AC4 - The Book of Marvelous Magic is a 76 page book by Frank Mentzer and Gary Gygax published in 1985 by TSR, Inc. It is an accessory to Dungeons & Dragons primarily for use with the non-advanced box set versions; an appendix describes how the items described can be used with the AD&D game. The Book of Marvelous Magic is a supplement of over 500 magical items, listed alphabetically and by type; the book's appendix details how to convert the items for use with AD&D.[1] This book is a sourcebook on magical items and their twists and quirks. As well as all the miscellaneous magical items that appeared in the D&D Basic, Expert, and Companion Sets, over 500 new magical items are described in detail. Each item comes with a brief description and an explanation of its powers. The items are listed in alphabetical order by type of item. For example, under Blanket can be found the Blanket of Devouring, the Blanket of Protection, and the Blanket of Sleeping. Chime of Visitors This simple metal stick is 3 inches long and made of a silvery metal.
It keeps time as a chime of time but with an unusual side effect. If it rings while within 60 feet of any ordinary or otherwise known door, all creatures hearing the chime must make a saving throw vs. spells; all victims who fail the throw must go to the nearest door and open it or attempt to do so for at least six rounds. AC4 The Book of Marvelous Magic was written by Frank Mentzer and Gary Gygax, with a cover by Clyde Caldwell and interior art by Doug Watson, and was published by TSR in 1984 as an 80-page book (item code TSR 9116 and ISBN 0-88038-192-2). Jez Keen reviewed the accessory for Imagine magazine, giving it a negative review.[2] Keen wrote that the items on offer fall into three categories, "sensible ones, the bad-play compensatory ones and the silly ones".[2] Overall, the reviewer thought that in Basic D&D games magic items can be much too common. If magic was appropriately rare, this publication would not be needed. So Keen recommended it only for those who think that there should be "magic items at every street corner", as some items will be useful and some humorous.
[2] Ultimately though, Keen thought that gamemasters would be better off creating their own magic items. ^ a b c ^ a b c d Frank Mentzer a Lucca Comics & Games 2014 Jacob Franklin Mentzer III (1950) è uno scrittore e autore di giochi statunitense, famoso per il materiale riguardante le vecchie edizioni del gioco di ruolo Dungeons & Dragons (D&D). È stato musicista folk dal 1968 al 1975, esibendosi anche alla Casa Bianca durante l'amministrazione del Presidente degli Stati Uniti Richard Nixon. Ha presenziato alla più grande asta mondiale di giochi da tavolo che si tiene alla convention Gen Con fin dal 1983, ed è un esperto[1] e grande collezionatore di giochi da tavolo di gruppo e giochi di ruolo. Mentzer è stato dipendente della Tactical Studies Rules (TSR) nelle prime fasi di vita della compagnia, dal 1980 al 1986. Nel 1981 ha fondato la Role-Playing Game Association (RPGA). Fra le mansioni svolte alla TSR c'è quella di Consulente Creativo per il Presidente del Consiglio di Amministrazione, Gary Gygax.
I suoi lavori sono stati tradotti in almeno undici lingue, e i suoi Boxed Set pubblicati tra il 1983 e il 1986 hanno venduto milioni di copie in tutto il mondo. Attualmente, J. Franklin Mentzer risiede a Minocqua, nel Wisconsin, dov'è dirigente di un panificio chiamato "The Baker's House"; ha dichiarato che in realtà è sua moglie Debbie (nata Schaeve, di Rockford, Illinois) che fa la maggior parte del lavoro. Mentzer ha lasciato l'industria ludica dopo il crollo definitivo della NIPI di Gygax. Le sue pubblicazioni successive includono: ^ The Game Buyers' Price Guide 1986 ^ Vedi il gioco di ruolo FudgeThe Shady Dragon Inn is a set of pre-generated characters for use with the Dungeons & Dragons game. This player's aid comes in two parts: each character appears first in a section devoted to his or her character class. They appear again in the second section as members of a party. As a DM or as a player, you may use either or both sections; over a hundred characters await you!
Each character has a brief biography that will help you to create backgrounds for PCs or NPCs as needed. Also included is a rough physical description, and a list of items owned by each character. The Shady Dragon Inn also contains the D&D statistics for those special characters who are presented by figures in the D&D and AD&D toy line, and provides a tavern setting from which players may start adventures or gather party members. AC1: "The Shady Dragon Inn" (1983), by Carl Smith, is the first Game Accessory for the Basic D&D Game. It was published in 1983.1983 saw the rebirth of Basic D&D with Frank Mentzer's D&D Basic Set (1983) and D&D Expert Set (1983). To supplement the new game, TSR also kicked off a line of Basic D&D "AC"cessories (1983-1987). By 1983, Accessories were already an old tradition for D&D. The first of note was probably The Character Archaic (1975), a character sheet produced by Wee Warriors. However, TSR quickly got into the act with Dungeon Geomorphs (1976-1977, 1981), Monster & Treasure Assortments (1977-1978, 1981), a Dungeon Masters Screen (1979), and of course character record sheets of their own.
Surprisingly, none of these early accessories were marked with a module code; the "AC" line for Basic D&D was the first, though TSR would soon follow-up with a "REF" line (1985-1988) for AD&D. Rather than kicking off their "AC" line with generic character sheets or DM screens, TSR decided to begin the line with something a different: a book of NPCs. This was similar to another classic TSR accessory, The Rogues Gallery (1980). Both books were filled with stats for somewhat generic NPCs, supplemented by a few more fully-featured characters toward the end — characters that also happened to tie into another D&D product line.In 1982 toy and video game company LJN beat out toy manufacturer Mego for the rights to produce AD&D figures. In 1983, they would produce series 1 of their action figures, most of them at the popular 3.75" size, with a few instead at the 5" Battle Masters scale. This series included: Elkhorn the Good Dwarf Fighter, Kelek the Evil Sorcerer, Mercion the Good Cleric Female, Melf the Good Fighter Mage Elf (also released as Peralay), Northlord the Great Barbarian, Ogre King the Evil Ogre Leader, Ringlerun the Good Wizard, Skylla Evil Magic User, Strongheart the Good Paladin, Warduke the Evil Fighter, Young Male Titan the Good Titan, and Zarak the Evil Half-Orc Asssassin.
LJN also produced three mounts (Strongheart's bronze dragon, Strongheart's destrier, and Warduke's nightmare) and two monsters (a dragonne and a hook horror). Several of the fleshed-out NPCs in "The Shady Dragon Inn" come from this series, including Elkhorn, Mercion, Paralay, Ringlerun, Skylla, Strongarm, Warduke, and Zarak. Four more NPCs in "The Shady Dragon Inn" never appeared as toys, but probably indicate what could have been: Figgen the Halfling, Fox Fingers the Thief, Raven the Cleric, and Zargash the Cleric. These licensed figures, crossing between "The Shady Dragon Inn" and LJN's toy line, are an important innovation because they represent both the first iconic characters and the first product identity for the D&D game."The Shady Dragon Inn" contains one other notable innovation: a 25mm scale battle map, showing the floor plans of the Shady Dragon Inn. Though miniatures had always been a part of the D&D game, this was a rare nod to their importance in the '80s, when tactical play was much less central to the D&D game.
"The Shady Dragon Inn" in The Polyhedron #16 (1983) includes a bit more info on the inn, including stats for its proprietors. The iconic heroes of "The Shady Dragon Inn" would also make a few later appearances, though D&D games were inconsistent about where their home was. Meanwhile, this wouldn't be the last "AC" product to focus on tactical play. A few later "AC" supplements beginning with AC3: "3-D Dragon Tiles Featuring The Kidnapping of Princess Arelina" (1983) would feature "3-D Dragon Tiles", which took the innovative battle map of this adventure to the next level.Smith was an editor at TSR in the early '80s, where he also wrote AC1: "The Shady Dragon Inn" (1983) and N2: "The Forest Oracle" (1984). Afterward he moved on to the newly founded Pacesetter. The history of this product was researched and written by Shannon Appelcline, the editor-in-chief of RPGnet and the author of Designers & Dragons - a history of the roleplaying industry told one company at a time.