Where do I sign up as one of the 4 players for when you dm this? Played kotor and watched a few bg3 videos on yt and that's what made my feed full of dnd content. Never played it but want to.
I started with the blue box basic D&D box in early 1977 and then hit the mother lode of AD&D hardcover books at Christmas. We used to plat at our Jr. High on the stage after school. Our principal came by and checked on what we were doing every once in a while. I met him many years later and he talked about how glad he was that we were playing D&D. As far as he was concerned anything that caused his students to think and read was great. He mentioned also he told the staff to support us and don’t let us get messed with. A great educator and a good man.
@@TalismancerM Oh, but those very first "succotash" (white d20, blue d12, green d8, orange d6, and yellow d4) dice were some sad stuff! They were brittle and chipped away quickly! I remember my first experience with European polyhedral dice, solid and hefty, and VERY durable. =^[.]^=
"It's good cardboard. I'm gonna save that cardboard" Oh boy, a new Wyloch's armory episode already in the making! Can't wait for January 2030 episode and see that cardboard again!
There were at least 4 major boxed sets for 2e: - "First Quest" in 1994 - This box in 1995 (basically First Quest 2.0) - "The Complete Starter Set: Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Game" in 1996 (First Quest 3.0, with an extra book of mini-adventures and no CD) - "Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Game" published (after TSR went under) by WotC in 1999 (not to be confused with the 3.0 intro box of the same name)
This nearly brought a tear to my eye! Not because it is nostalgia for me (started in 4E) but because of how you looked at each thing in the box. Your connection to it hit me deep. Would love to see this version ran; I guess I’ll have to do some googling!
Dude, thank you so much for this video, this was my introduction to AD&D. I remember the summer of ‘96, my brother (14) and I (12) played this on my Grandma’s porch. He was the DM and I played 4 of the characters so that we could have a full party. He still has some of it, but it’s cool to see the whole set again. I still play a Human Fighter named Beldar sometimes.
I got started with this exact same box. A neighbor down the street had it. My mom told me I was never allowed to go play with him again, because of the Satanic Panic. Before anyone calls her a nutball for that, you had to lived in those times. We also lived nearby Michigan State University, where the kids died playing D&D, and it was all over the news that parents should protect their children from this game. My mom was and still is amazing, and was actually super accepting of everything I wanted to do, she just drew a line at what she was led to believe was Satanic and dangerous, which is entirely reasonable. It’s not like she had the internet than to research what the game actually was. She even went out and bought me Dragonstrike and than HeroQuest to fill the slot of D&D, and would play them with me, even though she hated it.
or when children performed fatalities on their friends from watching mortal kombat. that game was posterchild for govt to say videogames are violent and wanted to ban video games outright.
I went back to playing 2nd edition AD&D back in 2012 (after playing 3.0/3.5 since 2000/2003). It's the edition i had the most fun playing. I've even introduced the edition to a few people that previously were only exposed to 5th edition. And they loved it!
5e is low key reminiscent of 2e. At least it feels much closer than 3.Xe or 4e, and the DMG has a bunch of legacy rules that can make the game even more like ad&d. It's a less lethal, d20 version of ad&d2e. 5e, though rushed, had much potential if they had continued in that direction. Maybe a polished 2024 version could have been a bit more lethal with more revamped systems and a bit less HP bloat.
Holy crap, I've been playing since 1st edition and I've never seen this box before! I even recognize the trade dress as the 2nd edition remaster. Also the minis are from Dragon Strike. Thanks so much for this video.
Same, I wish that some people around where I live would play it instead of 5E. I've been told to try online, but not the same and I've had too many bad experiences with online play.
I started with AD&D in middle school. After college years I started playing Pathfinder with my wife's family. I have been a forever DM for them since I'm the only one who buys the books and minis. When I grew tired of Pathfinder I started running Dungeon Crawl Classics, Old School Essentials and other OSR games. Turns out since none of them are min/max players they love any version of DnD we play. I've been running Temple of Elemental Evil with OSE scratching that AD&D itch for me. My point is most players just love playing the game regardless if the session is fun. Hope you are able go get that treasure trove of gaming onto the table at some point. Thank you for sharing!
The "I don't think so, Tim." got me! Well played. I didn't even know the starter set was a thing. I've got a full set of 2nd that I never played. Bought all the books but had moved on to WFRP by that point. Good stuff Wyloch!
I bought a copy of "Cleric's Challenge" (an AD&D 2e module from 1993) from eBay in 2016 that was still in its shrinkwrap. The excitement of opening something in new condition that is 33 years old cannot be understated. Please post a gameplay video of the adventures from your new old box set, and a video of painting those miniatures. I can't wait to see more!
I picked up a starter kit for the current edition, about a year ago. Was going to be a gift, until I found out somebody else was giving a more thorough version. I've resisted the urge to just open it myself a few times. I think I'll heed these words and put it on a shelf somewhere, for somebody to discover 40 years from now, when I die in the style of Tyrion Lannister.
Those character sheets are really well-designed - not too busy for an introductory tool and with great thematic art. I would have done the same thing as a you did, but with graph paper, complete with a spot to sketch your character.
Here in Brazil, this box was sold at newsstands and was divided into two parts. I bought the first one and waited a whole month to get the second one. It was 95 or 96. The maps that were published here came with borders with different art. Many people started in the hobby through this publication here.
que da hora saber isso! nunca imaginei como seria na época comprar D&D aqui no Brasil. queria muito fazer uma coleção da 5e (foi a primeira que joguei), mas o preço dos livros e a falta de alguém pra jogar comigo acaba não incentivando :/
I started with the Basic "Black Box" which came out in 91 as part of the Rules Cyclopedia line, but dove head first into AD&D 2nd edition once in high school. Never owned or knew anyone that owned this intro box, but TSR was spreading themselves thin by 95 with the sheer number of products that came out. This box seems to contain the basic stripped down rules for 2nd edition, and minis from the Dragonstrike board game (the one that came with the VHS tape), plus the audio CD was something they were pushing in a bunch of their products at the time. A Light in the Belfry and a Karmekios boxed set come to mind. Good times. Also, I don't feel as bad for dropping $150 for an incomplete Heroquest box several years ago, hahaha!
I have the bookshelf version of this (9x12), didn't know they made it in a larger box. I wouldn't say this is worth $350 (picked mine up at K&B for $9.95), but I did get my family to play this version about a year ago. My eldest son freaked out over the Wizard having 1 spell (no cantrips, no arcane recovery AND you had to choose the spell at the start of the day). They had fun though. (Note: there's two versions - the earlier one had a second adventure on a ship. The later version replaced it with a haunted mansion).
Thanks for the trip down memory lane! This is the game I learned D&D on, and I still have this old box set. ☺️ As for how it runs today: a co-worker of mine asked me to run a D&D session for his kid's birthday. They were all about 10 years old. Most of them had never played D&D before so they didn't have anything to unlearn to play this, and it was a fun adventure for them. So I think it still holds up for yhe right audience. ❤
I didnt even know they did a "starter set". I do, however, know the joy of re-finding loved RPG books. My wife dug out her second edition Dragonlance boxed set, in perfect condition, yesterday. I like to run newer gamers through Sinister Secrets of Saltmarsh from the original book that a friends older brother ran us through as my first ADandD adventure. Glad you also kept the joy.
I never played D&D, but I do remember when my dad was driving us home from visiting the mall after buying Baldur's Gate, the first one. I had opened the box in the car and started to read the manual. Those were actually fun to read back then. At least I thought so, until I got to the chapter on THAC0. I only remember my eyes glazing over, nothing made sense to me, but luckily it stuck with me that a lower armour rating was better. Never before, or ever since, have I experienced a similar system. Except for Icewind Dale.
I'll never forgive Jim Ward and the rest of the people at TSR for trying to sanitize D&D. The poeple who thought it was evil still thought it was evil and the game lost A LOT of its charm.
@@pjm3005 so weird because Ive never understood this. People play D&D how they want. Cute fuzzy Pikachu enemies? Sure. Canabalistic kobolds and gray ooze that dissolves the skin off your foot forever (or until you find a supernatural demon and perform some ritual). Fine. I have enjoyed all reiterations of the game since the small box and they all have helped rpg gaming in different ways.
@@jpmangen nah, have you ever read the gygax versions? his prose is unmatched (his organization might need a bit of work though) - just reading the 1E DMG is a wonderful time (and because it's so badly organized you find something new every time!). They took out all the boobie pics from the monster manuals - you can't put those back! 1E had a charm that 2E completely lost, even though the rules are totally compatible.
AD&D 2nd ed was my first RPG experience. I still have my original character sheet and sketches. I recently used Heroforge to great a representation of that old character. Also, I think those minis were used in the old Dragon Strike VHS then they used different sculpts for the board game.
As an old fogie I recall when this edition came out (Started in the old red box). I never had one nor played the adventures, but spent many MANY long nights in the wonderful dreamland created by my friends and I where we adventured as mighty Heroes of the Realm. I recall my powerful wizard...(I cast ... LIGHT. Now I RUN AWAY PLEASE DON'T KILL ME!) and he was fun. By the time I stopped playing him at around 12th level he had an 8 con from dying so much and a mighty 22 hit points or something like that. Amazing fun. If you decide to run this, (perhaps at Mythicon?) I would JUMP at the chance to play again. Don't get me wrong, I love the simplicity and streamlined game of today and my favorite edition was likely 3.0. But going back to the days when this was what we looked forward to every week...wow. Very very cool. Thanks for the Video.
Memories! ❤ I also kind of remembered the smell of the paper and the plastic in these days. It was somehow more intense. A similar feeling to that opening this DnD box I got lately, when I opened the Dragonbane starter box. It has a rule book, an adventure book, dice, cardboard minis, pregens, empty character sheets,... Great feeling!
I didn't get much use out of this set, because I already owed the hardcover books. However, I loved the CD! I can't tell you how many times I listened to the example of how to play tracks at the beginning of the CD 😊 So cheesy, but so good.
Crazy that they used the Dragonlance art for the wizard but changed his name… That’s actually Fizban and other person is Tasselhoff Burrfoot, a Kender. Good times. Awesome Video BTW
Bruenor Battlehammer from Forgotten Realms was the art used for the Dwarf fighter. I believe it's the original cover from Streams of Silver the second book in the Icewind dale trilogy . Larry Elmore did a lot of illustrations and artwork in general for both the Dragonlance and Forgotten Realms campaign settings.
This really brings back memories. The AD&D 2nd Edition starter set was my introduction to D&D thanks to my friend's brother who owned this. We also played the CD for every required room we entered. I think there was even a boss named Bone Gnasher if I recall right. It was so much fun. We decided to start playing this one day and I still play to this day.
I didn't have this exact box, but one almost exactly like it. It was the same size as the Planescape and Birthright boxes and had everything you showed off except for the miniatures inside. I still have most of it in my collection. Man this brings me back! Great video!
Out of all the times i've seen THACO mentioned it's always with the "oh this was so hard/cumbersome/crunchy" slant, but never with an explanation of what it actually was/how it worked. That example was so concise and simple lol loved it
AD&D 2E is still my favorite edition. Some of it is nostalgia, I did start on 1E but quickly moved to 2E when my parents bought me my own books. I’ve run it somewhat recently and it’s still great. I’d never seen this starter set, thanks for sharing!
Oh man I used to have this set! I still have the Wizard and Thief minis. Now I know where those actually came from. Thanks for the walk down memory lane!
This is how I first got into tabletop gaming. It was my brother and I that got this box, but my mom made us include our little sister to play. It was an interesting, yet confusing experience. Two weeks later, my grandma's new boyfriend stole the set and destroyed it. He was one of those Christians who believed in the Satanic panic.
Oh man, that's so dear to me too! My first contact with AD&D was with Dragonlance, and I got a new box just for sentimental reasons a while ago too. Lol, Morganth the Misterious is actually an illustration for Fizban the Fabulous, that's a picture by Larry Elmore for the Dragonlance Campaign Setting, you can see that's a Kender (Tasslehoff Burrfoot) holding a hoopak next to him. =)
I noticed that straight off. The Elmore picture is a classic, it keeps coming up in a lot of publications and over the years several mini creators, both official and unofficial have used it as a reference for both Fizban and Tass.
The reason I love 5e is it's really quite similar to 2e. THAC0 became the proficiency bonus. Instead of having your "proficiency" bonus linked to AC0, they decided to centre it on... just numerical 0 - which seems infinitely more sane. 2e had saving throws linked to your class and level, while 5e has saves linked to stats and proficiency bonus again. This may sound blasphemous but 5e is 2e made elegant.
Super random, but I'm currently a dev on Word for the Web (the browser based version of Word) and I used to work on Word for windows. I love seeing people mention using Word to do stuff back in the 90's! Thank you for that mention of a product I love. :D
FIRST QUEST was my introduction to AD&D. It is a "remixed" (?) of this Starter Set, including one extra adventure (Spelljammer! With a Giff!) and a different division of the booklets, with the spells split on two booklets, one for wizards and the other for clerics. And we got the maps of the adventures 3 and 4. But the best thing about your unbox is how I finally have visual confirmation that "The Town" is Freedale. And the goblin image is different, and there was no Myconid. Would be a great video to make these comparisons on how it changed. What not changed is the CD. I loved the CD. Thank you for the video
Only one d10? Cheapskates! Oh, wait. My first box set had a sheet of thick cardboard with numbers printed on it. You had to clip it apart and keep the different 'dice' chits in different coffee cups to draw out of. (THACO rant- I've said this before. When we first heard of THACO it was a literal game changer. Before we would cross reference each swing on a level/AC table. Just having one number and adjusting it by AC made combat so much easier)
Exactly! THAC0 was a wonderful innovation for dealing with descending armor class back when they started using it late 1e. People who complain about it being a needless complication don't know what they're talking about.
I started with the 3ed boxed set. I remember it having fewer monsters but more scenarios, which gradually introduced you to the concepts of tactical play and encounter design. They all were played on sections of a single dungeon map that served as different dungeons.
Love starter sets in general. This is great one! I'm finding more and more as I, get older, there's enough in a starter set box to have a decently long campaign that you an play before other "life" priorities take precedent!
I used that starter set to introduce several friends to D&D. Such an incredibly fantastic package! I've lost almost all of the contents of the set over the years but I still have the audio CD in all its glory!
From a collector's point of view, it breaks the heart, to watch you open the shrink wrap. But the kid in me was cheering for you to open the box. And yes, agreed, 2nd edition was one of the best. But for me, I cut my teeth on the original 1st edition basic set. 1A&D was brutally fun, and the eventual evolution to 5e has been an awesome transition, though I miss the original spirit of good old fashioned dungeon crawls and all or nothing combat missions. D&D used to be awesome for both roleplay and combat. 5e made it feel more like "everyone gets a trophy play style". Getting back up from a brutal slaughter, and fighting with 1 hp just feels silly. I mean, in real world mechanics, even a simple slip and fall in the kitchen can leave a person out of the action for a few days. THACO was the best system ever. It's a shame that people had to submit to having poor math skills, and now passively accept the fluff of 5e. That being said, I'm still a fan of 5e, simply because of the versatility of having so many species to pick from as a character. Looking forward to some of the new game mechanics of 2024 DND. I just wish the books would arrive already, to check them all out.
This is awesome. Totally brings me back. I started playing AD&D when I was 6 with my two older brothers. In fact my first official campaign was run in a wizard of the Coast store. Back when they still had them lol. My favorite book was the complete Ninja Book. It's worth the money you spent. I don't run 2e anymore but still run 3.5 and 5e.
I didn't get into D&D until the tail end of 3rd edition and start of 3.5. Just before that a friend of a friend gave him all of his AD&D books. I made a dark elf ranger before I knew of a famous drow ranger from Forgotten Realms. One of our friends flipped through the monster manual and picked out an umber-hulk for our first level characters to fight. His name was Larry and he very politely TPK'ed the party. The great god, Dungeon Master said, "Oops, that monster was too strong. You're all alive again at full hit points. Larry the umber-hulk apologizes for the TPK and gives you a hundred gold pieces. And we never played those characters again. So I went out and bought the 3.5 books when they came out after playing a few 3rd edition games. I've been playing off and on since. Ah nostalgia. It's weird how memories of a single terrible monster fight started a lifelong hobby.
Brilliant. I still have some of the components from this set, but I'd forgotten it came in such a large box. All the old boxed sets were great. I fondly remember the slightly older Rules Cyclopaedia/BECMI adventure boxes, complete with sheets of standees and a board game. Thanks for sharing this.
I started in 1979 and bought that boxset when it came out 30 years ago and still have it mint condition on my shelf right now,the CD-ROM atmospheric music is class! i never painted the models and only opened the maps to look at...THACO rules lol
I started with red box D&D, but 2e will always have a warm place in my heart. It was the height of D&D writing. As much as I love 5e, the current company will never be able to match the quality of writing 2e had. Hell, 5e can't even match the art quality of 2e. Anytime someone wants me to show them why 2e was better, I show them the monstrous compendium.
My brother in math rocks, I am happy for you and enjoyed this, having never seen this before, because I never got a 2e starter set because I am Old. What a great box! In spite of coming with a stupid non-Platonic d10. We abandoned THACO because we abandoned low AC being better, because it didn't scale. 5e has some stupid stuff, but I am glad "use rope" is gone. Generally, if we ignore 4e, each edition has improved on the last, until this year. Professor DM will always be right that "roll 13 or more" is really the essential rule of D&D.
Started playing AD&D when it came out in the late 80's and through the 90's until our group parted ways in the final year of highschool. The red class and race books really helped build our own views of our characters but the main manuals were well done and intuitive.
Crazy. That thing is as old as I am. Somehow I still get a sense of nostalgia just looking at it. You really can't beat that old school art and feeling.
I very distinctly remember me and a friend getting this set or something like it, with the CD. We didn't understand it, we listened to the CD for a bit, and then set it aside and never came back to it. It wasn't until 10 years later that I picked up D&D proper, this time being tricked into buying overstock 3.0e books after 3.5 came out. Been playing off and on since.
Brings back so many memories. Still got some of the minis. I am from Croatia so getting the books was very difficult back in the 90s. There was littrally one comic book in the whole country and anything D&D related was gone as soon as it got to the store... 2nd edition was awesome... BG and IWD...playing all night... Ah...good times Love all your videos, but this one is special!
I didn’t even remember that I used to own this boxed set until you started going thru the books. I was 17 or 18 when I owned it. Thanks for the nostalgia. I would be interested in playing a character. I always DM. 🙂 I’ve been running Rime of the Frost Maiden since December of 2020 on roll20. I really miss in person. All of those tiles you taught me how to make sit in my closet.
Man that's what I cut my teeth on too!!! Lost all of that stuff through the years. Found the cd a few years ago, ripped it and now at 43 years old, I still listen to that damn thing when trying to fall asleep.....
I also started with this set at the age of 10 or so (right after having gotten and played Dragon Strike). TSR was putting a lot of effort into figuring out how to teach the game to people who didn't have anyone to teach them at the time and I really appreciated the CD at the time (even though I knew it was cheesy). I learned how to play and DM from this box!
Yup, I'm old and a geek. As soon as you were trying to figure out if the elf was a multi-class or a dual class I immediately said he was multi, as I think only humans were able to dual class in 2e.
Wow! Very cool video; this definitely takes me back. I remember owning the TSR boardgame Dragonstrike which is basically DND lite that came out in 1993. It came with so many miniatures, and some of the scuplts in this D&D starter set look identical to the evil wizard Teraptus and some of the heros in that game. I have many memories of dragging my Mom to the craft store to stock up on Apple Barrel paints and painting every single miniature in the game with my brother. Those were some good times. I wish I still had that game. Thanks for sharing this and the link to the CD!
I started my D&D journey with d20 Modern before jumping over to 3.5e. However, I do remember seeing that box in the game stores back then. It was my very first interaction with that name "Dungeons & Dragons." I even asked my father what that was and . . . he at least acknowledged that I should wait until my math skills were a bit better before trying the game. Never did try that edition; maybe my dad was trying to save his wallet at that time. BTW, I had no idea I am older than you by a year. Learn new things everyday.
@innocentBystander19 Yeah and it's kind of disheartening. I spend 40 hours on a gorgeous craft and that video gets a few thousand views. I spend four hours on a throwaway junk video like this one and it's gotten ten times normal viewership. You gotta tailor to what the people want.
@@WylochsArmory I think that is also due to the changing in the audience. There are now tons of crafting channels out there. Those are now being dwarfed by how many miniature painting channels there are out there. With 3d printing becoming cheaper and more accessible to the average person, more people just opt out of crafting and 3d print terrain. Since I have been getting into this hobby back in 2018, I have noticed the shift in videos being made.
I bought an opened box version for like 45 bucks a couple years ago! My box isn't as big though but contains all the same stuff! Love this set and the mpas are AMAZING! and hand outs!
Bought this box at Half Priced Books last year for $60 & was told it was complete. Turned out most of it was missing but it did have several old BX & 1e modules and a Holmes basic rule book all in really good condition.
While I wouldn't pay that price for this item mainly because I have most of the books but thank you for showing it off! I cut my teeth on AD&D 2E right around the time you did. I got away from AD&D when 3.0 came out and my group switched. After playing the newer versions of the game and having bad experience after bad experience especially with 5E I decided to kick all wotc versions to the curb back in 2017. Since then I have been collecting the entire AD&D 2E line and have decided to make it my home for Dungeons and Dragons. To me this version is what the game is supposed to be and while I do like 1E and BECMI this one is where I gravitate to. Nice video!
This was so awesome Wyloch! It’s funny what people argue about with style and methods of play that’s all answered right here. Thank you so much for sharing this with us! 🤘🥰🤘
As goofy as that audio CD was, it addressed a very serious problem - most people had never seen a game actually played. Even in the early 00s when I started, there was no video streaming or “actual plays.” You just dove in and tried to figure out how to do it.
2e except for the thaco was really the most easily playable ad&d edition out there. I miss it . We just ignored the thaco rule in the games I played or DM'd in. Dude I wish I could find a copy of that boxed set. I still have my spell cards and magic items cards from that edition. Of course I have 2e on my hard drive but pdf edition is not as easily readable-scrolling up and down to manage the columns, as the regular books are. You are soo lucky to have that boxed set even if you never play a game one from it.
Here's a full rip of the CD that comes in this starter set: ruclips.net/video/hDR7r3WrvL8/видео.html
Where do I sign up as one of the 4 players for when you dm this?
Played kotor and watched a few bg3 videos on yt and that's what made my feed full of dnd content. Never played it but want to.
@@akale2620- hey hey I want in on this too.
BECMI n 2ed need to be reprinted as many of us are unhappy with the direction WoT has gone.
I started with the blue box basic D&D box in early 1977 and then hit the mother lode of AD&D hardcover books at Christmas. We used to plat at our Jr. High on the stage after school. Our principal came by and checked on what we were doing every once in a while. I met him many years later and he talked about how glad he was that we were playing D&D. As far as he was concerned anything that caused his students to think and read was great. He mentioned also he told the staff to support us and don’t let us get messed with. A great educator and a good man.
You had a good principle.
Same set, 1978. =^[.]^=
@@Raycheetah Same...still have some of the original dice...but that's it. The winds of time have blown the rest away.
@@TalismancerM Oh, but those very first "succotash" (white d20, blue d12, green d8, orange d6, and yellow d4) dice were some sad stuff! They were brittle and chipped away quickly! I remember my first experience with European polyhedral dice, solid and hefty, and VERY durable. =^[.]^=
Principled Principal.
"It's good cardboard. I'm gonna save that cardboard"
Oh boy, a new Wyloch's armory episode already in the making! Can't wait for January 2030 episode and see that cardboard again!
I've been playing this game for 37 years and never realized there was a 2e boxed set!!!!! 😮
Me too. 2e was my first edition and I never saw this set.
Same here! Played 2e since it first came out and never knew about this set.
There were at least 4 major boxed sets for 2e:
- "First Quest" in 1994
- This box in 1995 (basically First Quest 2.0)
- "The Complete Starter Set: Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Game" in 1996 (First Quest 3.0, with an extra book of mini-adventures and no CD)
- "Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Game" published (after TSR went under) by WotC in 1999 (not to be confused with the 3.0 intro box of the same name)
41 years for me and ditto!
I played 1ed and didn’t pay much attention to other editions, but I also had no idea of this box set.
This nearly brought a tear to my eye! Not because it is nostalgia for me (started in 4E) but because of how you looked at each thing in the box. Your connection to it hit me deep. Would love to see this version ran; I guess I’ll have to do some googling!
Dude, thank you so much for this video, this was my introduction to AD&D. I remember the summer of ‘96, my brother (14) and I (12) played this on my Grandma’s porch. He was the DM and I played 4 of the characters so that we could have a full party. He still has some of it, but it’s cool to see the whole set again. I still play a Human Fighter named Beldar sometimes.
I got started with this exact same box. A neighbor down the street had it. My mom told me I was never allowed to go play with him again, because of the Satanic Panic.
Before anyone calls her a nutball for that, you had to lived in those times. We also lived nearby Michigan State University, where the kids died playing D&D, and it was all over the news that parents should protect their children from this game.
My mom was and still is amazing, and was actually super accepting of everything I wanted to do, she just drew a line at what she was led to believe was Satanic and dangerous, which is entirely reasonable. It’s not like she had the internet than to research what the game actually was. She even went out and bought me Dragonstrike and than HeroQuest to fill the slot of D&D, and would play them with me, even though she hated it.
Yep, I was a kid during the panic (Australia so a bit tamer but still here). Its hard for people now to understand how fearful parents were.
or when children performed fatalities on their friends from watching mortal kombat. that game was posterchild for govt to say videogames are violent and wanted to ban video games outright.
that box brings back memories. i got one under the christmas tree when I was a wee little lad many many moons ago.
I went back to playing 2nd edition AD&D back in 2012 (after playing 3.0/3.5 since 2000/2003). It's the edition i had the most fun playing. I've even introduced the edition to a few people that previously were only exposed to 5th edition. And they loved it!
5e is low key reminiscent of 2e. At least it feels much closer than 3.Xe or 4e, and the DMG has a bunch of legacy rules that can make the game even more like ad&d. It's a less lethal, d20 version of ad&d2e. 5e, though rushed, had much potential if they had continued in that direction. Maybe a polished 2024 version could have been a bit more lethal with more revamped systems and a bit less HP bloat.
Holy crap, I've been playing since 1st edition and I've never seen this box before! I even recognize the trade dress as the 2nd edition remaster. Also the minis are from Dragon Strike.
Thanks so much for this video.
The box is new to me as well. My first brush with D&D was around 1980, but lost touch with it around '83.
2e is still to this day my favourite edition of the game.
Same, I wish that some people around where I live would play it instead of 5E. I've been told to try online, but not the same and I've had too many bad experiences with online play.
I was introduced to d&d in 1980. Later, to ad&d. Nostalgia galore. The dice needed to be filled with crayon. It was awesome. ☺️
I've got two of to old sets of dice.
@22:42 I can see you reliving your childhood in those very moments. Amazing find! Thank you so much for sharing.
I started with AD&D in middle school. After college years I started playing Pathfinder with my wife's family. I have been a forever DM for them since I'm the only one who buys the books and minis. When I grew tired of Pathfinder I started running Dungeon Crawl Classics, Old School Essentials and other OSR games. Turns out since none of them are min/max players they love any version of DnD we play. I've been running Temple of Elemental Evil with OSE scratching that AD&D itch for me. My point is most players just love playing the game regardless if the session is fun. Hope you are able go get that treasure trove of gaming onto the table at some point. Thank you for sharing!
The "I don't think so, Tim." got me! Well played. I didn't even know the starter set was a thing. I've got a full set of 2nd that I never played. Bought all the books but had moved on to WFRP by that point. Good stuff Wyloch!
Yeah I laughed pretty hard at that. Very funny. And though I started in 1st edition and moved into second, I never knew this box set existed.
350 is more than worth it, it's cheap for such a masterpiece
Well now you'll need to build both, so those will be fun to watch!
I taught my kids on 3e, skipped right to 5e, bounced back to 1e, now cutting their teeth 2e. I’ve been playing since 1979. Loved every year of it.
Wow that diss on 4 is hard
@@akale2620 didn't even buy the manuals, lol
It's amazing you found this still sealed/never opened, just incredible! Love It, incredibly nostalgic!
I bought a copy of "Cleric's Challenge" (an AD&D 2e module from 1993) from eBay in 2016 that was still in its shrinkwrap. The excitement of opening something in new condition that is 33 years old cannot be understated.
Please post a gameplay video of the adventures from your new old box set, and a video of painting those miniatures. I can't wait to see more!
I picked up a starter kit for the current edition, about a year ago. Was going to be a gift, until I found out somebody else was giving a more thorough version. I've resisted the urge to just open it myself a few times. I think I'll heed these words and put it on a shelf somewhere, for somebody to discover 40 years from now, when I die in the style of Tyrion Lannister.
Those character sheets are really well-designed - not too busy for an introductory tool and with great thematic art. I would have done the same thing as a you did, but with graph paper, complete with a spot to sketch your character.
Here in Brazil, this box was sold at newsstands and was divided into two parts. I bought the first one and waited a whole month to get the second one. It was 95 or 96. The maps that were published here came with borders with different art. Many people started in the hobby through this publication here.
que da hora saber isso! nunca imaginei como seria na época comprar D&D aqui no Brasil. queria muito fazer uma coleção da 5e (foi a primeira que joguei), mas o preço dos livros e a falta de alguém pra jogar comigo acaba não incentivando :/
@@cabocable Não desista, ja passei por um hiato de 6 anos sem jogar, continue lendo e mantendo o rpg vivo no coração! Uma horas os jogadores aparecem!
@@andrecorrea7201 obrigada mesmo pelo comentário, amigo! vou continuar na missão ☺️
The duergar illustration includes the Derro. IIRC, This was because they shared a page in the full monster manual.
I started with the Basic "Black Box" which came out in 91 as part of the Rules Cyclopedia line, but dove head first into AD&D 2nd edition once in high school. Never owned or knew anyone that owned this intro box, but TSR was spreading themselves thin by 95 with the sheer number of products that came out. This box seems to contain the basic stripped down rules for 2nd edition, and minis from the Dragonstrike board game (the one that came with the VHS tape), plus the audio CD was something they were pushing in a bunch of their products at the time. A Light in the Belfry and a Karmekios boxed set come to mind. Good times. Also, I don't feel as bad for dropping $150 for an incomplete Heroquest box several years ago, hahaha!
Time to craft freedale!
I have the bookshelf version of this (9x12), didn't know they made it in a larger box. I wouldn't say this is worth $350 (picked mine up at K&B for $9.95), but I did get my family to play this version about a year ago. My eldest son freaked out over the Wizard having 1 spell (no cantrips, no arcane recovery AND you had to choose the spell at the start of the day). They had fun though. (Note: there's two versions - the earlier one had a second adventure on a ship. The later version replaced it with a haunted mansion).
BECMI now, BECMI tomorrow, BECMI forever!!!
BECMI was perfection and honestly still influences my world building to this day
Silverleaf would have had to be multi-class since he was an elf. Only humans could dual class and only demihumans could multi-class.
I love those minis. They look like the heroquest ones. Thanks for the video
Thanks for the trip down memory lane! This is the game I learned D&D on, and I still have this old box set. ☺️
As for how it runs today: a co-worker of mine asked me to run a D&D session for his kid's birthday. They were all about 10 years old. Most of them had never played D&D before so they didn't have anything to unlearn to play this, and it was a fun adventure for them. So I think it still holds up for yhe right audience. ❤
I didnt even know they did a "starter set". I do, however, know the joy of re-finding loved RPG books. My wife dug out her second edition Dragonlance boxed set, in perfect condition, yesterday.
I like to run newer gamers through Sinister Secrets of Saltmarsh from the original book that a friends older brother ran us through as my first ADandD adventure. Glad you also kept the joy.
I never played D&D, but I do remember when my dad was driving us home from visiting the mall after buying Baldur's Gate, the first one. I had opened the box in the car and started to read the manual. Those were actually fun to read back then. At least I thought so, until I got to the chapter on THAC0. I only remember my eyes glazing over, nothing made sense to me, but luckily it stuck with me that a lower armour rating was better. Never before, or ever since, have I experienced a similar system. Except for Icewind Dale.
Missed BG1, but if BG2 had been only the manual with no game whatsoever, I still got my money's worth.
Duuuude...memories! 😊 Good for you man!
I'll never forgive Jim Ward and the rest of the people at TSR for trying to sanitize D&D. The poeple who thought it was evil still thought it was evil and the game lost A LOT of its charm.
The good thing about the roleplaying games is what was taken out by the publishers can easily be put back the the Game/Dungeeonmaster
@@pjm3005 so weird because Ive never understood this. People play D&D how they want. Cute fuzzy Pikachu enemies? Sure. Canabalistic kobolds and gray ooze that dissolves the skin off your foot forever (or until you find a supernatural demon and perform some ritual). Fine. I have enjoyed all reiterations of the game since the small box and they all have helped rpg gaming in different ways.
Not trying to poo poo your opinion. I can see how this was a rough time especially for people persecuted at the time.
The more things change the more they stay the same.
@@jpmangen nah, have you ever read the gygax versions? his prose is unmatched (his organization might need a bit of work though) - just reading the 1E DMG is a wonderful time (and because it's so badly organized you find something new every time!). They took out all the boobie pics from the monster manuals - you can't put those back! 1E had a charm that 2E completely lost, even though the rules are totally compatible.
AD&D 2nd ed was my first RPG experience. I still have my original character sheet and sketches. I recently used Heroforge to great a representation of that old character.
Also, I think those minis were used in the old Dragon Strike VHS then they used different sculpts for the board game.
As an old fogie I recall when this edition came out (Started in the old red box). I never had one nor played the adventures, but spent many MANY long nights in the wonderful dreamland created by my friends and I where we adventured as mighty Heroes of the Realm. I recall my powerful wizard...(I cast ... LIGHT. Now I RUN AWAY PLEASE DON'T KILL ME!) and he was fun. By the time I stopped playing him at around 12th level he had an 8 con from dying so much and a mighty 22 hit points or something like that. Amazing fun. If you decide to run this, (perhaps at Mythicon?) I would JUMP at the chance to play again.
Don't get me wrong, I love the simplicity and streamlined game of today and my favorite edition was likely 3.0. But going back to the days when this was what we looked forward to every week...wow. Very very cool. Thanks for the Video.
I didn't even know this starter set existed! So cool. Thanks for sharing this with us on your video. Enjoyed it.
Memories! ❤ I also kind of remembered the smell of the paper and the plastic in these days. It was somehow more intense.
A similar feeling to that opening this DnD box I got lately, when I opened the Dragonbane starter box. It has a rule book, an adventure book, dice, cardboard minis, pregens, empty character sheets,... Great feeling!
I didn't get much use out of this set, because I already owed the hardcover books. However, I loved the CD! I can't tell you how many times I listened to the example of how to play tracks at the beginning of the CD 😊 So cheesy, but so good.
Crazy that they used the Dragonlance art for the wizard but changed his name… That’s actually Fizban and other person is Tasselhoff Burrfoot, a Kender. Good times. Awesome Video BTW
Yeah, that threw me.
Bruenor Battlehammer from Forgotten Realms was the art used for the Dwarf fighter. I believe it's the original cover from Streams of Silver the second book in the Icewind dale trilogy . Larry Elmore did a lot of illustrations and artwork in general for both the Dragonlance and Forgotten Realms campaign settings.
In fairness, "Fizban" was already a changed name. Tas name dropping his close personal friend always made me smile.
This really brings back memories. The AD&D 2nd Edition starter set was my introduction to D&D thanks to my friend's brother who owned this. We also played the CD for every required room we entered. I think there was even a boss named Bone Gnasher if I recall right. It was so much fun. We decided to start playing this one day and I still play to this day.
May i request that you do more videos explaining 2nd edition? I really enjoyed this.
Remember when Wights were actually terrifying? I think if a modern 5e player started losing levels to a wight, they’d combust.
ROFL... I literally burst a laugh out loud with this comment. Combust they would!
I didn't have this exact box, but one almost exactly like it. It was the same size as the Planescape and Birthright boxes and had everything you showed off except for the miniatures inside. I still have most of it in my collection. Man this brings me back! Great video!
Out of all the times i've seen THACO mentioned it's always with the "oh this was so hard/cumbersome/crunchy" slant, but never with an explanation of what it actually was/how it worked. That example was so concise and simple lol loved it
Yes, "simple" :-D
I also started with AD&D back in the day. Collected a slightly earlier set of the books though, I never saw this starter set.
AD&D 2E is still my favorite edition. Some of it is nostalgia, I did start on 1E but quickly moved to 2E when my parents bought me my own books. I’ve run it somewhat recently and it’s still great. I’d never seen this starter set, thanks for sharing!
Oh man I used to have this set! I still have the Wizard and Thief minis. Now I know where those actually came from. Thanks for the walk down memory lane!
This is how I first got into tabletop gaming. It was my brother and I that got this box, but my mom made us include our little sister to play. It was an interesting, yet confusing experience. Two weeks later, my grandma's new boyfriend stole the set and destroyed it. He was one of those Christians who believed in the Satanic panic.
Oh man, that's so dear to me too! My first contact with AD&D was with Dragonlance, and I got a new box just for sentimental reasons a while ago too.
Lol, Morganth the Misterious is actually an illustration for Fizban the Fabulous, that's a picture by Larry Elmore for the Dragonlance Campaign Setting, you can see that's a Kender (Tasslehoff Burrfoot) holding a hoopak next to him. =)
I noticed that straight off. The Elmore picture is a classic, it keeps coming up in a lot of publications and over the years several mini creators, both official and unofficial have used it as a reference for both Fizban and Tass.
Just gotta run it for the wife and kids bro, she'll understand once she reaches level 3.
The reason I love 5e is it's really quite similar to 2e. THAC0 became the proficiency bonus. Instead of having your "proficiency" bonus linked to AC0, they decided to centre it on... just numerical 0 - which seems infinitely more sane. 2e had saving throws linked to your class and level, while 5e has saves linked to stats and proficiency bonus again. This may sound blasphemous but 5e is 2e made elegant.
Great stuff!!! Thank-you for sharing!
My jam was 1ed AD&D. Still my fave edition. Have all my books still, and about 10 original modules.
Started playing jn ‘79-‘80.
Fun memories. :)
This is awesome. The quality and care that went into this. This would have been a great way to learn. Created with passion.
Ah, my first DnD product as well, still have most of the dice from the set.
Super random, but I'm currently a dev on Word for the Web (the browser based version of Word) and I used to work on Word for windows. I love seeing people mention using Word to do stuff back in the 90's! Thank you for that mention of a product I love. :D
FIRST QUEST was my introduction to AD&D. It is a "remixed" (?) of this Starter Set, including one extra adventure (Spelljammer! With a Giff!) and a different division of the booklets, with the spells split on two booklets, one for wizards and the other for clerics. And we got the maps of the adventures 3 and 4.
But the best thing about your unbox is how I finally have visual confirmation that "The Town" is Freedale. And the goblin image is different, and there was no Myconid. Would be a great video to make these comparisons on how it changed. What not changed is the CD. I loved the CD.
Thank you for the video
Only one d10? Cheapskates! Oh, wait. My first box set had a sheet of thick cardboard with numbers printed on it. You had to clip it apart and keep the different 'dice' chits in different coffee cups to draw out of.
(THACO rant- I've said this before. When we first heard of THACO it was a literal game changer. Before we would cross reference each swing on a level/AC table. Just having one number and adjusting it by AC made combat so much easier)
Rant away - we love THAC0! As someone recently said to me: "I love the smell of descending armor class in the morning." 😂
Exactly! THAC0 was a wonderful innovation for dealing with descending armor class back when they started using it late 1e. People who complain about it being a needless complication don't know what they're talking about.
This changed my life. I got the same one when I was 12. I lost the blue figures over the years but have everything else.
I started with the 3ed boxed set. I remember it having fewer monsters but more scenarios, which gradually introduced you to the concepts of tactical play and encounter design. They all were played on sections of a single dungeon map that served as different dungeons.
I loved 2nd ADnD. Dark Sun was peak TSR imo.
Love starter sets in general. This is great one! I'm finding more and more as I, get older, there's enough in a starter set box to have a decently long campaign that you an play before other "life" priorities take precedent!
I used that starter set to introduce several friends to D&D. Such an incredibly fantastic package! I've lost almost all of the contents of the set over the years but I still have the audio CD in all its glory!
From a collector's point of view, it breaks the heart, to watch you open the shrink wrap. But the kid in me was cheering for you to open the box. And yes, agreed, 2nd edition was one of the best. But for me, I cut my teeth on the original 1st edition basic set. 1A&D was brutally fun, and the eventual evolution to 5e has been an awesome transition, though I miss the original spirit of good old fashioned dungeon crawls and all or nothing combat missions. D&D used to be awesome for both roleplay and combat. 5e made it feel more like "everyone gets a trophy play style". Getting back up from a brutal slaughter, and fighting with 1 hp just feels silly. I mean, in real world mechanics, even a simple slip and fall in the kitchen can leave a person out of the action for a few days. THACO was the best system ever. It's a shame that people had to submit to having poor math skills, and now passively accept the fluff of 5e. That being said, I'm still a fan of 5e, simply because of the versatility of having so many species to pick from as a character. Looking forward to some of the new game mechanics of 2024 DND. I just wish the books would arrive already, to check them all out.
This is awesome. Totally brings me back. I started playing AD&D when I was 6 with my two older brothers. In fact my first official campaign was run in a wizard of the Coast store. Back when they still had them lol. My favorite book was the complete Ninja Book. It's worth the money you spent. I don't run 2e anymore but still run 3.5 and 5e.
I didn't get into D&D until the tail end of 3rd edition and start of 3.5. Just before that a friend of a friend gave him all of his AD&D books.
I made a dark elf ranger before I knew of a famous drow ranger from Forgotten Realms.
One of our friends flipped through the monster manual and picked out an umber-hulk for our first level characters to fight. His name was Larry and he very politely TPK'ed the party.
The great god, Dungeon Master said, "Oops, that monster was too strong. You're all alive again at full hit points. Larry the umber-hulk apologizes for the TPK and gives you a hundred gold pieces. And we never played those characters again.
So I went out and bought the 3.5 books when they came out after playing a few 3rd edition games. I've been playing off and on since.
Ah nostalgia. It's weird how memories of a single terrible monster fight started a lifelong hobby.
Brilliant. I still have some of the components from this set, but I'd forgotten it came in such a large box.
All the old boxed sets were great. I fondly remember the slightly older Rules Cyclopaedia/BECMI adventure boxes, complete with sheets of standees and a board game.
Thanks for sharing this.
I started in 1979 and bought that boxset when it came out 30 years ago and still have it mint condition on my shelf right now,the CD-ROM atmospheric music is class! i never painted the models and only opened the maps to look at...THACO rules lol
I started with red box D&D, but 2e will always have a warm place in my heart. It was the height of D&D writing. As much as I love 5e, the current company will never be able to match the quality of writing 2e had. Hell, 5e can't even match the art quality of 2e. Anytime someone wants me to show them why 2e was better, I show them the monstrous compendium.
My brother in math rocks, I am happy for you and enjoyed this, having never seen this before, because I never got a 2e starter set because I am Old. What a great box! In spite of coming with a stupid non-Platonic d10.
We abandoned THACO because we abandoned low AC being better, because it didn't scale.
5e has some stupid stuff, but I am glad "use rope" is gone. Generally, if we ignore 4e, each edition has improved on the last, until this year.
Professor DM will always be right that "roll 13 or more" is really the essential rule of D&D.
Amazing. Thanks for the nostalgia that never ever fades. Priceless!
Started playing AD&D when it came out in the late 80's and through the 90's until our group parted ways in the final year of highschool. The red class and race books really helped build our own views of our characters but the main manuals were well done and intuitive.
Do you mean the brown ones, Complete Guides, for players? Blue ones for DMs
@@ShoZama85Forgot there were the DM books as well. Very good product.
Crazy. That thing is as old as I am. Somehow I still get a sense of nostalgia just looking at it. You really can't beat that old school art and feeling.
I very distinctly remember me and a friend getting this set or something like it, with the CD. We didn't understand it, we listened to the CD for a bit, and then set it aside and never came back to it. It wasn't until 10 years later that I picked up D&D proper, this time being tricked into buying overstock 3.0e books after 3.5 came out. Been playing off and on since.
Now I want that box set. I never even knew it existed. Thanks for this walk down memory lane
5:35 You can't fool me TSR, that's Fizban!!!
Brings back so many memories. Still got some of the minis. I am from Croatia so getting the books was very difficult back in the 90s. There was littrally one comic book in the whole country and anything D&D related was gone as soon as it got to the store... 2nd edition was awesome...
BG and IWD...playing all night...
Ah...good times
Love all your videos, but this one is special!
I didn’t even remember that I used to own this boxed set until you started going thru the books. I was 17 or 18 when I owned it. Thanks for the nostalgia. I would be interested in playing a character. I always DM. 🙂
I’ve been running Rime of the Frost Maiden since December of 2020 on roll20. I really miss in person. All of those tiles you taught me how to make sit in my closet.
Mine too
THACO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My DM was a saint, he made charts for each of us
Man that's what I cut my teeth on too!!! Lost all of that stuff through the years. Found the cd a few years ago, ripped it and now at 43 years old, I still listen to that damn thing when trying to fall asleep.....
I also started with this set at the age of 10 or so (right after having gotten and played Dragon Strike). TSR was putting a lot of effort into figuring out how to teach the game to people who didn't have anyone to teach them at the time and I really appreciated the CD at the time (even though I knew it was cheesy). I learned how to play and DM from this box!
Yup, I'm old and a geek. As soon as you were trying to figure out if the elf was a multi-class or a dual class I immediately said he was multi, as I think only humans were able to dual class in 2e.
Wow! Very cool video; this definitely takes me back. I remember owning the TSR boardgame Dragonstrike which is basically DND lite that came out in 1993. It came with so many miniatures, and some of the scuplts in this D&D starter set look identical to the evil wizard Teraptus and some of the heros in that game. I have many memories of dragging my Mom to the craft store to stock up on Apple Barrel paints and painting every single miniature in the game with my brother. Those were some good times. I wish I still had that game. Thanks for sharing this and the link to the CD!
Thanks Wylock for showing us this edition. I skipped from AD & D straight to 3.0. So I never used the cryptic THACO mechanic. 👍
Beautiful... that set of dice took me back.
Thanks for another video. I appreciate your commentary --> value judgements, hybrids and Year of our Lord. Good stuff Wyloch!
I started my D&D journey with d20 Modern before jumping over to 3.5e.
However, I do remember seeing that box in the game stores back then. It was my very first interaction with that name "Dungeons & Dragons." I even asked my father what that was and . . . he at least acknowledged that I should wait until my math skills were a bit better before trying the game.
Never did try that edition; maybe my dad was trying to save his wallet at that time.
BTW, I had no idea I am older than you by a year. Learn new things everyday.
This is really creatively inspiring. Saving this to refer to in the future. I make online content for 5e but the simplicity here is so captivating.
@innocentBystander19 Yeah and it's kind of disheartening. I spend 40 hours on a gorgeous craft and that video gets a few thousand views. I spend four hours on a throwaway junk video like this one and it's gotten ten times normal viewership. You gotta tailor to what the people want.
@@WylochsArmory I think that is also due to the changing in the audience. There are now tons of crafting channels out there. Those are now being dwarfed by how many miniature painting channels there are out there. With 3d printing becoming cheaper and more accessible to the average person, more people just opt out of crafting and 3d print terrain. Since I have been getting into this hobby back in 2018, I have noticed the shift in videos being made.
The absolute love in your voice as you said "And there goooes the value...." :D
So many good memories, makes me want to gop read my red, blue and green options books all again
I bought an opened box version for like 45 bucks a couple years ago! My box isn't as big though but contains all the same stuff! Love this set and the mpas are AMAZING! and hand outs!
That art was gorgeous! I truly miss when D&D art was a little less realistic and gory. The dark fantasy look had some charm.
I'm not a fan of the system but the pages are so bright and easy to read, the font is great and I like the way the text is laid out.
Bought this box at Half Priced Books last year for $60 & was told it was complete. Turned out most of it was missing but it did have several old BX & 1e modules and a Holmes basic rule book all in really good condition.
While I wouldn't pay that price for this item mainly because I have most of the books but thank you for showing it off! I cut my teeth on AD&D 2E right around the time you did. I got away from AD&D when 3.0 came out and my group switched. After playing the newer versions of the game and having bad experience after bad experience especially with 5E I decided to kick all wotc versions to the curb back in 2017. Since then I have been collecting the entire AD&D 2E line and have decided to make it my home for Dungeons and Dragons. To me this version is what the game is supposed to be and while I do like 1E and BECMI this one is where I gravitate to. Nice video!
This was so awesome Wyloch! It’s funny what people argue about with style and methods of play that’s all answered right here. Thank you so much for sharing this with us! 🤘🥰🤘
As goofy as that audio CD was, it addressed a very serious problem - most people had never seen a game actually played. Even in the early 00s when I started, there was no video streaming or “actual plays.” You just dove in and tried to figure out how to do it.
I really appreciate the Kiss From a Rose at 2:27 ❤
2e except for the thaco was really the most easily playable ad&d edition out there. I miss it . We just ignored the thaco rule in the games I played or DM'd in. Dude I wish I could find a copy of that boxed set. I still have my spell cards and magic items cards from that edition. Of course I have 2e on my hard drive but pdf edition is not as easily readable-scrolling up and down to manage the columns, as the regular books are. You are soo lucky to have that boxed set even if you never play a game one from it.
Thanks for that Bill! I got my start in second edition as well when my buddy Dan started bringing his Planescape books into algebra class.