Adventures in Fantasy

Adventures in Fantasy is a role-playing game published by Excalibre Games in 1978.

Description

Adventures in Fantasy is a fantasy system, similar in many ways to early Dungeons & Dragons.[1] Characters may be warriors or magic-users; magic is handled on a spell-point system.[1] Movement is miniatures-oriented (speed in inches, etc.).[1] Character creation, combat, and setting up campaigns are covered in the "Book of Adventure" (64 pages); spells and nonhuman races are detailed in the "Book of Faerry and Magic" (56 pages); and the "Book of Creatures and Treasure" (56 pages) contains just that.[1]

Publication history

Adventures in Fantasy was designed by Dave Arneson and Richard Snider.[1][2]:177 A playtest edition was published by Excalibre Games in 1978 as a limited edition of 164 photocopied pages; each page contains two pages of manuscript printed side by side.[1] Adventures in Fantasy was then published by Excalibre Games Inc. in 1979 as a boxed set containing a 64-page book, two 56-page books, three cardstock sheets, and a die.[1] Arneson bought back rights to Adventures in Fantasy using settlement money from TSR, and his company Adventure Games put out a new edition in 1981.[2]:39 Adventures in Fantasy was one of several games that the Thieves' World RPG (1981) included rules for.[2]:85

Reception

Clayton Miner reviewed Adventures in Fantasy for Pegasus magazine #1 (1981).[3] He completed his review by saying: "Admittedly, this game does have its fascinations, especially to those who are interested in running a game with the flavor of medieval tales, rather than as Middle Earth. This is a game that should be avoided by those people who derive enjoyment from running a wide variety of character classes, as the only ones available are Warrior and Magic User. It is unfortunate that what could have been a superior project has turned out to be a disappointment in terms of playability and quality."[3]

Reviews

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Schick, Lawrence (1991). Heroic Worlds: A History and Guide to Role-Playing Games. Prometheus Books. p. 119. ISBN 0-87975-653-5.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Shannon Appelcline (2011). Designers & Dragons. Mongoose Publishing. ISBN 978-1-907702-58-7.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Miner, Clayton (April–May 1981). "Adventures in Fantasy". Pegasus (review) (Judges Guild) (1): 9–11.