We told you that the 1rst Edition Players Handbook was available on DndClassics. And Drac mentioned that he predicted that the Monster Manual would be next on this week podcast.
All your favorite monsters are back!
Now you can download the 1st Edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual. An encyclopedic collection of information certain to be of invaluable use to players and Dungeon Masters alike, the Monster Manual comes complete with game specifications, background details and, in many cases, an illustration in addition!
You can now download the pdf over at DNDCLASSICS for 9.99
Here are some did you know facts about the 1rst Ed Monster Manual
Monster Manual was a big change from the digest-sized pamphlets and saddle-stitched softcovers that had previously composed the D&D line. It wasn’t just AD&D’s first hardcover, but the first hardcover in the roleplaying industry — and a nicely produced one at that. Gygax carefully sought out “stitched binding and school-book cover material” so that the book would be as “nearly indestructible” as possible. Fans who still have their original books from the ’70s and ’80s can attest to the success of this goal.
The production of the Monster Manual was also notable for its illustrations — mainly the fact that there are a lot of them. Out of over 350 monsters, about 200 have illustrations, which marked another major milestone in the roleplaying industry.
Many of these pictures are classics, from the iconic dragon and giant illustrations to the definitive owlbear. However, the lynx picture seems to be the best remembered, perhaps because it was a mini-cartoon. (“Whaddya mean we gotta talk to this lynx?? The last monster we talked to ate half of the party!”) It reveals the comedic undertones that were present in early D&D products, but disappeared quickly thereafter. Of course, some folks may remember other pictures like the marilith, which revealed the nudity that was considered acceptable in the earliest D&D books — something that disappeared just as quickly as the humorous drawings. One non-monster picture is also of note: a full-page illustration by Dave Trampier, printed next to the list of treasure types, shows three greedy adventures reaching into a glowing chest. The cover of the Adventurer’s Vault 2 (2009) later paid homage to it.
The interior illustrations of the Monster Manual are by David C. Sutherland III, Dave Trampier, Tom Wham, and Jean Wells. Though it’s unsigned, that infamous lynx drawing is probably by Wham.
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