Tolkien originally called one of his sub-groups of elves "Gnomes", but later changed it to "Noldor" after he found out that most people associated gnomes with those little garden statues.
A lot of the retro community does still.. games like Streets of Rage, TMNT Turtles in Time, this game, Double Dragon are still talked about in those communities. Just not really main stream anymore sadly.
The dinosaur thing was near the end of the original Masters of the Universe line. I believe it was called Tyrantasaurus Rex and it was supposed to be part of a spin off line called Powers of Greyskull. And was aso supposed to feature an ancestor of He-Man called He-Ro (I'm not kidding) the most Powerful Wizard in the Universe.
Owlbears are classic D&D monsters from the start... and literally owl + bear = evil is the recipe. As to the gnomes, there are 2 main races - regular gnomes (surface world) and svirfneblin (the underdark race), both goodly and much shorter than dwarves (who have similar races, though the underdark race is more evil). Gnomes are also harder to come across than dwarves, as their smaller stature makes them easier prey for the evil races, and gnomes rely more on technology than magic compared to most other races and most worship the Gnomish god of technology Gond as a result... thus, the diminutive stature of gnomes is outweighed by things like, say, gunpowder.
I should mention I only scratched the surface of tabletop D&D myself; if you really want to start at the beginning, check out the books in the 'Forgotten Realms' shared universe - lot of lore embedded throughout the years by authors trying their best to stay true to the source material
J Zerkel I've been playing D&D for quite a time now and I can confirm: Owlbears are pure fuckin evil personified. I remember I had a campaign with 5 of my friends. When we were lv 2, every fuckin night, 1-3 owlbears attacked us, fuckin our shit up. Now I have ptsd whenever I see one
J Zerkel I played D&D way, way back... A friend introduced me to the OLD edition even when AD&D 2nd Edition was out... Its hard for many to get into, but with James Rolfe being not only a RUclipsr but alsop loving movies, I think he could really get into it... After all, Being a Player is 'Acting' and Being a DM is essentially 'Directing'
J Zerkel Spot on about Owlbears, but your gnomish commentary is too campaign-world specific. Most D&D campaigns don't feature Gond(he's only in Forgotten Realms). Greyhawk has Garl Glittergold(he's a patron of pranksters, illusionists, and teachers) and Dragonlance has Reorx(worshipped by both dwarves and gnomes). Some campaign worlds feature gnomes far more obsessed with magic than tech, just depends on the setting.
D&D Shadow over Mystara and Tower of Doom, pure gold, probably my favorite arcade beat'em up, seriously imo is even better then Turtles in Time and TnT is already a masterpiece!
I have Dragon's Crown on PS3, is certainly good! The character design is a bit "funny" if you know what i mean. The only complain i have, is the cooking mini-game, i wish it didn't have it.
Pyoro, well, there is a PS3 emulator, you'll just have to get the game :) I know is not the same, but to be honest, is been a few years since Dragons Crown, and tho they said at some point they had the plan to put it on Steam, that did never happen, so i wouldn't keep my hopes up.
I remember one were kids on a rollercoaster get transported to a D&D type world in the intro..🎢 Then each kid had a special weapon. Staff, cloak, ect..
If it was on in 1983 like stated earlier, I was only three years old, so I don't know if I ever watched it. Earliest memories of me watching cartoons involve He-Man and Voltron.
Mr Zilla YES! LOVED IT! Sadly, It never got its final episode ever made... Its now a Bonus on the DVD Box Set - You get the original Script that was never filmed.
Gnomes are a more recent addition to literature, first seen in the Renaissance period, whereas dwarves were first seen in Norse mythology. Gnomes originally only lived underground and didn't like to associate with humans. Some dwarves lived underground, but others lived in forests or up in the mountains; they were generally friendlier towards humans, and were said to be wise craftspeople. In more modern times, gnomes have taken on an appearance like that of the dwarves in Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs, and have become associated with people's homes. Dwarves have shrunken in size and have become skilled warriors. Of the two, I'd say dwarves are more interesting, simply because they're more fleshed out.
To expand upon your solid answer, In D&D Dwarves lean more towards warriors, and Gnomes lean more towards chaotic inventors. Some of the Gnome tales are just hilarious.
Also in Norse Mythology Dwarves were known as Dark Elves [not yet found a good description of them though to see if they were like the current dwarves or elves in design.]
I really enjoy seeing people geek or nerd out on things, it's heartwarming. I'd really enjoy to see a video with you guys going through Mike's collection.
Just to clarify for you guys, if you see this comment. D&D isn't really a board game, per se. Rather, it is a pen and paper RPG where the various rule books (such as the Player's Handbook and Dungeon Master's Guide) provide a framework for playing the game, but what is done during play is entirely determined by the DM. They create the narrative. The only time D&D features a physical board is during combat, which is kind of a tactical grid-based affair. This board can be store-bought, but it is generally just drawn on graph paper.
All of this is true, all you really need to play DnD are your basic rulebooks (Player Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, and Monster Manual being the most necessary, though other rulebooks and sources are helpful to add variety and options to the experience), one or two sets of dice (consisting of a variety of d4's, d6's, d8's, d10's, d12s and d20's typically) paper, your writing utensil of choice, and your imagination. Even a board and miniatures can be considered optional if players and DM are able to mentally visualize the combat scenario and the positioning of all combatants involved, but a board is always useful (especially for new players) even if it's just a sheet of graph paper.
Boards can be used for skill test as well outside of combat. But most of the rest of the time it is not needed. You can have maps out and markers for towns I guess but I digress. I hate to have anyone limit themselves in how they use their tools. That is why when someone says only during combat it bothers me. I say use a Board whenever you feel it will add to your game. I rarely use boards and keep my maps to myself as a DM.
Theres no gnomes in LOTRO he says... there was supposed to be but he decided to change the name to something else... is he joking around? Hes talking about Hobbits right? Obviously Hobbits are gnomes.
Honestly, hearing James bring up Warcraft as an example for something surprised me a lot. His scope of games seem so limited most of the time, and almost never extends to PC.
Guys...If you are looking to start from the *beginning* of D&D, you are looking at a long, multiple-years journey of lots of money and time. Just stick with the basics. Find a friend who knows RPG games and D&D, and just sit in on a session and play. Simple as that. Get a feel for the dice, and creating a character, and just go for it. Read one of the Chronicles novels (Dragonlance Chronicles that is), and you'll get a feel for the literary universe. Maybe try one of the PC or Genesis games. Warriors of the Eternal Sun on Genesis is pretty well-known as being a classic. I was lucky to experience D&D through a friend and my cousin, both of who were a couple/few years older, and pretty well-versed in RPG games when I first tried my hand at it at the age of 11. I've played the actual D&D roleplaying game off and on over the last 25 years, and always had a blast, but the videogames are also their own beast. Try your hand at those. And like I said before, the novels are pretty cool too, and branch out into different brands. You've got your Dragonlance, Dark Sun, Forgotten Realms, and other stuff. Back in the 90s I read Tales Vol. 1 and 2, which are short story anthologies, and those were cool. The Chronicles Trilogy is also amazing, and I think the very first full-on D&D novel series. Just look on Amazon. Fun stuff.
Jon Sutton Gord the Rogue(written by d&d co-creator Gary Gygax) came out before before the Dragonlance novels. Otherwise i agree with your suggestions for James and Mike 100%
Also, the fine novels from R.A. Salvator and Ed Greenwood are great reading if you want to know more about the world of Forgotten Realms and D&D in general.
when I ran out of friends In real life, I tried playing d and d online in chat rooms. too bad back then it was enough on dial up to have mics... without web cam and its like honest, I rolled a 20... again... however these days might be doable on skype. considering the hardest thing is finding people who play. I'm surprised this nerd dude never played.
Don't worry about starting with the beginning of D&D, unless you really just want to know the history. If you just want to play, pick up the Fifth Edition books and just get into it.
I can't believe you guys finally played this classic arcade greatness of a game, i remember how i always wasted the money that my father or grandmother gave me in this game for so much hours :)
I watch very few other lets plays for the gameplay but with you guys I keep coming back for the awesome random conversations you have. Never change you guys! Oh and Happy Thanksgiving!
Dwarves - Large, barrel-like humanoids of short stature. Dwell underground, tied to mining and forging. Craftsmen. Gnomes - Tiny, tree and forest-dwelling humanoids, usually only a few inches tall. Usually commune with nature ( birds/toads/animals are friends and mounts) and more associated with magic than building things. Fucking love you guys, and was dying that I wasn't in the room to join in that conversation XD
Gnomes are one of the humanoid races. Gnomes were the oldest sentient race on the Continent and together with dwarves and elves are called the Old races. Gnomes are shorter and weaker than dwarves, but just as tough and more agile. They can be easily distinguished from dwarves and halflings by their long noses. This is an explanation of gnomes in the Witcher Universe which has a lot in common with other stories, such as lord of the rings, d&d etc. hope that helps
D and D is or was basically a RPG game without the video so you roll to move and to determine power of your certain attacks and probability of your attack striking and landing damage with someone playing the Dungeon Master who comes up with all the situations in the game and somewhat how fights go, it's best with descent group of friends
BigFrakkinOgre Yeah, no you're right, haven't played since 97' but remember almost all of it, loved getting together with a bunch of friends and playing
When it comes to Dnd I would recommend 3.5 edition because it is the most complex. When you conquer the complex then you can catch up to the newer editions more easily. If you try to catch up to the latest edition on the offset you'll be chasing the new stuff all the time while trying to figure out the base mechanics. Dnd is a fantastic pastime and I hope you enjoy it!
I love beat em ups, especially Knights of the round and the king of dragons. This is definitely the pinnacle of fantasy beat em up. Wish golden axe had gone this way.
For James, Gnomes according to the 1993 edition of AD&D Monstrous Manual: * Small cousins of the Dwarves * Rarely seen unless they want to be * Strongly resemble small, thin nimble dwarves, with the exception of 2 notable facial features: gnomes prefer their beards shorts and stylishly trimmed, and take pride in their enormous noses (often twice the size of any dwarf or human) * Speak their own language * Can be fighters or priests but usually prefer to be thieves or illusionists So they’re not quite the same as dwarves.
You should actually play d&d (or any other tabletop) and stream it! I sugget you to get (or download) the Castle Ravenloft module and just learn enough to play it, it's one the most classic d&d adventures (aside from some Dragonlance modules).
I think James means Monkian, he kinda looks like beastman and has that arm mechanism. What masters of the universe was all about was selling toys, that's it. But the movie managed to capture some of the gayness of the cartoon with the pink cadilllac and other stuff. When Mike said this was one of his favorite arcade games I was expecting a decent gameplay from his part, but he doesn't even know the skills of the characters types and special moves.
D&D is a storytelling game at it's core. The editions are just the rules/standards for managing magic and combat and that has changed over generations of players. Me and my friends played 2nd edition rules in the 90s back in the day. Last I heard there was a 3rd edition. Who knows what they're up to now. Your overall experience as players is almost entirely managed by your Dungeon Master, so group dynamics among your friends can make or break the whole experience more so than what rules or editions your playing with. Then you have "campaign settings" which use certain D&D edition rules as a standard and paint an entire world of mythology for players to draw inspiration from for adventures. These "boxed campaigns" have served as settings to popular novel series like my personal favorite fantasy novels, Dragonlance! The rabbit hole gets quite deep...
The gnomes vs dwarves thing: There's a game called Majesty with very different dwarves and gnomes. Dwarves were bearded, like to build siege weapons and were smiths who attacked with a hammer. Gnomes though were filthy little hunchback creatures that live in little hovels. You built one hovel and more start to spring up filled with more gnomes, and you can't stop them. Also, elves were amoral pleasure seekers who loved to gamble and hang out in "bungalows," which look like brothels.
If you want to tabletops RPGs (like dungeon and dragons), i'll suggest that you find someone who knows how to play and start from there (don't try to start from the beggining and dont try to buy every book, there are a pain to get and there are a lot of them) and that you make a video of your experience maybe even a game session
I spent so many quarters on this game when it came out. As for the He-man debacle, There were two figure types released, the poseable figures and the Battle Action figures. And the Beholder, existed way before Madballs, that lethal pain in the tail monster was around clear back in the boxed sets of the original D&D RPG series.
You also get Street Fighter style inputs, which Mike hasn't mentioned yet. You can do QCF or DPM and attack to get some other stuff, and you can actually get some pretty decent combos going.
To answer your questions about Gnomes and Dwarves and the major differences is fairly well displayed in World of Warcraft, the races in World of Warcraft were inspired directly from D&D and so was Lord of the Rings so to casually learn it, World of Warcraft gives you the basics but, the old school D&D table top game is what set the original standards for people so i would recommend getting yourselves a "D&D monster manual" and read it you will find practically everything in that and that specific book is the original standard for almost every fantasy video game monster in almost every game made in an MMORPG since NES was new. If you want to learn it all in a funner way id recommend a specific game called "Neverwinter Nights" it is the truest to form game based on the old school D&D table top game and its a very awesome timeless game if you ask me. I still play it its that good. I own Neverwinter Nights Diamond edition which is 4 games in 1 basically so if you buy this game try to get the diamond edition DVD otherwise you get stuck buying it all individually. Also Neverwinter Nights 2 sucks avoid part 2. This game was eventually turned into Star Wars Knights of the old Republic on original Xbox, that game was awesome and what it basically was is Star Wars in D&D. D&D can fit anything into it potentially even the Star Trek universe works in D&D so D&D definitely has unlimited potential and is good to know since it applies to pretty much like 90% of all fantasy based games. Also just so you know there is probably a lot of fans of D&D watching your videos so don't be afraid to do a D&D marathon of all the D&D/Wizards of the Coast games, id love to see that. 2 hidden gems from the past that are a must see are Wizards of the Coast and Westwood Studios. The gaming industry wouldn't be the same today without them and the work they did.
Gnomes and Dwarfes: Gnomes are Earthspirits, mostly capable of using magic and changing their appearance. They are also mostly protecting some kind of treasure (like gold or jewels). Their main task is so protect the elements of the earth, residing in forests, coexisting with the animals there and mostly not showing themselves to humans. Dwarfes on the other hand are miners. Living underground and digging ores and crafting them into all sorts of stuff, from household tools like pots or forks, to weapons and armor to fight. They are resistant to any kind of magic, coming from all the ores they are always surrounded with. Just very few Dwarfes are being tought magic, and they are called Geodes, but besides them, Dwarfes are, as said resistant to magic (even healing magic), but also can't use magic at all. So the difference is pretty significant. While the Gnomes are very magical creatures that live in forrests and protect treasures and nature, the Dwarfes are un-magical creatures that are master smiths and crafters that live underground and gather ores. Also while Gnomes are doing their best to not show themselves to humans, Dwarfes do not mind trading with them or fighting alongside, as long as they don't make fun of their culture/family/traditions.
Dragonlance setting has perfect examples of Dwarves and Gnomes. Forgotten realms setting is more in-depth but then gets a bit too much with several different subsets of Dwarves and Gnomes. Then there is Warhammer which has what most people typically think of as Dwarves that love gold, their beards and beer. There are Chaos Dwarves but as far as being evil and mutated I haven't read much more about them...
The video Mike did about this game a while ago is the reason I bought it on the Wii U. I usually play as either the fighter or wizard guy. My niece loves using the thief because of one reason, infinite rocks to throw at baddies. :D
Tolkien used "elves" and "dwarves" instead of "elfs" and "dwarfs" to differentiate his vision from the folklorical tales, elfs were commonly used as forest spirits, and Tolkien wanted to let clear that he was using the term in the mythological way
Kind of adding to what people said in the comments section: If you are looking to start, buy a starter box (5th edition being a good idea since it is the current one) and play around with the pre-made characters there. Not only does it come with dice as well, but a starter scenario to help you out.
I love the nostalgia talk. The only thing they mentioned that I didn't know was the dinosaur James mentioned. He-Man toys were so awesome. I had almost all the action figures.
Gnomes are members of the Fae (Fairies, Elves, Pixies, etc.) while Dwarfs are more closely related to humans that specialized living in caves and mountains. Warcraft lore has the origins of gnomes as starting as mechanical beings, created by the Titans to serve as handymen/mechanics, while dwarfs started as stone beings created to guard the underground realms.
Gnomes and Dwarves come from two different mythological creatures. Gnomes tend to be tinkerers, and Dwarves are miners. ADnD is an RPG. Pen and Paper. There is no beginning. You'd want to check out one of the settings and get the core books for it. Forgotten Realms would be my suggestion, since it's one of the richest and most familiar. You'll also really need more than two people. One acting as the DM, or dungeon master, who comes up with the scenarios. And a few people to create characters and role play as them. That's a Beholder, and it's one of the original uber monsters from DnD. From the 70s...
I used to see this game at the local Arcade when I was in my teens... But I sucked at playing it. I enjoyed watching my friends beating the game though, with the final battle to the MASSIVE Red Dragon. That was AWESOME!!
I believe the action figure James was talking about was Monkian from the 80's LJN Thundercats line. He also had the same action feature as Panthro (except only one arm would move).
Tower of Doom all day baby. Childhood best friend and I spent a day and entire allowance as they had the arcade at a Stop n Go on the corner and beat the game. I remember his dad picking him up at the store as soon as we beat it not very happy we been there all day and he missed the ending. Was bittersweet as we worked so hard to get there even battling the red dragon.
Dwarves use runes because they are not magically-inclined. Gnomes are particularly magical and favor illusions. That's how Dungeons and Dragons separates them. Gnomes are fey creatures while Dwarves are cut from the rock. Halflings are a middle ground between the two, keeping the trickster intelligence but lacking the magical capability, and while they are physically capable, they aren't the rocks that Dwarves are.
Jon Sutton made a good point on how to start in the Tabletop RPG games like D&D. But D&D, AD&D, Pathfinder, ect... has a lot of maturity and complexity even for beginners nowadays. I would suggest start with a simplified system and with a familiar lore, like MERP (Middle Earth Role Playing Game) or event the Star Wars Tabletop game (technically D&D but simplified and d6). Very simple, very fun to play and with a lore that isn't completly unknown.
cinnemassacre mythical creature series, an episode for human species describing their etymology in the most popular sources, probably lotr d&d and maybe the start of the legends
You don't have to pick up every coin and item separately. You can do a slide (down and jump I think) and when you do, you pick up every item on it's way automatically.
There was an old Star Wars Tauntaun toy which had a slot in its belly where you could store smaller toys. It was not purple but I believe it is the toy James is thinking of.
James and Mike, not to put too fine a point on it but consider it this way: D&D is like World of Warcraft or Everquest but with general rule books as a guide and dice to determine the success of what you do. One person is the role of running the world and all things in it while the other players control characters (heroes) and decide how to navigate that world.
New series idea: Get someone in your area local to you James and Mike, who is experienced with Dungeons & Dragons, have him be the DM, start a campaign, and film it. I think it would be really interesting.
I know I’m super late on this but if you don’t want to spend an arm and leg on the core books, you can always pick up Whitebox: Fantastic Medieval Adventure Game, or Basic Fantasy. These games basically replicate the original D&D (AD&D) with a modern twist. They’re both very rules lite and super easy to play, and the best part is everything you need is in 1 book!
Tolkien originally called one of his sub-groups of elves "Gnomes", but later changed it to "Noldor" after he found out that most people associated gnomes with those little garden statues.
Gartenzwerge haha
I'm pretty sure hobbits are the gnomes of Tolkien hence the GARDENS all over the shire, and how hobbits love things that grow.
@@Andronicus87 You are wrong, sir. Read the twelve part series of books called _The History of Middle Earth._ Tolkien's Gnomes became the Noldor.
This is a great Beat 'em up that doesn't get talked about often.
It really is amazing. I got to play it when I was younger.
This is a fun Arcade game.
And you would know champ.
Intimidation pretty sure no one ever talks about any beat em ups anyone...
A lot of the retro community does still.. games like Streets of Rage, TMNT Turtles in Time, this game, Double Dragon are still talked about in those communities. Just not really main stream anymore sadly.
Ironically, in Dungeons and Dragons lore, gnomes and dwarves are very different and clearly defined. Where do you think Warcraft got their lore?
Warhammer
Lol, good point.
It's odd how Gnomes are bigger than halflings
Warhammer which got a lot from D&D
Tolkien ultimately.
The dinosaur thing was near the end of the original Masters of the Universe line. I believe it was called Tyrantasaurus Rex and it was supposed to be part of a spin off line called Powers of Greyskull. And was aso supposed to feature an ancestor of He-Man called He-Ro (I'm not kidding) the most Powerful Wizard in the Universe.
Nice info.
In fact, the name was Tyrantisaurus Rex. It was a cyborg dinosaur.
i was wondering if it was a Dino Riders toy.
That looks exactly as described, well remembered!
scikaiju Wow quite the title..The most powerful wizard in the universe..
Owlbears are classic D&D monsters from the start... and literally owl + bear = evil is the recipe. As to the gnomes, there are 2 main races - regular gnomes (surface world) and svirfneblin (the underdark race), both goodly and much shorter than dwarves (who have similar races, though the underdark race is more evil). Gnomes are also harder to come across than dwarves, as their smaller stature makes them easier prey for the evil races, and gnomes rely more on technology than magic compared to most other races and most worship the Gnomish god of technology Gond as a result... thus, the diminutive stature of gnomes is outweighed by things like, say, gunpowder.
I should mention I only scratched the surface of tabletop D&D myself; if you really want to start at the beginning, check out the books in the 'Forgotten Realms' shared universe - lot of lore embedded throughout the years by authors trying their best to stay true to the source material
J Zerkel I've been playing D&D for quite a time now and I can confirm: Owlbears are pure fuckin evil personified. I remember I had a campaign with 5 of my friends. When we were lv 2, every fuckin night, 1-3 owlbears attacked us, fuckin our shit up. Now I have ptsd whenever I see one
J Zerkel I played D&D way, way back... A friend introduced me to the OLD edition even when AD&D 2nd Edition was out...
Its hard for many to get into, but with James Rolfe being not only a RUclipsr but alsop loving movies, I think he could really get into it... After all, Being a Player is 'Acting' and Being a DM is essentially 'Directing'
J Zerkel Spot on about Owlbears, but your gnomish commentary is too campaign-world specific. Most D&D campaigns don't feature Gond(he's only in Forgotten Realms). Greyhawk has Garl Glittergold(he's a patron of pranksters, illusionists, and teachers) and Dragonlance has Reorx(worshipped by both dwarves and gnomes). Some campaign worlds feature gnomes far more obsessed with magic than tech, just depends on the setting.
All hail Garl Glittergold!
D&D Shadow over Mystara and Tower of Doom, pure gold, probably my favorite arcade beat'em up, seriously imo is even better then Turtles in Time and TnT is already a masterpiece!
I have Dragon's Crown on PS3, is certainly good! The character design is a bit "funny" if you know what i mean. The only complain i have, is the cooking mini-game, i wish it didn't have it.
jose juan andrade I wish Dragon's Crown would come to PC
Pyoro, well, there is a PS3 emulator, you'll just have to get the game :)
I know is not the same, but to be honest, is been a few years since Dragons Crown, and tho they said at some point they had the plan to put it on Steam, that did never happen, so i wouldn't keep my hopes up.
One of the sickest arcade games I'd ever played when I was a kid
Anyone else ever see the Dungeons and Dragons cartoon?
I remember one were kids on a rollercoaster get transported to a D&D type world in the intro..🎢
Then each kid had a special weapon. Staff, cloak, ect..
Of course. It was the Saturday morning action for every kid of the 80s, and literally my intro to the world of D&D.
Every single episode.
Wizard
Ranger
Aaacrobat?
.... Pa...Paleontologist...
...um... Lumberjack?
😧 Whatever, go kill Tiamat.
If it was on in 1983 like stated earlier, I was only three years old, so I don't know if I ever watched it. Earliest memories of me watching cartoons involve He-Man and Voltron.
Mr Zilla YES! LOVED IT! Sadly, It never got its final episode ever made...
Its now a Bonus on the DVD Box Set - You get the original Script that was never filmed.
Gnomes are a more recent addition to literature, first seen in the Renaissance period, whereas dwarves were first seen in Norse mythology. Gnomes originally only lived underground and didn't like to associate with humans. Some dwarves lived underground, but others lived in forests or up in the mountains; they were generally friendlier towards humans, and were said to be wise craftspeople. In more modern times, gnomes have taken on an appearance like that of the dwarves in Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs, and have become associated with people's homes. Dwarves have shrunken in size and have become skilled warriors. Of the two, I'd say dwarves are more interesting, simply because they're more fleshed out.
Jake Self gnomes are often just the local variant of dwarf, as elf in old english folklore is basically the same as dwarf.
To expand upon your solid answer, In D&D Dwarves lean more towards warriors, and Gnomes lean more towards chaotic inventors. Some of the Gnome tales are just hilarious.
Also in Norse Mythology Dwarves were known as Dark Elves [not yet found a good description of them though to see if they were like the current dwarves or elves in design.]
Battle Axe Well, excuuuuse me!
I really enjoy seeing people geek or nerd out on things, it's heartwarming.
I'd really enjoy to see a video with you guys going through Mike's collection.
Just to clarify for you guys, if you see this comment. D&D isn't really a board game, per se. Rather, it is a pen and paper RPG where the various rule books (such as the Player's Handbook and Dungeon Master's Guide) provide a framework for playing the game, but what is done during play is entirely determined by the DM. They create the narrative. The only time D&D features a physical board is during combat, which is kind of a tactical grid-based affair. This board can be store-bought, but it is generally just drawn on graph paper.
All of this is true, all you really need to play DnD are your basic rulebooks (Player Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, and Monster Manual being the most necessary, though other rulebooks and sources are helpful to add variety and options to the experience), one or two sets of dice (consisting of a variety of d4's, d6's, d8's, d10's, d12s and d20's typically) paper, your writing utensil of choice, and your imagination. Even a board and miniatures can be considered optional if players and DM are able to mentally visualize the combat scenario and the positioning of all combatants involved, but a board is always useful (especially for new players) even if it's just a sheet of graph paper.
NEinAK Autism.
Solidus Rex You forgot dice ;)
Christ, can't believe I forgot. I edited it in for good measure.
Boards can be used for skill test as well outside of combat. But most of the rest of the time it is not needed. You can have maps out and markers for towns I guess but I digress. I hate to have anyone limit themselves in how they use their tools. That is why when someone says only during combat it bothers me. I say use a Board whenever you feel it will add to your game. I rarely use boards and keep my maps to myself as a DM.
James and Mike talk about gnomes for 27 minutes!
Theres no gnomes in LOTRO he says... there was supposed to be but he decided to change the name to something else... is he joking around? Hes talking about Hobbits right? Obviously Hobbits are gnomes.
Honestly, hearing James bring up Warcraft as an example for something surprised me a lot. His scope of games seem so limited most of the time, and almost never extends to PC.
Guys...If you are looking to start from the *beginning* of D&D, you are looking at a long, multiple-years journey of lots of money and time. Just stick with the basics. Find a friend who knows RPG games and D&D, and just sit in on a session and play. Simple as that. Get a feel for the dice, and creating a character, and just go for it. Read one of the Chronicles novels (Dragonlance Chronicles that is), and you'll get a feel for the literary universe. Maybe try one of the PC or Genesis games. Warriors of the Eternal Sun on Genesis is pretty well-known as being a classic.
I was lucky to experience D&D through a friend and my cousin, both of who were a couple/few years older, and pretty well-versed in RPG games when I first tried my hand at it at the age of 11. I've played the actual D&D roleplaying game off and on over the last 25 years, and always had a blast, but the videogames are also their own beast. Try your hand at those. And like I said before, the novels are pretty cool too, and branch out into different brands. You've got your Dragonlance, Dark Sun, Forgotten Realms, and other stuff. Back in the 90s I read Tales Vol. 1 and 2, which are short story anthologies, and those were cool. The Chronicles Trilogy is also amazing, and I think the very first full-on D&D novel series. Just look on Amazon. Fun stuff.
Jon Sutton Gord the Rogue(written by d&d co-creator Gary Gygax) came out before before the Dragonlance novels. Otherwise i agree with your suggestions for James and Mike 100%
BigFrakkinOgre I remember that Gary Gygax wrote some original novels. My friend picked one up years ago. Good stuff!
Also, the fine novels from R.A. Salvator and Ed Greenwood are great reading if you want to know more about the world of Forgotten Realms and D&D in general.
Or just look up some play sessions on youtube, to see if that kind of thing interests you. Much easier, I think.
when I ran out of friends In real life, I tried playing d and d online in chat rooms. too bad back then it was enough on dial up to have mics... without web cam and its like honest, I rolled a 20... again... however these days might be doable on skype. considering the hardest thing is finding people who play. I'm surprised this nerd dude never played.
"Basically we don't know what we're doing" could be the tagline for this series
Don't worry about starting with the beginning of D&D, unless you really just want to know the history. If you just want to play, pick up the Fifth Edition books and just get into it.
The older editions are great. I'd reccomend them for that classic rpg feel.
I personally prefer 3.5 (or rather Pathfinder version), but for guys who dont know what the Owlbear is 5E probably would be the way to go.
The Last Phoenix to each their own, I've never played 3.5 or pathfinder. and that's probably true about 5e.
5e is a great intro
I can't believe you guys finally played this classic arcade greatness of a game, i remember how i always wasted the money that my father or grandmother gave me in this game for so much hours :)
Mimal the Elf and David the Gnome
Best Capcom Arcade beat-em-up ever (and I know some will argue AvP, and C&C) but I always loved Shadow over Mystara
I agree with you. And all three of these games are awesome
The Punisher was pretty awesome too.
I meant to say The Punisher as well but it was late last night when I posted and it slipped through my mind.
This is the best beat 'em up of all time. Literally sank half my allowance into this game when I was a kid.
Great choice, this is one of the best James and Mike Mondays yet!
I actually thought they were going to play D&D for a minute and got really excited
I sort of wished they talked about the game more.
I watch very few other lets plays for the gameplay but with you guys I keep coming back for the awesome random conversations you have. Never change you guys! Oh and Happy Thanksgiving!
Yo, Beholders way predate Madballs.
James! Warcraft got their concept of Dwarves and Gnomes from DnD, so this really only makes sense.
WoW is basically DnD online.
The bar near my house has this game. Akihabira in Colorado.
Dwarves - Large, barrel-like humanoids of short stature. Dwell underground, tied to mining and forging. Craftsmen.
Gnomes - Tiny, tree and forest-dwelling humanoids, usually only a few inches tall. Usually commune with nature ( birds/toads/animals are friends and mounts) and more associated with magic than building things. Fucking love you guys, and was dying that I wasn't in the room to join in that conversation XD
d&d has always pretty clear rules about gnomes and dwarfs.
Why would they make gnomes bigger than halflings than in David the Gnome they're tiny
It's simple. I see dungeons and dragons, I click the like button.
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD SHOW HIM THE SPELLS
It's literally the best part of the game, selecting and casting whatever you want
Gnomes are one of the humanoid races. Gnomes were the oldest sentient race on the Continent and together with dwarves and elves are called the Old races. Gnomes are shorter and weaker than dwarves, but just as tough and more agile. They can be easily distinguished from dwarves and halflings by their long noses. This is an explanation of gnomes in the Witcher Universe which has a lot in common with other stories, such as lord of the rings, d&d etc. hope that helps
D and D is or was basically a RPG game without the video so you roll to move and to determine power of your certain attacks and probability of your attack striking and landing damage with someone playing the Dungeon Master who comes up with all the situations in the game and somewhat how fights go, it's best with descent group of friends
Aldo Parziale Other than rolling to move(that ain't a d&d thing), spot on
BigFrakkinOgre Yeah, no you're right, haven't played since 97' but remember almost all of it, loved getting together with a bunch of friends and playing
I could see them getting everyone together and playing D&D with Mike drawing scenes from their adventure
When it comes to Dnd I would recommend 3.5 edition because it is the most complex. When you conquer the complex then you can catch up to the newer editions more easily. If you try to catch up to the latest edition on the offset you'll be chasing the new stuff all the time while trying to figure out the base mechanics. Dnd is a fantastic pastime and I hope you enjoy it!
as a dnd fan I am grateful of watching this
A classic, serious classic. Loved playing this with my brother.
I love beat em ups, especially Knights of the round and the king of dragons. This is definitely the pinnacle of fantasy beat em up. Wish golden axe had gone this way.
I like to classify Dwarves being Danny DeVito height and Gnomes being Mini-Me height.
Gnomes steal underpants. Dwarves prefer to be called "little people".
kovyiscool Some sources in mythology also claim that fairies liked to call themselves "little people" or "little folks".
Oh my God, finally. Please play Dragons Crown at some point too!
Right???!!
For James, Gnomes according to the 1993 edition of AD&D Monstrous Manual:
* Small cousins of the Dwarves
* Rarely seen unless they want to be
* Strongly resemble small, thin nimble dwarves, with the exception of 2 notable facial features: gnomes prefer their beards shorts and stylishly trimmed, and take pride in their enormous noses (often twice the size of any dwarf or human)
* Speak their own language
* Can be fighters or priests but usually prefer to be thieves or illusionists
So they’re not quite the same as dwarves.
Smashed that Like button before the ad was over. D&D SOM plus James&Mike Mondays? Awesome
A thief name Little Red ROBBIN hood?
You should actually play d&d (or any other tabletop) and stream it!
I sugget you to get (or download) the Castle Ravenloft module and just learn enough to play it, it's one the most classic d&d adventures (aside from some Dragonlance modules).
You can download this on Wii U eShop.
you would think they would know something about D&D.
Solid Prime that’s what I was thinking. Owlbear is a little niche but dwarf & gnome knowledge is pretty common is you like fantasy even just a little
Kinda sad that the D&D movies are really bad. Can you imagine a good trilogy about Drizzt and the underdark.
Best way to play the wizard is save all the magic for bosses
I think James means Monkian, he kinda looks like beastman and has that arm mechanism.
What masters of the universe was all about was selling toys, that's it. But the movie managed to capture some of the gayness of the cartoon with the pink cadilllac and other stuff.
When Mike said this was one of his favorite arcade games I was expecting a decent gameplay from his part, but he doesn't even know the skills of the characters types and special moves.
D&D is a storytelling game at it's core. The editions are just the rules/standards for managing magic and combat and that has changed over generations of players. Me and my friends played 2nd edition rules in the 90s back in the day. Last I heard there was a 3rd edition. Who knows what they're up to now. Your overall experience as players is almost entirely managed by your Dungeon Master, so group dynamics among your friends can make or break the whole experience more so than what rules or editions your playing with. Then you have "campaign settings" which use certain D&D edition rules as a standard and paint an entire world of mythology for players to draw inspiration from for adventures. These "boxed campaigns" have served as settings to popular novel series like my personal favorite fantasy novels, Dragonlance! The rabbit hole gets quite deep...
The most recent one is actually 5th Edition.
"E-E-E-E-E. There you go, my name is....Moriah." 😂 I lost my shit at that one.
The gnomes vs dwarves thing: There's a game called Majesty with very different dwarves and gnomes. Dwarves were bearded, like to build siege weapons and were smiths who attacked with a hammer. Gnomes though were filthy little hunchback creatures that live in little hovels. You built one hovel and more start to spring up filled with more gnomes, and you can't stop them. Also, elves were amoral pleasure seekers who loved to gamble and hang out in "bungalows," which look like brothels.
If you want to tabletops RPGs (like dungeon and dragons), i'll suggest that you find someone who knows how to play and start from there (don't try to start from the beggining and dont try to buy every book, there are a pain to get and there are a lot of them) and that you make a video of your experience maybe even a game session
Owlbears messed you up in real DnD!
Mike was a lot more chill in this video than usual
I spent so many quarters on this game when it came out. As for the He-man debacle, There were two figure types released, the poseable figures and the Battle Action figures. And the Beholder, existed way before Madballs, that lethal pain in the tail monster was around clear back in the boxed sets of the original D&D RPG series.
You also get Street Fighter style inputs, which Mike hasn't mentioned yet. You can do QCF or DPM and attack to get some other stuff, and you can actually get some pretty decent combos going.
To answer your questions about Gnomes and Dwarves and the major differences is fairly well displayed in World of Warcraft, the races in World of Warcraft were inspired directly from D&D and so was Lord of the Rings so to casually learn it, World of Warcraft gives you the basics but, the old school D&D table top game is what set the original standards for people so i would recommend getting yourselves a "D&D monster manual" and read it you will find practically everything in that and that specific book is the original standard for almost every fantasy video game monster in almost every game made in an MMORPG since NES was new.
If you want to learn it all in a funner way id recommend a specific game called "Neverwinter Nights" it is the truest to form game based on the old school D&D table top game and its a very awesome timeless game if you ask me. I still play it its that good. I own Neverwinter Nights Diamond edition which is 4 games in 1 basically so if you buy this game try to get the diamond edition DVD otherwise you get stuck buying it all individually. Also Neverwinter Nights 2 sucks avoid part 2.
This game was eventually turned into Star Wars Knights of the old Republic on original Xbox, that game was awesome and what it basically was is Star Wars in D&D. D&D can fit anything into it potentially even the Star Trek universe works in D&D so D&D definitely has unlimited potential and is good to know since it applies to pretty much like 90% of all fantasy based games.
Also just so you know there is probably a lot of fans of D&D watching your videos so don't be afraid to do a D&D marathon of all the D&D/Wizards of the Coast games, id love to see that. 2 hidden gems from the past that are a must see are Wizards of the Coast and Westwood Studios. The gaming industry wouldn't be the same today without them and the work they did.
I saw the thumbnail and had a brief moment of excitement... I thought this was an actual DnD campaign.
I guess a man can dream.
Gnomes and Dwarfes:
Gnomes are Earthspirits, mostly capable of using magic and changing their appearance. They are also mostly protecting some kind of treasure (like gold or jewels).
Their main task is so protect the elements of the earth, residing in forests, coexisting with the animals there and mostly not showing themselves to humans.
Dwarfes on the other hand are miners. Living underground and digging ores and crafting them into all sorts of stuff, from household tools like pots or forks, to weapons and armor to fight. They are resistant to any kind of magic, coming from all the ores they are always surrounded with. Just very few Dwarfes are being tought magic, and they are called Geodes, but besides them, Dwarfes are, as said resistant to magic (even healing magic), but also can't use magic at all.
So the difference is pretty significant.
While the Gnomes are very magical creatures that live in forrests and protect treasures and nature, the Dwarfes are un-magical creatures that are master smiths and crafters that live underground and gather ores. Also while Gnomes are doing their best to not show themselves to humans, Dwarfes do not mind trading with them or fighting alongside, as long as they don't make fun of their culture/family/traditions.
I loved this and the other game. I wish they had made more beatemups like this.
down forward jump to slide which also scoops up score/coins/potions items on the ground
Mike, I remember seeing this in this old snes gems vids. Glad you boys blew the dust off this one and set it loose on us, man.🇺🇸
Hey, if you two are serious, I'm more than willing to help you understand what D&D is and is not :D
I have the entire Dungeons & Dragons cartoon series on DVD, it's still as entertaining to me today as it was when I watched it as a child.
Dragonlance setting has perfect examples of Dwarves and Gnomes. Forgotten realms setting is more in-depth but then gets a bit too much with several different subsets of Dwarves and Gnomes. Then there is Warhammer which has what most people typically think of as Dwarves that love gold, their beards and beer. There are Chaos Dwarves but as far as being evil and mutated I haven't read much more about them...
The video Mike did about this game a while ago is the reason I bought it on the Wii U.
I usually play as either the fighter or wizard guy. My niece loves using the thief because of one reason, infinite rocks to throw at baddies. :D
Tolkien used "elves" and "dwarves" instead of "elfs" and "dwarfs" to differentiate his vision from the folklorical tales, elfs were commonly used as forest spirits, and Tolkien wanted to let clear that he was using the term in the mythological way
Kind of adding to what people said in the comments section:
If you are looking to start, buy a starter box (5th edition being a good idea since it is the current one) and play around with the pre-made characters there. Not only does it come with dice as well, but a starter scenario to help you out.
Hey nice Avatar. SMT: Nocturne is a really good game!
I love the nostalgia talk. The only thing they mentioned that I didn't know was the dinosaur James mentioned. He-Man toys were so awesome. I had almost all the action figures.
Gnomes are members of the Fae (Fairies, Elves, Pixies, etc.) while Dwarfs are more closely related to humans that specialized living in caves and mountains. Warcraft lore has the origins of gnomes as starting as mechanical beings, created by the Titans to serve as handymen/mechanics, while dwarfs started as stone beings created to guard the underground realms.
One of my favourites as well! Knights of Round, Captain Commando - love these as well!
Gnomes and Dwarves come from two different mythological creatures.
Gnomes tend to be tinkerers, and Dwarves are miners.
ADnD is an RPG. Pen and Paper. There is no beginning. You'd want to check out one of the settings and get the core books for it. Forgotten Realms would be my suggestion, since it's one of the richest and most familiar.
You'll also really need more than two people. One acting as the DM, or dungeon master, who comes up with the scenarios. And a few people to create characters and role play as them.
That's a Beholder, and it's one of the original uber monsters from DnD. From the 70s...
I used to see this game at the local Arcade when I was in my teens... But I sucked at playing it. I enjoyed watching my friends beating the game though, with the final battle to the MASSIVE Red Dragon. That was AWESOME!!
My favourite beat em up is Guardian heroes on the Sega Saturn. I was happy to see them re-release it on the Xbox 360 as a downloadable title
I believe the action figure James was talking about was Monkian from the 80's LJN Thundercats line. He also had the same action feature as Panthro (except only one arm would move).
I just remembered David the Gnome thanks to you guys! You're awesome!
Tower of Doom all day baby. Childhood best friend and I spent a day and entire allowance as they had the arcade at a Stop n Go on the corner and beat the game. I remember his dad picking him up at the store as soon as we beat it not very happy we been there all day and he missed the ending. Was bittersweet as we worked so hard to get there even battling the red dragon.
Dwarves use runes because they are not magically-inclined. Gnomes are particularly magical and favor illusions. That's how Dungeons and Dragons separates them. Gnomes are fey creatures while Dwarves are cut from the rock. Halflings are a middle ground between the two, keeping the trickster intelligence but lacking the magical capability, and while they are physically capable, they aren't the rocks that Dwarves are.
have never played this game but I love watching people play it
One of my Favorite arcade games ever! 4 Players so fun!
Played it on xbox just the other day. Love it
This game has a large moveset. You can slide to quick pickup items, juggle enemies in the air, block and dodge. It's like a fighting game with coop.
Jon Sutton made a good point on how to start in the Tabletop RPG games like D&D. But D&D, AD&D, Pathfinder, ect... has a lot of maturity and complexity even for beginners nowadays. I would suggest start with a simplified system and with a familiar lore, like MERP (Middle Earth Role Playing Game) or event the Star Wars Tabletop game (technically D&D but simplified and d6). Very simple, very fun to play and with a lore that isn't completly unknown.
cinnemassacre mythical creature series, an episode for human species describing their etymology in the most popular sources, probably lotr d&d and maybe the start of the legends
I wish the arcade in my city would still have awesome games like these.
You don't have to pick up every coin and item separately. You can do a slide (down and jump I think) and when you do, you pick up every item on it's way automatically.
Jurassic park trex that ate a guy and you could retrieve out of its belly was an awesome toy!
There was an old Star Wars Tauntaun toy which had a slot in its belly where you could store smaller toys. It was not purple but I believe it is the toy James is thinking of.
James and Mike, not to put too fine a point on it but consider it this way: D&D is like World of Warcraft or Everquest but with general rule books as a guide and dice to determine the success of what you do. One person is the role of running the world and all things in it while the other players control characters (heroes) and decide how to navigate that world.
I think that the punching toy that James was referring to was Jackalman from Thundercats. He held a club and everyone owned one in the 80's.
Makes me think of Golden Axe a little
Golden Axe 1 is the shit, especially the arcade version. 2 is good too.
That stuff James was thinking about was from a parallel dimension...
Don't be embarrassed guys. This video rocked.
I think the T-Rex you were mentioning was a Skeletor mount that was never featured in the show just somthing only existed in the toy line.
Do Mike's initials in the game MFM stand for Mother Fucker Mike? if so that's hilarious
Blakee46456345654364 I can't tell if you're serious or not 😂 Great username by the way
New series idea: Get someone in your area local to you James and Mike, who is experienced with Dungeons & Dragons, have him be the DM, start a campaign, and film it. I think it would be really interesting.
I wish I had friends as cool as James and Mike.
Kinda reminds me of Golden Axe😏
Alkaizen so many memories😁
looks more hardcore
Jan-Erik Bergvall my thoughts exactly
This is the greatest beatemup game ever made. I'm honestly surprised it's not on PS4 and Switch. I'd buy it in a heartbeat.
I know I’m super late on this but if you don’t want to spend an arm and leg on the core books, you can always pick up Whitebox: Fantastic Medieval Adventure Game, or Basic Fantasy.
These games basically replicate the original D&D (AD&D) with a modern twist. They’re both very rules lite and super easy to play, and the best part is everything you need is in 1 book!