''The Book of Lairs'' is an accessory book for the ''
Dungeons & Dragons
''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (TS ...
''
fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...
role-playing game, first published by
TSR in 1986. It contains an assortment of monster-themed mini-adventures. A second volume was published in 1987. TSR coded the accessories REF3 and REF4 respectively, as part of a series of similarly-coded accessories.
Both volumes were received well by critics, with the second being seen more positively than the first.
Publication history
''The Book of Lairs'' was first published for the ''
Dungeons & Dragons
''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (TS ...
'' game system by TSR in 1986 as a ninety-six page volume.
Michael Breault and
Jim Ward designed the original,
which had a cover by
Clyde Caldwell
Clyde Caldwell (born February 20, 1948) is an American artist. Self-described as a fantasy illustrator, he is best known for his portrayals of strong, sexy female characters.
With his work at TSR in the 1980s, he is considered one of the arti ...
.
''The Book of Lairs II'' was published by TSR in 1987, also as a ninety-six page volume.
The authors included
David Cook David Cook may refer to:
Entertainment
* David Cook (game designer) (active since 1980s), American game designer for TSR
* David Cook (singer) (born 1982), winner of the seventh season of ''American Idol''
* David Cook (writer) (1940–2015), Briti ...
,
Jennell Jaquays
Jennell Jaquays (born Paul Jaquays, October 14, 1956) is an American game designer, video game artist, and illustrator of tabletop role-playing games (RPGs). Her notable works include the '' Dungeons & Dragons'' modules '' Dark Tower'' and '' Ca ...
,
Anne Gray McCready,
Bruce Nesmith
Bruce Nesmith is a game designer who has worked primarily on role-playing games. He was Creative Director at TSR, working on a variety of games including ''Dungeons & Dragons'', and is a senior game designer at Bethesda Game Studios, where he ha ...
,
Jeff O'Hare, and
Steve Perrin,
and it featured a cover by
Larry Elmore
Larry Elmore (born August 5, 1948) is an American fantasy artist whose work includes creating illustrations for video games, comics, magazines, and fantasy books. His list of work includes illustrations for ''Dungeons & Dragons'', ''Dragonlance'', ...
.
Contents
''The Book of Lairs'' contains a series of one- and two-page adventures centered around various ''
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons
Several different editions of the '' Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy role-playing game have been produced since 1974. The current publisher of ''D&D'', Wizards of the Coast, produces new materials only for the most current edition of the ...
'' game monsters.
There are over sixty mini-scenarios, indexed by monster type and terrain, designed to be inserted into other campaigns or adventures.
The original ''The Book of Lairs'' contains details of the lairs of various monsters drawn from the ''AD&D'' ''
Monster Manual
The ''Monster Manual'' (''MM'' is the primary bestiary sourcebook for monsters in the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'' fantasy role-playing game, first published in 1977 by TSR. The ''Monster Manual'' was the first hardcover D&D book and includ ...
'', ''
Fiend Folio
''Fiend Folio'' is the name of three separate products published for successive editions of the fantasy role-playing game ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D''). All three are collections of monsters.
The bulk of the material in the first edition ca ...
'', ''Monster Manual II'', and ''
Oriental Adventures
''Oriental Adventures'' (abbreviated OA) is the title shared by two hardback rulebooks published for different versions of the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy roleplaying game. Each version of ''Oriental Adventures'' provides rules for a ...
'' books. Each mini-scenario includes a brief encounter with the creatures, which is designed to be used as a short adventure or as part of a campaign, at the
Dungeon Master's (DM's) discretion. Each also has an introduction detailing basic information on the type of terrain, total party levels, and experience points involved, plus rumors designed to bring the location to the attention of the
player characters. In addition to the monster lairs, there are a few
Non-player character hideouts. The bulk of the encounters are meant for parties of 3rd-7th level, although some are for any level, and a few go as high as 12th level.
''The Book of Lairs II'' contains over sixty more mini-scenarios organized in the same way as the first book, and designed for instant use in wilderness or other campaign encounters. It also includes monsters from ''
Oriental Adventures
''Oriental Adventures'' (abbreviated OA) is the title shared by two hardback rulebooks published for different versions of the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy roleplaying game. Each version of ''Oriental Adventures'' provides rules for a ...
''.
The encounters are classified by terrain type, each one starting with a little block of information detailing suggested party level and experience point awards.
Seven of the encounters are for ''Oriental Adventures'' and the rest are for mainstream ''AD&D'', designed for a similar range of levels as the first.
Each encounter gives possible terrain, party level minimum, experience points, set up, and lair deployment.
Both books feature monsters ranging from commonly used types, such as orcs,
trolls
A troll is a being in Nordic folklore, including Norse mythology. In Old Norse sources, beings described as trolls dwell in isolated areas of rocks, mountains, or caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human bei ...
,
goblins
A goblin is a small, grotesque, monstrous creature that appears in the folklore of multiple European cultures. First attested in stories from the Middle Ages, they are ascribed conflicting abilities, temperaments, and appearances depending on t ...
, and
dwarves, to more obscure and exotic creatures, such as
hybsils,
shedu
''Lama'', ''Lamma'', or ''Lamassu'' (Cuneiform: , ; Sumerian: lammař; later in Akkadian: ''lamassu''; sometimes called a ''lamassus'') is an Assyrian protective deity.
Initially depicted as a goddess in Sumerian times, when it was called ''La ...
s,
remorhazes, and
otyughs.
Reception
In a review of the first edition for ''
White Dwarf
A white dwarf is a stellar core remnant composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. A white dwarf is very dense: its mass is comparable to the Sun's, while its volume is comparable to the Earth's. A white dwarf's faint luminosity comes ...
'',
Graeme Davis observed that the volume lacked maps, and would thus require additional preparation by the Dungeon Master before use.
He noted that the encounters range from the fairly straightforward, such as encountering one bear, to the "positively frightening," such as one with 876
Undead
The undead are beings in mythology, legend, or fiction that are deceased but behave as if alive. Most commonly the term refers to corporeal forms of formerly-alive humans, such as mummies, vampires, and zombies, who have been reanimated by supe ...
creatures.
He stated that although the volume had weaknesses, such as some of the encounters feeling a little "random," it was overall a worthwhile volume.
In a similar review of the second volume, Davis said that the first thing he noticed was the "impressive credits list" that the book contained.
His first impression was that it was "more of the same" kind of material as the first edition.
He was disappointed by the artwork, with the exception of the cover, saying that there was very little of it, and almost all of it came from old sources.
However, Davis felt that the second volume was an improvement in many ways: "The encounters look good for the most part, with none of the '876 Undead' excesses of ''BoL I''.
..The encounters struck me as better planned and with more good ideas than many of those in ''BoL I''. This may be a result of having so many contributors - even a creative genius can't possibly write 30-odd encounters, as Ward and Breault did, and make each a gem. There are more notes on lead-ins and setting up in this volume, which cuts down on the GM's preparation work without affecting the deployability of the encounters - the only thing you are constrained by is the terrain type."
Davis suggested that the volume was useful to anybody running campaigns below the tenth level, as well as those designing their own adventures.
Errol Farstad reviewed ''The Book of Lairs II'' for ''
Polyhedron
In geometry, a polyhedron (plural polyhedra or polyhedrons; ) is a three-dimensional shape with flat polygonal faces, straight edges and sharp corners or vertices.
A convex polyhedron is the convex hull of finitely many points, not all on ...
'', giving it a rating of 7 out of 10.
Farstad felt that it was a useful volume for anyone needing a quick set up for random encounters, or a mini-adventure to keep players entertained.
He also felt there should have been more maps, but considered the explanations "fairy understandable" and commented that the DM could insert these encounters anywhere the campaign "needs a quick fix".
Ken Rolston
Ken Rolston is an American computer game and role-playing game designer best known for his work with West End Games and on the computer game series ''The Elder Scrolls''. In February 2007, he elected to join the staff of computer games company B ...
reviewed ''The Book of Lairs'' for ''
Dragon magazine
Dragon Magazine may refer to:
* ''Dragon'' (magazine), an American magazine for ''Dungeons & Dragons'' players
* ''Dragon Magazine'' (Fujimi Shobo), a Japanese light novel magazine
{{disambig ...
''. He felt that the encounters in the first book were conventional game problems rather than exploring of the personalities of the creatures involved, stating: "Though they might be entertaining as gaming challenges, they are short on charm and character".
In comparing the two volumes, he felt that the second book benefited from having multiple authors, who wrote their adventures in different styles. He added, "The narrative values are also generally better served, with nice bits of plot, character, and setting to add flavor to the basic encounter problems. In general, not bad at all and occasionally delightful —
Allen Varney
Allen Varney (born 1958) is an American writer and game designer. Varney has produced numerous books, role-playing game supplements, technical manuals, articles, reviews, columns, and stories, as well as the fantasy novel ''Cast of Fate'' ( TSR, ...
's little bits in particular".
According to Rolston, both books contained "oddball critters" players would never want to use, but that "you might get a kick out of seeing how a clever and dedicated soul could bring them to life."
He felt the second book was handled considerably more successfully than the first on those accounts. Rolston considered both books "graphically disappointing", in that the first book "brings to mind the old days of TSR illustration—not a positive association" and that the diagrams in the second book were reused from much older books and "remarkably primitive".
Lawrence Schick
Lawrence Schick is a game designer and writer associated with role-playing games.
Early life and education
Schick attended Kent State University in Ohio.
Career
Schick, as the head of design and development at TSR, brought aboard Tom Moldvay ...
, in his 1991 book ''Heroic Worlds'', called the scenarios in the first volume "run-of-the-mill", but said that the scenarios in the second "tend to be more inspired".
Notes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Book Of Lairs
Dungeons & Dragons sourcebooks
Role-playing game supplements introduced in 1986