AD&D 2nd Edition cRPGs

AD&D 2nd Edition cRPGs employ Tactical Studies Rules' Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd Edition ruleset, lore and campaign settings. These constitute some of the best cRPGs in cRPG History. As can be seen below, every notable AD&D 2nd Edition cRPG was developed on BioWare's Infinity Engine.

List of AD&D 2nd Edition cRPGs

• Baldur's Gate 1 (BioWare, 1998)
• Tales of the Sword Coast: Durlag's Tower & Werewolf Island (BioWare, 1999)
• Planescape: Torment (Black Isle Studios, 1999)
• Icewind Dale 1 (Black Isle Studios, 2000)
• Baldur's Gate 2 (BioWare, 2000)
• Throne of Bhaal (BioWare, 2001)

The ruleset of AD&D 2nd Edition is famous for THAC0, dual-classing and Vancian magic, which are not as hard to understand as some people make them out to be. Most of the AD&D rules are described in my Baldur's Gate Review.

The AD&D 2nd Edition ruleset has been incalculably influential in the cRPG genre, and in other genre. For example, while not at all based on AD&D, Master of Magic's spells seem to have been influenced by AD&D's spells.

Note that Baldur's Gate 1 employs only 20% of AD&D 2nd Edition spells, yet many players find BG1's spell range to be overwhelming. See: Baldur's Gate Arcane Spells and Baldur's Gate Best Spells.

AD&D Lethality vs. D&D Lethality: An Example

AD&D 2nd Edition is the most lethal edition of D&D by far; it is much more lethal than D&D 3.x. It is much harder to make a save vs. Death in AD&D than it is to make a Fortitude save in D&D. And on failed saves, combat units are much more likely to die in AD&D than in D&D. 

For example, unless we have something to neutralize or cure poison and disease, we're basically dead in AD&D (eg., poison needle). But in D&D, it's just a stat drain. Ho-hum. Whatever will I do with my much life threatening 2-point Strength penalty? 

In BG1 and IWD1, disease and poison don't stop eating away at us until they've taken our last hit point. It doesn't matter if we have 300 HPs, it takes them all. If it was stacked on, it takes them quickly. Quaff healing potions all you like, it still eats away. If we hit the rest button while poisoned or diseased in BG1 and IWD1, we die instantly (8 hours of time passed = dead). 

This is what cRPGs should be like. You either ward against, neutralize or cure poison and disease, or you're dead meat.

Since comparing hit dice with challenge rating yields no insights, we can simply compare monsters. You know, those ones that are supposed to instill fear. Say, AD&D versions of illithid, beholders, vampires, demons and dragons vs. their D&D equivalents?

In AD&D, attacks such as psionic blasts, death rays, level drain, paralysis and dragonsbreath are going to TPK unprepared parties in the blink of an eye, but not so much in D&D. As a veteran of BG2 combat, I lol'd hard at how easy it was (20 years ago) to slay my first dragon in NWN: an overgrown butterfly compared to Firkraag, whose fear aura, dragonsbreath and wingbuffet is a nightmare for newbies. And IWD2 dragons are much easier than BG2 ones, too (laughable).

That is not to say that D&D combat can't employ lethality on par with AD&D. It depends on the CED: what the dungeon master throws at the player, and at what level.

Anyway, AD&D 2nd Edition cRPGs eventually gave way to D&D 3rd Edition cRPGs (refer to that write-up for some ruleset differences).

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