RETRO RPG REVIEW: "Spelljammer: AD&D Adventures in Space" Boxset by Jeff Grubb (Flawed, Wonderful)

This time I talk about the first (I think) setting boxset for 2nd Edition of Advanced Dungeons and Dragons, "Spelljammer" - fantasy ships flying around space! If you've played, read, or run it, tel me what you think in the comments.

[@misomiso8228]

Love old Spelljammer!

[@OwenEdwardsBooks]

For all its flaws it's a classic!

[@MrMalimer]

This is such a great supplement for late game d&d because the crew invests in a single stronghold/fleet.

[@OwenEdwardsBooks]

In general Spelljammer provides a lot of a scope for mid-highish level play, between domain play, fleet building, and monster options

[@natemercer7538]

I love your reviews!

[@OwenEdwardsBooks]

Thanks Nate, the encouragement is appreciated

[@mattwilliams9480]

Great timing on this review, Owen!! I hope it brings more eyes to your channel and great reviews with the current interest sure to be generated by the upcoming 5e reboot. I sure hope they do The Rock of Bral justice. Good timing for me, as well, as I just finished reading Rock of Bral several weeks ago and began reading the box set books last week. I have to concur that setting is far too sparse in the core set. I’m hoping you might review Lost ships and maybe some of the adventures, as well. Again, might be good for traffic right now, eh? Finally, you have again have sparked my interest in Oriental Adventures. I am unsure if you’ve covered it. I will check the backlog but that would be fun to get your take on. Good stuff, thanks for the thoughtful look.

[@OwenEdwardsBooks]

Complete coincidence, I hadn't seen the announcement! I have some trepidation about the 5e Boxset...but may get it anyway I can see doing Lost Ships, Skulls and Crossbows, and Astromundi Cluster. I don't have a hardcopy of Spacefarer's Handbook but would love to get one, and it's definitely a good product. The two MCs also valuable

[@DavidShepheard]

@@OwenEdwardsBooks TLDR summary of the new Spelljammer product is that they have added in Astral Sea stuff (which could well be built up upon the fact that Pirates of Gith take elven ships into the Astral Plane) and seem to be suggesting that people travel between planetary systems in the Astral Sea. The Rock of Bral has been recanonised, as has Greyspace. There is already SJ material in multiple 5e Forgotten Realms products (as well as 4e and 3e Forgotten Realms products). It looks to me that Dragonlance is being wound back to the War of the Lance era and Ghosts of Saltmarsh seems to be in a similar time period to the 1e Greyhawk products. So there might be a 130 year time skew between the different settings that SJ bolted onto. I'll be interested to see if they are moving Spelljammer forward in time or not. (Realmspace has moved forward in time in the Forgotten Realms products.)

[@OwenEdwardsBooks]

@@DavidShepheard using the Astral Sea seems to me to hearken to 4e era cosmology changes

[@DavidShepheard]

Thanks for the review. I'm a big fan of Spelljammer (I founded Spelljammer Wiki) and I would largely agree with your opinions on the pros and cons of this boxed set. I like the way that you explained it in the context of 1e and 2e campaign settings. It took me a while to come to the same sort of conclusions, but you explained it better than I ever could. I'll have to drop a topic about this over at The Piazza, as I think it could help people new to the setting. I've been playing in a live-streamed Spelljammer game run by AuldDragon and he created a Primer to explain to his players how the Spelljammer universe works: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jJC8mqqLfbl_raM I would say that GMs would really need to create something similar to that (and a written document would do) so that their players can understand what is expected of them. AuldDragon did the same thing you suggested (starting his campaign on the Rock of Bral): kzbin.infoplaylists?view=50&sort=dd&shelf_id=11 Our first adventure took us out into Wildspace and through the Phlogiston to another crystal sphere, on a trip to find out why the friend of a Seeker had stopped sending messages to Bral. I probably would have done the same thing as you suggested and done adventures on the Rock first, but it worked out surprisingly well. BTW: It was SJA2 Skull and Crossbows that you were trying to remember. SJA1 is Wildspace.

[@OwenEdwardsBooks]

So I'll reply now...you guys stole my idea! ;) I'm going to stream some Spelljammer. I'll watch some of yours to steal some ideas ;). I think one way to avoid the need for a primer is to start on Bral, in fact - you introduce it as a city but with some weird bits. I'm gonna review several SJ products next month (cf 500 subs vid), tell me if anything interests you. You're quite right re SJA1/2.

[@thuumhammer682]

Great review, I’ve always been interested in spelljammer but think it’d be too much work when I have five other settings I’d like to run that would be easier.

[@OwenEdwardsBooks]

What are your next five settings then?

[@thuumhammer682]

@@OwenEdwardsBooks I’m currently running Waterdeep. The next five, in the order I’ll likely run them, are: 1) Dolmenwood 2) Ptolus 3) Castle Xyntillan 4) Genial Jack 5) A homebrew world I’ve been slowly drafting using Whitebox FMAG and skerples’ Monster Overhaul

[@taccntb4345]

DnD 2nd Ed. The way it was supposed to be played...

[@OwenEdwardsBooks]

I love 2e! Might be my favourite edition.