The Making of Original Dungeons & Dragons: 1970 - 1977

by Jason Tondo (Project Lead), Kate Irwin (Lead Art Director), Josh Herman (Art Director)

Dungeons & Dragons is a beloved hobby, a pop culture juggernaut, and one of the most influential games in the world. But where did it begin? How was it conceived? And what did early fans see firsthand in this game, which spawned an entire genre of hobby entertainment?

The Making of Original Dungeons & Dragons: 1970-1977 is a trove of unpublished historical artifacts and first printings that illustrate D&D's history. Gary Gygax's never-before-seen first draft of D&D is inside, along with the earliest published writings that became the iconic original D&D boxed set and supplements. Each document is introduced and woven into the story by one of the game's foremost historians, Jon Peterson.

Lifelong D&D fans, casual gamers, and anyone who's ever entrusted their fate to the roll of a twenty-sided die will be riveted by this behind-the-scenes look at the inception of the World's Greatest Roleplaying Game.

Inside you'll discover ...

• The first draft of Dungeons & Dragons published for the first time, with hand-written corrections by cocreators Dve Arneson and Gary Gygax.

 • Background information, rules, and session notes from Blackmoor, Arneson's personal D&D campaign.

 • Personal correspondence between Gygax and Arneson

 • The first prinitng of the original D&D box set and three supplements - Greyhawk, Blackmoor, and Eldritch Wizardry - including handwritten notes by TSR staff.

 • Early fan contributions to D&D, including the first appearance of the bard, illusionist, and ranger.

And so much more!

Genres: Role Playing Games, History, Dungeons and Dragons, Art, Nonfiction, Gaming

576 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2024

Reviews

[Steven "Steve" · Rating 5 out of 5]

The definitive guide to early Dungeons & Dragons. Includes reprints of the original boxed set and first three supplements, as well as the original first draft of the material that became D&D, with note from Gygax and Arneson. There are interesting interlinking notes from historian Jon Peterson, as well as samples of material from various fanzines and The Strategic Review. I would have liked to have more material, but then the book would have been completely unwieldy. It does contain multiple ribbon bookmarks of different colors, somewhat reminding me of Tiamat. I hope that there will be subsequent volumes that cover the late 70’s and early 80’s.

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not what I expected, but welcome nonetheless. It’s nice to essentially have copies of the original D&D books, but I think it is a complete cop-out to not include a copy of GODS, DEMI-GODS AND HEROES (I get that some people might be sensitive about including game definitions of real-world religions, but if this is a SCHOLARLY treatise, then it should have been included for posterity’s sake with a commentary on the modern problems with its interpretation, not completely ignored and excluded). I was hoping for more discussion and less presentation, but I will go to other authors (I hope) for that.

[Bracken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really only for hardcore nostalgia collectors. The minimal new text regarding the creation of the game doesn't reveal anything not already well known and the other 98% of the book is reproduction of 1970s source material. Cool, if you want a completist record of the evolution of the rule set and campaign settings, but nothing groundbreaking here in terms of insight or commentary. (Speaking of commentary, the discussion in the front material about the parts of the game that haven't aged well (and frankly were cringe even back then) are really the most interesting parts. I'd have liked to have read more meta-analysis of the cultural underpinnings and subsequent shifts in the culture of the game than was provided.)

[Arthur B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic resource for those interested in the history of the game. Full review: https://refereeingandreflection.wordp...

[Theo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can anyone ever truly have 'finished' this book? Actually it wasn't what I'd expected, it's not a story of it's making, rather it's many articles and first printing recreated in chronological order with some bookending text but mostly the pieces speak for themselves as to where the various bits of the game came from.

As an afficinado of AD&D it also serves as a history of that game, since by the end you have seen all the parts that Gygax drew together to make the PHB, MM and DMG. There are lots of little differences and many confusing choices but there's a lot there to infer from. Eg Armour Class being a reducing number comes initially from a fairly straight calculation matrix, that simplifies over time; the Purple Worm seems to clearly have its genesis from Gygax's Purple Dragon (Wyrm); that the attributes were ordered Strength, Intelligence, Wisdom... was about there only being the Fighter, Magic-User and Clerics class.

But in order to get this stuff out of it you need to know the game well and its early forms too. For apetson who only knows 5e this might have less to offer. I'd also advise against an eBook version, if such a thing exists, unless you can read it on at least one of those big Kindles with colour, and ideally a Surface Pro or iPad Pro.

[Eran Weiss · Rating 3 out of 5]

The vast majority of this very heavy tome is reproductions of early texts relating to the original D&D, including original D&D itself. It give a very interesting view of the early days of the game, and as its first game, role playing as a whole.
However, there is very little aside from reproductions. The explanatory text in the book are very helpful, but they are few and short. I would have liked much more context around the original text.
The production value of the book is very high - pages a large and heavy, with quality printing.

[Tamrun Yamaha · Rating 1 out of 5]

Grotesque slander and disinformation targeting the creators of D&D. Hard pass.

[Messorem Animarum · Rating 1 out of 5]

Grotesque slander directed at D&D’s creators in what might be the worst preface in publishing history from the mediocre, cowardly, forgettable Jason Tondro. Both he and Jon Petersen come off as sanctimonious prigs.