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From its inception, the AD&D@ game
has provided rules for both
underground and aboveground adventuring. The MM,
which was released in late 1977 as the first of the hardbound
AD&D rule books, includes descriptions
of creatures that inhabit
the wilderness in addition to creatures that are normally found
only in the darkest recesses of subterranean caverns. One only
needs to read as far as the listing for the anhkheg (“usually found
in forests and choice agricultural land”) to realize that, despite
its
name, the scope of the AD&D@
game is much larger than the most expansive dungeon.
The PH appeared several months later.
Here
we were introduced to the druid and the ranger, two character
types that do their best work in the great outdoors. We were
shown a vast repertoire of magic spells, many of which were obviously
designed for use outside the dungeon. In various places
throughout the book, we were given rules and guidelines for how
to handle adventuring in the wilderness.
And then came the DMG a year later.
Entire
sections of this massive work were given over to describing and
defining facts and concepts that are integral parts of an aboveground
adventure. By putting all these pieces of information together
along with details from the earlier books and stirring in a
liberal amount of deduction and independent design, the
Dungeon Master could reasonably and realistically deal with
action and adventure in a wilderness setting.
But despite all that has been said or implied in the original rule
books (and in the books that have come out since, such as UA),
a veritable mountain of information about the
wilderness remained to be “discovered” and set down in game
terms. This book is an attempt to add structure and detail to that
part of the AD&D game rules concerned
with the proper administration
of outdoor wilderness adventures in the campaign.
Many of the new rules and systems presented here are not exclusively
limited to use in the wilderness; for instance, guidelines
on how long a character can survive without food or water are just
as relevant in the dungeon as they are in the outdoors. For this
reason, the book will be of some use even to DMs
and players whose game-playing activity is restricted solely to
dungeon delving.
Other parts of the book can only be used during adventures in
an outdoor setting; perhaps the most notable example is the system
for weather determination given in the appendix at the end of
this work. Even if the action in your campaign consists of a succession
of dungeon expeditions, player characters will have to
spend at least some time on the surface as they travel from one
dungeon entrance to the next. And as long as they have to make
the trip, why not make it interesting for them?
Defining the Outdoor Environment
The greater part of this book is devoted to presenting rules and
guidelines that translate the effects of a natural, outdoor environment
into game terms: How much damage does a character suffer
from prolonged exposure to extremely hot or extremely cold
temperatures? How do the terrain, climate, and weather conditions
affect a character’s ability to move and attack? What precautions
must characters take to keep their mounts and pack animals
- and themselves, for that matter - in good physical condition?
What happens to someone standing nearby when a
volcano erupts? How far can a character see on a clear day? (No,
the answer is not “forever.”)
The general intent of the WSG is to be
faithful to the literal interpretation of the title. The natural physical
environment is described in a fair amount of detail, along with
rules for how characters and creatures are affected by that environment
- in effect considering the wilderness as a “monster”
that must be “defeated” if player characters are to succeed in
achieving the goal of their mission. If the DM
chooses to incorporate these rules into his campaign, player
characters will no longer be able to sally forth on a trek across the
countryside without considering such fundamental questions as
where their next meal is coming from, whether they can protect
themselves from the elements, and how they expect to get across
the mountain range that lies in their path.
Using these rules will require both the DM and the
players in a campaign to pay much more attention to details that
before they might have disregarded or passed over lightly. Players
will have to be much more explicit about exactly what equipment
their characters are packing, and may have to include
things in their gear that were never considered important before.
(A tent doesn’t just appear out of thin air when it’s time to set up
camp.) Everyone involved in the game will have to keep close
track of time; no longer can a one-day journey be summed up by
simply saying, “A day has passed, and you are now here.” When
a party stops for the night, it’s no longer sufficient for the
Dungeon Master to announce “Here comes the sun again; let’s
get going.” Even if outdoor travel is only used as a means of getting
from one Significant Place to the next, a trek through the wilderness
is an adventure in itself. With proper attention to detail,
getting there is half the fun - perhaps even more than half
Most of the info in the WSG is presented
for the use of both the Dungeon Master and his players.
However, this doesn’t mean that players will almost always know
ahead of time what is going to happen to their characters and
what they can do about it. The rules and systems in the first part
of the book contain enough variables (die rolls) and unknown
quantities (Ability Checks and Proficiency Checks) to keep players
guessing. Even though a player (and, by definition, his character)
may know in general terms what will happen if he pushes
his horse too hard, only the Dungeon Master knows exactly what
will happen in any certain situation and exactly when that event
will take place. In practical terms, a player can memorize every
word of the first part of this book and still have no assurance that
his character will be able to deal automatically with every obstacle
and opportunity that the wilderness presents.
The second (and much smaller) part of this book contains information
especially intended for the Dungeon Master, most of it expressed
in the form of suggestions intended to help him flesh out
some of the details of what his campaign world looks like and how
it works. The weather-determination system does get down to
specifics instead of dealing entirely in suggestions and generalities,
but of course it need not be followed to the letter if the
Dungeon Master wants to inject some personal flair into the natural
environment of his world. Players are strongly encouraged not
to examine the second part of the book, but even if they do they
won’t learn enough to give their characters an advantage during
play. As has been said many times and in many different ways
throughout all the AD&D@ game rule books, the DM
is the ultimate authority in his campaign. He is not only entitled,
but encouraged, to modify and expand upon the material in this
book to suit his preferences and the particular makeup of his
campaign. This individualization serves two worthy purposes: It
makes every campaign (and every adventure within the context
of that campaign) a one-of-a-kind experience, and it keeps the
game exciting and challenging even for players who think they
know all the rules. The only one who knows allthe rules is the person
behind the big screen at the head of the table. Neither the
Dungeon Master nor his players should ever lose sight of that
fact.
| Ability Checks | Proficiency Checks | - | Three Kinds of Temperature | Other Terminology |
| - | - | - | - | - |
Certain procedures and conventions are used throughout this
book. Although some of them may be directly or indirectly defined
in other places as well, all of them are listed here for easy
reference.
Temperature is the one factor in an outdoor environment that
must constantly be taken into consideration: It may or may not be
raining, the wind may be calm or ferocious,
but the air around
characters is always of a certain temperature - and if the temperature
is very hot or very cold, the atmosphere itself may prove
to be a greater hazard to adventurers than any monsters they
might encounter.
Actual temperature is equivalent to what
the Dungeon Master
would read on a thermometer (if such a device existed). It is, simply,
the temperature of the air itself.
Effective temperature is the actual temperature
modified by
conditions that raise or lower the temperature in terms of how it
affects characters exposed to it. If the air has an actual temperature
of 20 degrees but a stiff wind is blowing, then the effective
temperature is considerably lower than 20 degrees, and characters
and creatures exposed to the wind are affected accordingly.
Personal temperature is the effective
temperature further modified
by conditions peculiar to a certain character. Someone who
is dressed in heavy clothing at a low effective temperature has a
higher personal temperature than someone who is lightly clad.
Each of these terms is used in various places throughout the
book, and the distinction is usually quite important.
“Attack rolls” refers to both the “to hit” die
roll and the damage roll,
so that a character who suffers a “-2 penalty on attack
rolls” must deduct 2 from his “to hit” roll and then (if the attack
succeeds) also deduct 2 from his damage roll. A damage roll can
never be reduced below 1 point by any penalty or group of penalties.
“Character” refers to “PC” in all cases, and
should also be read as “character or creature” unless the context
indicates that the usage pertains to PCs only. In
general, creatures (NPCs, monsters, etc.)
are
capable of performing any feat that a player character can perform,
and are subject to the same restrictions, bonuses, and penalties.
“He,” “him,” and other masculine pronouns are used
in the
interest of brevity and simplicity instead of usages such as “he or
she” and “him or her.” This convention is not intended to offend
or exclude female characters, players, or DMs, and
we sincerely hope it does not carry a negative connotation for
anyone who reads this book or plays the AD&D
game.