my graph pad, and listen to these good ideas at a conversational pace and enjoy a longer video to delve a little deeper into the subject. Well done. 🍻

[@jackcozad6345]

It's cool to see how Basic Moldvey gives you plenty to get a dungeon made. As you demonstrate, you can use those random rolls for inspiration and come up with a plot for how to connect everything together. Thanks for the video!

[@BanditsKeep]

For sure!

[@NotANameist]

Such a cool idea to see the adventure from design to actual play!

[@BanditsKeep]

Thanks! It was fun to do

[@SentientSoup]

@@BanditsKeep is there an actual play of this? I must watch it. Same name? Do tell!

[@BanditsKeep]

@@SentientSoup the link is in the description

[@Reuben-]

Thank you for this! I to am trying roll back to thin books with simpler rules. Thank you again!

[@BanditsKeep]

I definitely recommend BX as a very simple and “light weight” system.

[@sebastiang7528]

As always, really great video. It’s so interesting to see you build a dungeon and then watch your players go through it.

[@BanditsKeep]

Thanks

[@jackdeth5009]

Super interesting video Daniel, your creative process reminds me of your photo teaching work!

[@BanditsKeep]

Thanks 😊

[@intevolver]

your process is so insightful, thank you.

[@BanditsKeep]

Thanks!

[@Eron_the_Relentless]

Never heard of the game science book, thanks for the rec!

[@BanditsKeep]

Yeah, I think it’s pretty obscure, I picked it up at Gen-con in their booth.

[@darthbrooks4933]

GURPS is king. D&D has the best settings. I just combine them. Starting a “GurpsHawk” campaign

[@BanditsKeep]

Nice

[@MikeWhiskyTango]

I definitely got B1 with the basic box set. Still have it. I also bought it for a friend's kid's birthday and he got B1 in it.

[@BanditsKeep]

Excellent, I am not the only one!

[@MikeWhiskyTango]

@@BanditsKeep My brother also got B1 in the box set, but he suggested it may perhaps have been an Australian variation of the norm, like they did in the UK.

[@mrz87456]

What a great video. Super interesting to see the process and how the story comes up on its own from random rolls! Will definitely be taking this into my adventures. I know this video came out a while ago but I'd love to see more like it!

[@BanditsKeep]

Thank You! There are a few more on the channel, I’d love to know what you think

[@VengerSatanis]

I'm still convinced I got The Lost City in my Moldvay box set.

[@BanditsKeep]

I swear I got B1, maybe someone at TSR messed up a few!

[@VengerSatanis]

@@BanditsKeep I'm ready to believe you!

[@feagal612]

Really liking this channel recently, great to have on in the background due to the conversational style. Thank you :)

[@BanditsKeep]

Cool! Thanks!

[@MarkHyde]

Necroing an older video - this is an amazing video. Love it. I'm an '80s BECMI and just love these classic D&D rules even if I missed B/X

[@BanditsKeep]

Awesome

[@28mmRPG]

been scooping on your videos lately, subbed, cool stuff

[@BanditsKeep]

Awesome, thanks!

[@SentientSoup]

This is great! Thank you for your creative work. I am engaging in a dungeon creation for my B/X game. You have inspired me to use my Moldvay Basic to do it. Yay! 😁

[@BanditsKeep]

Awesome! Let me know how it works out.

[@freddaniel5099]

Interesting video! Fun to see how the rulebook can be used to generate ideas for adventure. It has been a long time (if ever) since I rolled up an adventure like this. These days I usually get my inspiration for the design of my adventures from stories, art/ illustration or from another game aid - which I usually combine with other ideas.

[@BanditsKeep]

Yes, same with me, I typically have an idea already, but I think this is a pretty cool way of doing it and I’m sure that my style of creating adventures even now was influenced by this being the way that I learned how.

[@mikeh892]

The bit on modifying the monsters reminds me of why I love old school rulesets so much: They can be used as an easily-referenced framework to make the game whatever you want. I would rather do taxes than mess with a 300+ page rulebook. lol

[@BanditsKeep]

I agree

[@kendiamond7852]

Brother Jones 1st name is Jim & he had some killer kool aid to convince the others to join him. :)

[@BanditsKeep]

Indeed

[@MrCefus]

I love those old Modules and the maps that came with them. Drawing maps is what got me into keeping up with the game even as my buddies, at that time, lost interest. Turns out I liked drawing technical things I became a drafter and later an engineer. I've loved D&D forever and it has treated me pretty well as well.

[@BanditsKeep]

That’s awesome

[@erikmartin4996]

Gnomes could be dark gnomes who had been worshiping the statue on their own prior to it being uncovered. Great video

[@BanditsKeep]

Ah true! Good idea

[@retrodmray]

Another really good one! Brings back many great memories, and yes, you're right, just as I had also gotten my memory wrong too, but Holmes had the Keep module. Moldvay and Holmes was my start before thed m stepping into Advanced a year or two later.

[@BanditsKeep]

Awesome

[@stevefugatt7075]

Great video!

[@BanditsKeep]

Thank You!

[@Hayderino42]

Just found your channel, this was incredibly informative and inspirational! Listening to you go through the process step by step really laid out how easy it is to make interesting dungeons. Have you thought about making another video like this?

[@BanditsKeep]

Thank you! I made a video on preparation for an improvised game, and for a hex crawl, but not another dungeon build. It could be fun to do though!

[@sneakyfred]

Fantastic video! Filling me with inspiration to roll up my own Basic adventure. By the way, there is a "table" or rather a list of possible "Special" encounters starting at the bottom of page B52. :) Moaning room or corridor Room turns or sinks while the door locks Illusionary stairs or corridor Shifting block to close off corridor Trap door to tunnels Alarm that summons special monster Talking statue Magic pool whose waters have a strange effect Magic gate to another part of the dungeon Flying weapons which attack only if disturbed EDIT: realised you covered that later in the vid. ;) Nice job!

[@BanditsKeep]

Thanks! Yes, that list is a great inspiration, I appreciate you pointing it out. So much great content in the Basic book.

[@99zxk]

Appreciate the video. I started with this edition and have recently discovered Basic Fantasy and Labyrinth Lord, which are OSR clones of this edition. My current group and I are going to try it. I'm sure it's not important anymore, but some ants make other ants slaves, so it's always possible for ants to take prisoners. Also, how about an intelligent queen? Another idea I thought of with is that the cleric found a cursed item of ant control that corrupts the cleric's mind. The cleric then used their new power to make the ants attack the leader. They then convince the acolytes that the ants killing the leader was the act of the gods and his control over them proves that he is favored by the gods. Or maybe even the ant queen controls the cleric and destroying her frees the cleric. Honestly, I might use this adventure. Sounds fun.

[@BanditsKeep]

Those are all awesome ideas! If you run this let me know how it goes!

[@chrisrpg3913]

That's brilliant! Very inspiring thank you so much. This is something I often thought to do but never tried. I for sure will give a try now

[@BanditsKeep]

Awesome, let me know how it works out for you.

[@chrisrpg3913]

@@BanditsKeep I've got the Mentzer becmi, seems similar to me. 👍

[@BanditsKeep]

@@chrisrpg3913 Yes, I believe the two are very much alike

[@chrisrpg3913]

@@BanditsKeep Hi, don't want to bother you but this is something I would like to share. So, yesterday I've spent an hour doing this with my 8 yo son. We rolled a "rescue the prisoners" scenario, settled in a tomb. Not bad, but the tomb thing was a little scary for him, so we rolled again: caves. Ugh. Ok, special monsters. Who are the kidnappers? "Orcs!" he shouted. My first thought was: boring, but let's stick with it. Who they kidnapped? "A farmer!". "A farmer? Why? Farmers are not rich" I asked. We started a brief brainstorm. It turned out that this small orcs band (6 + commander) is really poor and derelict. They're starving too. They used to steal food from the farmer's fields at night, and they supposed that a man with all of that food could be very rich, so they do the kidnap. But the farmer family cannot pay the ransom, and so they will cry at the party for the rescue. We actually used the tomb also (but without undead... just a peaceful resting place). The cave where orcs are hiding in has a secret crypt, just behind the wall in the commander room. Orcs has no treasure, but the tomb has. Smart players will search for passages and find the tomb and the treasure. The added irony is that orcs was literally standing in front of it the whole time! They were rich without knowing it. Who is the buried? Why someone built a crypt inside a cave? These are the open questions that will lead to other ideas as well. Most importantly, we had 1 hour of fun :)

[@BanditsKeep]

@@chrisrpg3913 That sounds awesome!

[@kearnsguitars2236]

Yes the symbols!

[@Diabolik771]

Mine came with Keep on the Borderlands. I found a boxed copy in a thrift store and it too came with one.

[@BanditsKeep]

Awesome, classic module!

[@mrpolomar7251]

Enjoyed this.. I haven't played B/X since the early 80's, but this video gives me a hankering to have a go at using this for a B/X solo game! Enjoying your videos.

[@BanditsKeep]

Excellent! Let me know how it turns out, solo gaming has caught my interest

[@mrpolomar7251]

@@BanditsKeep I've only run a half dozen or so solo sessions before (simple random dungeon crawls) but really enjoyed them. Using this B/X system sounds like fun - I even still have my original books I can use! Did you ever end up running this adventure? Would be cool to see (or hear about) the session that emerged from all this work!

[@BanditsKeep]

@@mrpolomar7251 Yes! we had fun - kzbin.info/www/bejne/bqmyfYGDaMSsqMU

[@thomasmagda6678]

I would suggest if you havent seen it. look for an old black and white movie called THEM :()

[@BanditsKeep]

I’ll check it out

[@Kevlar-78]

Just found your channel. Great stuff ! Looking to get into OSE soon.

[@BanditsKeep]

Awesome

[@johnmagowan6393]

If I'm still singing Drver Ants to the tune of Barbara Ann tomorrow, you'll be hearing from my lawyer!

[@BanditsKeep]

😂

[@BlackJar72]

This would make sense in the Adventure Design list.

[@BanditsKeep]

Good idea!

[@thingamarob]

This was fun to watch. I've started making a million dungeons and rarely finished them. Have you done more videos like this?

[@BanditsKeep]

Yes, there are I believe 5 of them

[@krinkrin5982]

I love this dungeon. These tables are missing from later editions (the only one I remember from 3rd is 100 quest ideas), and they are poorer for it.

[@BanditsKeep]

The tables are great for sure

[@thomaslesperance6256]

This is so awesome and I cannot wait to use this video and your megadungeon series to start developing cool adventures. Beside your videos and the bare-bones info in Basic, do you know of any other resources that will help in intelligently structuring and stocking adventures? I currently use 1e DMG, Basic, and Tome of Adventure Design but haven’t been able to find anything else beside KZbin videos regarding a useful process for stocking the adventure with rewards and monsters.

[@BanditsKeep]

As far as a process, not really - which is partially why I decided to make the series. There are plenty of random treasure generators for inspiration. Though and the blog Raging Swan has some cool lists I’ve pulled from on occasion. Let me know how your build goes!

[@sgtbigballs666]

Driver ants are no joke, I've used them once for 1st level and it was a "players should run away" challenge lol "Ornamental" 🤔 or "ornamented"

[@BanditsKeep]

Oh yeah they are fearsome

[@scottmefford6917]

The standard scale per square is 5' or 2m

[@BanditsKeep]

In BX this is but the case 10’ is much more common. Unless the space is very small.

[@themlasu]

I remember I got B1 with my Moldvay Basic. It wasn't in the box it came free with the purchase of the Basic Ruleset. I'm not sure if it was the bookstore owner just feeling sorry for me, or it was included.

[@BanditsKeep]

This is interesting, because I could have sworn I got B1 and all the evidence says only B2 came with the box.. maybe I got the same deal!

[@JonathanHStone]

Holmes Basic came with B1 or B2 depending on the printing.

[@BanditsKeep]

Cool, I just recently picked up Holmes - enjoying it very much

[@PvtSchlock]

7 on 4d6 seems low... because it is. There is no dishonor in yielding the field to an obviously superior foe ("a gentleman may decline an obvious advantage, for he understands that discretion is the better part of valor"), but is this noble not the kind lining out men to works on his land, or cruising around on horses with armor? Sounds more like the description of say "foppish dandy" than noble. Isn't the B/X listing for noble like 3hd? idk, fun with ants though, I bet it's fun to play!

[@BanditsKeep]

We had a blast

[@SentientSoup]

Did you run this dungeon, Daniel? I’d love to see the actual play on it.

[@BanditsKeep]

Yes. The link is in the description

[@al2642]

The party 1° level is hired, but would you give them a higher level npc to help them or being like a guide or mentor, gandalf style. In this way the "boss" could also be a bit stronger. How do you manage help from outside in the party. I ask because I think having mixed levels party can make up for some diversity and also less adventure tayloring. Maybe more realism, if it is need (which isn't).

[@BanditsKeep]

I typically stay away from having a powerful NPC join the party. As much as I love the hobbit, I’m pretty sure that most players would not love the fact that every time they got in trouble some character run by the DM bailed them out. That being said, I have often had powerful NPCs in towns that could provide the PCs with information or spells or even magic items on occasion to complete their own quest. I’m 100% sure I understand why you’d want to make the “boss” stronger. Isn’t the power of the boss monster only relative to the players who are fighting it? If I make the boss stronger and then make the player stronger than it’s the same thing, right?

[@SentientSoup]

Daniel, have you ran this dungeon? Is it in your actual play channel? I’d like to see it. Thanks again

[@BanditsKeep]

Yes! The link is in the description

[@tunkatodd4539]

My “Red Box” back in 81 did come with B1 Keep on the Borderlands.

[@tunkatodd4539]

Sorry meant B2 Keep on the Borderlands

[@BanditsKeep]

Nice!

[@kempogoju1]

An idea to tie the gnomes. The gnomes originally had the ring to use the ants for mining, the cleric managed to get the ring

[@BanditsKeep]

Nice!

[@vehemetipolygoniae2197]

Which bx version is better? The 1981 version or the 1983 one?

[@BanditsKeep]

I prefer 1981

[@elfbait3774]

Having just watched this, it occurred to me that the traps you rolled for this excavated ancient temple might easily be run as hazards instead of traps. Unstable ceilings, loose rubble, or even pockets of water or natural gas that are barely locked away behind grumbling stone or having filled or partially filled sections of the complex. I often use hazards instead of traps to achieve the same effect without having the same feel. It just keeps the danger seeming more organic and works well when you are dealing with beasts and less crafty monsters.

[@BanditsKeep]

Great idea!

[@Vasious8128]

Does this adventure appear in a video of the live play?

[@BanditsKeep]

Yup! kzbin.info/www/bejne/bqmyfYGDaMSsqMU

[@brim-skerdouglasson]

where can I get the PDF for this?

[@BanditsKeep]

I didn’t make one, but I could likely do that, I probably will release all the dungeons etc at some point, I just need an easy system.

[@cameronorwin]

You don't have this adventure anywhere where we could download it, do you?

[@BanditsKeep]

It is my intention to eventually do that, but I have yet to organize it properly.

[@cameronorwin]

@@BanditsKeep cool. Thanks

[@vondoom1701]

Hey Bandit, as a brand new (COVID convert) DM I really appreciate these old school videos. I’ve ordered my TSR (red book) with hopes of internalizing this method! Now, my question is about stocking up the dungeon. “Now any layer is going to have 4 to 24 (driver ants) which is 46 basically.” (27:45) What were those 4 dice rolls that gave you the 7. Thanks

[@BanditsKeep]

That’s me talking fast again 😊 it should be 4d6 (the total of 4 six sided dice)

[@kevind.k7512]

Beware that once the players loot such an item, a ring of animal control, smart players might leverage that into a lot more power. They might set off on their own adventure to control animals to sic on enemies, and might even outgrow the need for employers eventually.

[@BanditsKeep]

I believe the limit is 6HD - certainly not game breaking. That being said, I guess it depends on your campaign, I tend to move away from “quest givers” after a couple of levels and allow the PCs to discover rumors etc their own. This is the reason I think using treasure maps as loot is great