The Inside Scoop on Gaming

The AD&D Core Rules 2.0, is a useful tool, that can help a game master, run a campaign. Nine rule books are provided, to look up rules in. Two map making tools, are also provided. Player characters, and non-player characters, can be made, using either the core rules, or the player's options. Encounters can be planned out, using the DM toolkit. The program can even roll dice for you.

Although nine rule books are provide, you do not need to refer to them, very often. Most of the screens offer a quick help for anything you aren't sure about. The rule books only need to be referred to, if you need a more detailed description, of a rule, or are comparing rules, to see how they work together. Looking up a rule is a bit harder. The table of contents, leaves out a page numbers. Instead as you scroll through the book, a word or two describes whet each page is about. This makes it much harder to find the page you want. The nine books are; Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, Monstrous Manual, Arms & Equipment Guide, Tome of Magic, DM Option: High Level Campaigns, Player's Option: Combat & Tactics, Player's Option: Skills & Powers, and Player's Option: Spells & Magic.

AD&D Core Rules 2.0, offers 2 programs, that can help you make a map. The first is Map Maker. It offers an easy to use coloring system, to mark the basic terrains, and special icons, for detailed features. It also can mark out a hex grid for overland maps, and square grids for city and dungeon maps. The second mapping tool is Campaign Maker. It offers more features, so you can make a more detailed map. More icons are available, and you can change the size and orientation of the icon, much more freely then with Map Maker. It also allows you to layer a map, so that you can have a players version and a game masters version, without having to make to separate maps. Campaign Maker is much harder to use, and takes a lot more time, but the effort can be worth it, if done right.

The character making feature, allows you to make characters much quicker, without having to look up a lot of rules. If you already have characters, they can be easily entered into the database. This process can cut down character generation time by half. If you don't remember what something is, you can right click on it and a brief summery will come up. The only drawback is that If you make a core rules character, you cannot use any of the optional rules, from the handbooks or player's options, and if you use the player's option rules, you must use them for everything. As a long time game master I found this to be limiting, to my own creative genius.

The DM Tool Kit contains many features, to allow you to customize your campaign. You can plan out encounters ahead of time and store the information in the database. You can even make random encounter tables. The drawback is that unless you are willing to take the time, to create your own master database, you will have to sort through all of the hundreds of creatures, to find what you are looking for. You can also use the features found in the DM Tool Kit, to add your own creations to the database. You could add races, spells, skills, monsters, equipment, or most anything you can think of. But you cannot eliminate any of the choices from the master databases. So if there is something you don't use, in your campaign, you cannot stop it from showing up.

To play AD&D you need to roll some dice, at some point. The dice rolling feature, of the AD&D Core Rules 2.0, works, but is a bit clumsy compared to others. Instead of typing in the number and type of dice you want to roll, you have to use your mouse to add dice the dice that you want to roll. Then to roll the next set of dice you need to unselect the first set of dice. It would be easier, just to keep your dice near your computer, unless you needed to roll a large number of dice at once.

Overall I found the graphics to be very well done. The quick reference, being only a click away, saves a lot of time. The program is easy to use, for a new game master. An experienced game master, will find that a lot of effort would be required, to make new databases, to reflect your personal style, but you could still use many of the features. You can decide which parts to have on your computer, and which to access from the disk. This means that you use from 20-200MB of memory when you install.

AD&D Core Rules 2.0, is a real time saver. It allows you to make good quality maps, with less effort. You can keep track of all the characters. You can spend more time adding details to your encounters, and less time copying down stats and treasure. And best of all, no more eraser crumbs getting on everything.

Style: 5 (Excellent!)
Substance: 3 (Average)

AD&D Core Rules CD-Rom 2.0
Author: James W. Sehmer Category: game Company/Publisher: TSR & Evermore Entertainment Inc. Page count: n/a ISBN: 0-7869-0793-2 Capsule Review by Joseph Zarebski on 01/18/99. Genre tags: Fantasy	The AD&D Core Rules 2.0, is a useful tool, that can help a game master, run a campaign. Nine rule books are provided, to look up rules in. Two map making tools, are also provided. Player characters, and non-player characters, can be made, using either the core rules, or the player's options. Encounters can be planned out, using the DM toolkit. The program can even roll dice for you. Although nine rule books are provide, you do not need to refer to them, very often. Most of the screens offer a quick help for anything you aren't sure about. The rule books only need to be referred to, if you need a more detailed description, of a rule, or are comparing rules, to see how they work together. Looking up a rule is a bit harder. The table of contents, leaves out a page numbers. Instead as you scroll through the book, a word or two describes whet each page is about. This makes it much harder to find the page you want. The nine books are; Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, Monstrous Manual, Arms & Equipment Guide, Tome of Magic, DM Option: High Level Campaigns, Player's Option: Combat & Tactics, Player's Option: Skills & Powers, and Player's Option: Spells & Magic. AD&D Core Rules 2.0, offers 2 programs, that can help you make a map. The first is Map Maker. It offers an easy to use coloring system, to mark the basic terrains, and special icons, for detailed features. It also can mark out a hex grid for overland maps, and square grids for city and dungeon maps. The second mapping tool is Campaign Maker. It offers more features, so you can make a more detailed map. More icons are available, and you can change the size and orientation of the icon, much more freely then with Map Maker. It also allows you to layer a map, so that you can have a players version and a game masters version, without having to make to separate maps. Campaign Maker is much harder to use, and takes a lot more time, but the effort can be worth it, if done right. The character making feature, allows you to make characters much quicker, without having to look up a lot of rules. If you already have characters, they can be easily entered into the database. This process can cut down character generation time by half. If you don't remember what something is, you can right click on it and a brief summery will come up. The only drawback is that If you make a core rules character, you cannot use any of the optional rules, from the handbooks or player's options, and if you use the player's option rules, you must use them for everything. As a long time game master I found this to be limiting, to my own creative genius. The DM Tool Kit contains many features, to allow you to customize your campaign. You can plan out encounters ahead of time and store the information in the database. You can even make random encounter tables. The drawback is that unless you are willing to take the time, to create your own master database, you will have to sort through all of the hundreds of creatures, to find what you are looking for. You can also use the features found in the DM Tool Kit, to add your own creations to the database. You could add races, spells, skills, monsters, equipment, or most anything you can think of. But you cannot eliminate any of the choices from the master databases. So if there is something you don't use, in your campaign, you cannot stop it from showing up. To play AD&D you need to roll some dice, at some point. The dice rolling feature, of the AD&D Core Rules 2.0, works, but is a bit clumsy compared to others. Instead of typing in the number and type of dice you want to roll, you have to use your mouse to add dice the dice that you want to roll. Then to roll the next set of dice you need to unselect the first set of dice. It would be easier, just to keep your dice near your computer, unless you needed to roll a large number of dice at once. Overall I found the graphics to be very well done. The quick reference, being only a click away, saves a lot of time. The program is easy to use, for a new game master. An experienced game master, will find that a lot of effort would be required, to make new databases, to reflect your personal style, but you could still use many of the features. You can decide which parts to have on your computer, and which to access from the disk. This means that you use from 20-200MB of memory when you install. AD&D Core Rules 2.0, is a real time saver. It allows you to make good quality maps, with less effort. You can keep track of all the characters. You can spend more time adding details to your encounters, and less time copying down stats and treasure. And best of all, no more eraser crumbs getting on everything. Style: 5 (Excellent!) Substance: 3 (Average)

AD&D Core Rules CD-Rom 2.0