Welcome to B/Xarcana

The 1981 Basic-Expert (B/X) rules for Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) aren't the most renowned version of the game, but a quick Google search will show that they're still being vigorously discussed, debated, and played. Rather than rehash what's already been said and done, I want to construct (what I hope is) a compelling framework for assessing those rules, one that captures their core identity and unique place in the game's 39-year history.

Marketed for just over two years (Jan 1981 to May 1983), B/X D&D was undoubtedly a placeholder, capitalizing on the momentum provided by the 1977 Basic rules edited by J. Eric Holmes while buying time for Frank Mentzer's massive overhaul of the entire BD&D system. Indeed, when compared with those two editions, there seems at first blush little to recommend the 1981 rules at all.

Moreover, although David "Zeb" Cook would go on to be the lead designer for Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (AD&D) 2e, the creators behind B/X D&D were the proverbial "lesser lights" of the industry. Rightly or wrongly, Tom Moldvay, Steve Marsh, and Jean Wells don't hold the same esteem as Holmes or Mentzer, and Cook has his own legion of critics among those older players who still resent the changes made in AD&D2.

Yet the 1981 edition reached deep into the pool of potential roleplayers, including 9-year-old me, and turned masses of them into aficionados -- many of whom still play the game, maintain the countless webpages now devoted to D&D, etc. Any number of us quickly moved on to Mentzer BECMI, AD&D1, or even different RPGs entirely, but the fact remains that the B/X rules were our introduction to gaming.

The Holmes edition may be closer to the source and more literary; Mentzer's revision may be more comprehensive and coherent. Both men deserve enormous credit for what they built on the foundations laid by Gary Gygax, Dave Arneson et al. But even lesser lights can, on occasion, shine more brightly than we expect or imagine, and I intend for this blog to stand witness that they did in fact do so for a brief period between 1981 and 1983.