The History of D&D Editions

A discussion of the various editions of D&D. Spoiler Alert: There are way more than five. From the original game in 1974 to the latest update to 5E from the 2020's, I show each edition and discuss some of the differences.

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*TIMESTAMPS*
0:00 Introduction
1:00 0E Original
2:32 0.5 Edition
5:18 Holmes Basic
6:57 1E Advanced
11:05 Moldvay B/X
12:57 BECMI
14:20 1.5 Edition
15:23 2E Advanced
17:00 Black Box Easy-to-Master
17:17 Rules Cyclopedia
17:51 Classic D&D
18:14 2.5 Edition
18:47 3E
19:38 3.5 Edition
20:00 4E
20:30 Essentials
20:44 5E
20:55 5.5 Edition

*MORE DADDY ROLLED A 1*

*IMAGE CREDITS FOR THIS VIDEO*
Still images for products not in my collection include:
- Holmes Basic Set: the Leylines Press Blog
- Holmes Basic Book Cover: the Nerdy Pleasures Blog
- Mentzer Expert Boxed Set: DriveThruRPG
- Mentzer Companion Boxed Set: Noble Knight Games
- D&D Easy-to-Master Black Box: Magisterrex Retro Games Blog
- D&D Rules Cyclopedia: DriveThruRPG

[mikesands]

I began in 1980 through 1990 and as a teenager it was a horribly confusing period. Things kept coming out and we didn't really know what was changing and we generally ignored them, doing either whatever first Basic version we had or played AD&D and ignored most supplements, focusing on modules. It was like a lot of background noise to us.

[CapnSnackbeard]

I'd love to see a longer version with more about how the rules changed between each

[HistoryMovieCritic]

When I tell young players that I played the original D&D, they always think that I mean the first edition of AD&D. No, no, no. I am talking white box, baby!

[Valkonnen]

In the early 80's, my favorite thing was going to the mall and seeing which new D&D supplements and books were out. that and the Hildebrandt Tolkien Calendars were my childhood.

[RichBensen]

Even as someone who started playing AD&D in 1981 I found this video interesting and informative.

People who came to the hobby later on, especially those who grew up with Google always at their fingertips, might be surprised to learn that the hodge podge of early editions was just as confusing to most players who lived through that era as it is to them. Little if anything was published explaining the rationale behind all the different sets and even game shop staff were often confused about just how they related to one another.

At least where I grew up, the big increase in the game's popularity seemed to coincide with the release of the AD&D PHB and DMG, so that's what most of us played. Kids who had started with one of the boxed sets usually switched when they joined a school D&D club or similar group for the sake of compatibility. I get the impression that the boxed sets were more popular in less populous areas where small groups of geeky kids had to figure the game out without the benefit of a local gaming community but I could be wrong about that.

[simonbeaird]

I bought my first set (the White box) in 1976 (19 years old) when I found a copy in a small shop called Games Centre just off Oxford Street in London. I spent several weeks slowly working out how to play this weird game. I bought the four supplements (Greyhawk, Blackmoor, Eldritch Wizardry and GD&H) over the next year and that made things clear. I played games on an irregular basis for a number of years and gradually collected the books for 1st edition AD&D. I didn't start running a campaign until 1984 with a group of friends and relatives. This started with 1st edition but I converted to 2nd edition as soon as I could. I never used the 2.5 edition but I did play the BECMI version from time to time. My campaign came to an end in 2001, mostly due to various life events that happened to the players. I've never played since and never had the opportunity to start anew. But it's good to see the game still going.

[Vreichenbachiana]

Navigating the utter chaos of early D&D editions without the internet, or with very early internet, must have been a hell of a time. :p

[bigabefury]

Played 3.5 with the neighbourhood kids in the late 2000's/early 2010's. My mom ended up getting me 4th edition and it seemed so strange to us that we just kept playing 3.5! This help put my timeline in perspective. Love the content

[redwyrmofficial]

This is so amazing to watch. I have been playing since I was a kid, but so much of this knowledge was completely unknown to me. Excellent video!

[thomasgellhaus]

My friends and I never really got into the D&D side of things, but we got every book of (1st Edition) AD&D. It would be interesting to mention the cover prices of those hardcovers and convert to the current equivalent cost...for high school teens in the US, these were not cheap!

[Little_Walter]

More like Daddy rolled a natural 20!

I'm commenting here, but I'm four videos into your history series. I thank the YouTube algorithm Gods for putting a video of yours in my feed. After seeing the topics you covered, I immediately subscribed and will happily be watching all of your videos.

I played my first game of AD&D in 1982 and have been hooked ever since. You and I seem to be in a similar situation, as my son discovered my role-playing games collection a couple of years ago, so I dusted off my dungeon master chops and started running a game for him solo which has now grown to him and four of his friends. In fact, I'll be running my first game of Top Secret in 30 years for them soon.

Anyway, I'm loving your content, and I hope you have the best of luck with your channel. Keep the great videos coming.

[christopherb]

Nice, comprehensive walk through. And Desert Island D&D indeed - if I could only have one D&D book for the rest of my life, the Cyclopedia is it!

[andrewy.]

Hi there! I love that you are putting this info out there so simply and so concisely!

I am fortunate enough to have almost literally every single book and box set that you mentioned, including the obscure ones like the Black Box! To hear someone actually talk about all of this stuff that I’ve spent thousands of dollars on has really put a smile on my face!

Excellent video, you have a new follower!

[D--FENS]

This is easily the most comprehensive video I have seen on this subject.

[mrcookies]

I love this channel, have learned so much about dnd!

[joelstein]

I had not realized until now that there were 3 different versions of "Basic" floating around over the 10+ year period! Good information on that! Also it is quite humorous to me to hear people talk about 1e AD&D as being 'easy to understand' or 'rules-light' / lmao!!! After 40 years of DM'ing it I still find stuff out that I don't know (or, more recently, have forgotten!). Keep up the good work, this helps our kids & grandkids understand a little better how the hobby developed/grew in our old 'real time' selves' lives! One topic folks (even my age) are shakey on is what collections of magazines there are which are now archived, free to use (providing you're not making money off them), and where they're available at! Dragon, Dungeon, "And" magazine, and others are all excellent resources that can be used for ALL editions, and SHOULD be used for years to come! You might want to do a shortie on those resources & where to find them <and others!> . J

[MarkHyde]

80s BECMI/1e AD&D kid here - have love 'Basic D&D' for so long. Can't get enough of the Rules Cyclopedia (even mine is only a PoD H/C). I also love 2e AD&D - this history is great. I've seen so many online but this one doesn't linger too long. I like hearing yours (others)experiences with older editions of the game pre-WOTC 3.0/3.5 ed.

[SandroAD]

I finally understand what the Rulescyclopedia is. As someone who has always been a fan of the boxed sets but never quite had understood the finer chronology this was incredibly helpful!!

[edwardromero]

This is the most straightforward and concise video. I’ve seen on the subject. Thanks for that.

[ace]

Excellent presentation of the various changes over the years and it was enjoyable to see the art of the various editions. Thanks for the video.