Dead Games Society

[Adm.Lee]

At Con on the Cob this weekend, I met one of the members of the Dead Game Society. He had been playing or running games of 1st edition AD&D, Top Secret, Boot Hill, Gangbusters, and other "old school" '80's-era RPGs. The group does just that, play old games at conventions, rather than the newer stuff. I had a ball in a 2-person game of Top Secret, on the run through 1953 East Berlin.

This sounded like something I could get behind, and I'm feeling inspired to join them and pen some T2k one-shots for use at conventions near me. One of the suggestions was 1961 Cuba, which could be a good spot for a raid/sabotage operation.

www.dgsociety.com is their forum.

[helbent4]

At Con on the Cob this weekend, I met one of the members of the Dead Game Society. He had been playing or running games of 1st edition AD&D, Top Secret, Boot Hill, Gangbusters, and other "old school" '80's-era RPGs. The group does just that, play old games at conventions, rather than the newer stuff. I had a ball in a 2-person game of Top Secret, on the run through 1953 East Berlin.

This sounded like something I could get behind, and I'm feeling inspired to join them and pen some T2k one-shots for use at conventions near me. One of the suggestions was 1961 Cuba, which could be a good spot for a raid/sabotage operation.

www.dgsociety.com is their forum.

Admiral,

That would be fantastic! Would you be using v2.2 or going really old school with T2K v1

Within the last 5-6 years I've run Gamma World (1st ed.), Morrow Project 3rd ed. (Liberation at Riverton, Final Watch), Boot Hill (1st ed.), Twilight 2000 (v2.2), Call of Cthulhu (5th ed.), Classic Traveller (The Chamax Plague). Games I've recently tried to get going but not quite succeeded (yet) include Aftermath! (Empire of Karo), The Price of Freedom (The PATH of Freedom) and Delta Force (starting soon, probably Terror at Sea). Not all of these are original edition but it's the thought that counts! I'm not currently running 1st ed. AD&D but I am running Hackmaster 4th edition (Quest For the Unknown and Little Keep on the Borderlands), which is basically AD&D 1st ed. on steroids.

These have generally been 1-shot games (with the exception of my long-running T2K and Morrow Project campaigns). Come to think of it, most of these I never got a chance to run or play back when I was a serious gamer in high school even though I wanted to. (The exceptions being GW, T2K and pre-everything Traveller.)

Christ, maybe that's my version of a mid-life crisis... instead of trying to capture my lost youth with an impulse-bought sports car or Harley and a trading my wife for a younger model (so to speak) I'm instead doing it via gaming. Just for fun I pulled out Squad Leader (not ASL) and enjoyed a play-through of "Buchholz Station" solo for some reason, now I know why! (I already have a younger wife who has promised to buy me a motorcycle as soon as we can afford it so I have that angle well-covered.)

Tony

[Legbreaker]

I am currently running a 1st ed AD&D game with the next session scheduled for tomorrow night. Only three players, but still plenty of fun - shame I'm having to GM rather than play.
Tony, I already have the motorbike.
Still working on the young trophy wife though.

[kcdusk]

+1 Top Secret. I cannot remember if the game itself, the setting, or my cousin who ref'd the game was the reason it was so much fun. Absolutely loved playing TS. Wish i had a copy.

[helbent4]

+1 Top Secret. I cannot remember if the game itself, the setting, or my cousin who ref'd the game was the reason it was so much fun. Absolutely loved playing TS. Wish i had a copy.

KC,

Dude, how could I miss TS But I've not run one lately so that doesn't really count, but I could...

So if I ever start a TS PBEM or PbP game (I was thinking of OP: RAPIDSTRIKE or... Sprechenhaltestelle(!)) I'll let you know.

Tony

[helbent4]

+1 Top Secret. I cannot remember if the game itself, the setting, or my cousin who ref'd the game was the reason it was so much fun. Absolutely loved playing TS. Wish i had a copy.

KC,

Dude, how could I miss TS But I've not run one lately so that doesn't really count, but I could...

So if I ever start a TS PBEM or PbP game (I was thinking of OP: RAPIDSTRIKE or... Sprechenhaltestelle(!)) I'll let you know.

Leg,

You know, it's got to be worth double points running a "Dead Game" if at least some of the players not only didn't play it back in the old days but weren't even born in its heyday!

Speaking of 1st ed. AD&D, I have a regular gaming group (with some youngsters) that are the usual victims of my "retro game" nights. I found a hard copy of "Expedition to the Barrier Peaks" and may just inflict it on them...

As for a bike, this would be one one I'd want:



Although, after playing T2K lately an old-style BMW (or Ural) with sidecar would be cool:



Tony

[Mahatatain]

I think that you can still buy second hand copies of Top Secret from the likes of Amazon and ebay.

[Legbreaker]

You know, it's got to be worth double points running a "Dead Game" if at least some of the players not only didn't play it back in the old days but weren't even born in its heyday!

Two of my players weren't even born until the 90's.
2nd ed was published when exactly

[Targan]

Tony, I already have the motorbike.
Still working on the young trophy wife though.

I had no idea you were a rider Leg. What do you ride I have an early 1990s Kawasaki GPZ 900 (Mad Max-style matt black).

Oh, and my fiance is 7 years younger than me

[helbent4]

Two of my players weren't even born until the 90's.
2nd ed was published when exactly

Leg,

T2K was published in 1993, so it depends on what year!

Mahatatain,

Also, game stores that will take in trade-ins or second-hand material. I picked up a boxed TS (with about 4 copies each of Rapidstrike and Sprechenhaltestelle in the box) along with a boxed set of Chivalry and Sorcery. All in so-so condition, but who cares! Not to mention I also scored SPI's magazine games including "Berlin '85, Enemy at the Gates" and "Patton's 3rd Army".

Tony

[Legbreaker]

1st Ed AD&D Tony, first published way back in 1978 I think.
Just a little 250 Targan, nothing special. One day the fairy godmother will come and it will grow up into a real bike, you know, about a 1000cc or thereabout.
:P

[boogiedowndonovan]

speaking of dead games, anyone out there play the WWII rpg Behind Enemy Lines

[dragoon500ly]

speaking of dead games, anyone out there play the WWII rpg Behind Enemy Lines

Now thats an oldie but goldie. Still pull it out and run a game every so often!

[Adm.Lee]

Speaking of players younger than the game, my 12-year old son was the other guy in the Top Secret game at the Con. 1953 Berlin meant nothing to him, the Cold War is something they might not cover in social-studies class. I have hooked him on D&D, versions 2, 3.5, and 4. The good stuff comes later....

I'm torn between editions. As a GM, rules-wise, it would likely be v2.2. The game I played at Origins this year was v1, and that was fun, too. Just to enhance the "old-school" feel might be the reason to run v1, it's had more exposure. The v1 initiative/coolness system seems hard to explain to a convention crowd, though.

Aside: After years of playing D&D 3.5, it's hard to believe the small size of the rulebooks in T2k and Traveller! I just glanced thru the v1 Player's book-- 24 pages!! Really!

Anyway, I have an outline in my head for using canon Krakow, 2000, for a setting, and just running a small op(s) from there. The guy I played TS with suggested 1961 Bay of Pigs would be a neat setting, too, and I agree with him. That would more likely be v2.2-- I've long thought that would be a good fit for an Top Secret-like game.

I think there was a recent "Knights of the Dinner Table" or "Dork Tower" cartoon when someone asked when the Golden Age of Gaming was. "That's easy," is the reply. "It's when I was twelve!" Make it between 14-26, and I agree.

Good-o on Squad Leader, I kept all mine even after selling off ASL.

[Legbreaker]

Aside: After years of playing D&D 3.5, it's hard to believe the small size of the rulebooks in T2k and Traveller! I just glanced thru the v1 Player's book-- 24 pages!! Really!

Try Macho Women with Guns. Eight pages in total including two pages of stats for the enemy creatures.