Comments on: Nethack: How Not to DM

By: Why I Can’t Stop Playing NetHack « Jonathan Drain’s D20 Source: Dungeons & Dragons Blog

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 21:59:43 +0000

[...] mentioned this game almost exactly two years ago today as an example of how not to run a D&D game: lethal, obscure, and impossible to win. And yet, [...]

By: Chris

Chris — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 19:17:32 +0000

Those types of games can be fun but really I find playing them on PC is better. Still though I have fond memories of Undermountain played like that. We used a character generation book that provided you all kinds of extras. We go down with a pack of war dogs, boosted stats, all kinds of equipment. Generally we went got slaughtered by the first encounter with trolls. It was all over in one night and we try it again another night taking a right turn instead of a left. It was a blast but really not all the fun for long. Just quick spurt, nice for a change.

By: Jonathan Drain

Jonathan Drain — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 19:59:50 +0000

@Anon: It can be enjoyable, but this is assuming your players intend on undertaking a game where the allure is high-risk lethal danger, rather than aspects such as character development (both crunchy and fluffy). The reward comes mainly from short-term success, not long-term rewards.

You can run killer dungeons or Paranoia games, yes, if that’s what your players want. In killer dungeoneering, actually making it to twentieth level is an incredible feat, much like defeating Nethack. However, you need to be remarkably good at what you do in order to survive that long, and even then your fate is partly at the whim of the Dungeon Master.

In other words, yes, it’s a valid mode of play, but a campaign of this kind is not necessarily one that you play taking for granted that you’ll eventually hit twentieth.

By: Johnny Boy

Johnny Boy — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 19:08:55 +0000

I have been addicted to Angband for years—it’s a slightly more recent (still early 90s) nethack-based dungeon crawl, with far more reward, and just as much lethality. There is definitely far more room for variation, as well. Just check out http://www.thangorodrim.net/ for a great game and a great community to share it with. One-player dungeoneering is a great pastime for anyone lacking a table.

By: Anon

Anon — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 09:12:10 +0000

I’ve gotta disagree with you here, a DM can easily run a killer campaign that still manages to entertain players. In fact, what say you to all the products out there such as, Paranoia a game that literally gives you a 6pack of characters, which are intended to challenge the player?

By: ChattyDm

ChattyDm — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 16:50:16 +0000

Damn Jonathan! I had stopped playing for some time so I could concentrate on blogging….. must… fight… pull….

Seriously, I still enjoy Nethack and despise with a passion any DM who says that’s the way the game should be played. I’ve had my phases in my 2 decades of DMing and that one shall not come back… (although I sometimes miss random encounters)…