new to T&T: a few questions

[magehammer]

hi, I am new here and looking into buying the 7th Edition of T&T. I have been gaming since 1982, and have heard of T&T, but never tried it. My gaming group is taking a short hiatus from RPGs and playing Battlestations (an excellent game, BTW) WoW TCG, so I am now looking for a good system to play solo on the weeks between games to whet my RPG appetite.

From the posts in this forum, it appears that 7th Edition is a add-on to 5.5, so to be clear: will I be able to play T&T with just the 7E rules? Is 5.5 available anywhere as a PDF? And if not, why not?

That's all the questions I have for now, thanks.

[ironfang]

You can play T&T with just 7E. You can play T&T with just 5E. The two do play nicely together -- meaning that you can play a 5E solo using the 5E rules and vice-versa. The fundamentals are the same. There are differences between the two, but nothing that shouldn't be quite easily worked around.

[ironfang]

oh... and welcome. Have an exalt on me!

[magehammer]

Thanks for the reply, ironfang.

[khaydhaik]

Magehammer, I think it is better to learn 5.5 first, and then to move to 7th edition. In many ways, 7th edition does feel like an add-on to 5.5 to me. Yet it does diverge majorly from the 5.5 rules in some areas, especially in character advancement, the addition of a WIZ attribute to power spells, the addition of kremm resistance, and the requirement to make INT SRs when casting spells. Most of the solos available from Flying Buffalo Inc and Hobgoblin's Tavern will work best with the 5.5 rules. If you want some solos written specifically for 7th edition, visit "that company".

[khaydhaik]

Also, if you're near Orlando, Florida, come to Megacon on Saturday, February 17, and play in a T&T tournament game I'm helping to run!

[mahrundl]

magehammer said:

it appears that 7th Edition is a add-on to 5.5, so to be clear: will I be able to play T&T with just the 7E rules? Is 5.5 available anywhere as a PDF? And if not, why not?

Magehammer,

Firstly, welcome to the Trollbridge.

7th edition is quite sufficient on its own to allow you to play - it is a full rule set. But as Khaydhaik said, starting with 5th edition is a good idea. 7th edition adds and changes quite a lot from 5th. Personally, I suggest that you get both (and no, I don't get paid for saying that... ) if you can afford them.

5th edition isn't legally available anywhere as a PDF, to my knowledge. For the why of it, you'd need to ask Ken (the author) or Rick (owner of Flying Buffalo). I'd like a PDF copy as well - it would save me a lot of typing!

There is an abridged online version of the 5th edition rules here: Free Dungeons, and they have some nice online versions of some of the solos.

[magehammer]

Thanks for the info, guys. I wish someone would sell a PDF of 5.5 (hint, hint to anyone who reads these boards who has that kind of decision-making power). I found the Free Dungeon site on my own, but I felt like there was a lot missing, so I didn't feel like I was getting a good feeling for the game.

Is it really fun solo? I mean I know group playing is preferable, but does the game hold up by yourself? Is it worth the time?

[magehammer]

By the way, khaydhaik, I am currently suffering under -6 temps here in Ohio. If there was a way to Orlando, I would be there in a heartbeat.

Good luck at your Con.

[mahrundl]

Magehammer,

It's only in the last few years that I have had anyone interested in T & T who was local to me. So for me, solos (and just reading through modules generally) was about the only option.

Solo play is fun, certainly, and most of the commercial ones are quite enjoyable. There's also a lot of fan produced material - Boozer at the Hobgoblin's Tavern writes very good stuff, for example. "that company" has a large number of solo modules, but I don't have many of theirs (lack of funds, alas!) so I can't say how good they are. They seem popular enough though.

Overall: T & T solo play is worthwhile, in my view. A live GM is better, of course, but solo play is definitely 'good enough'.

[gwindel]

Don't forget that T&T works very well with a virtual table (like Gametable) through the internet. It is free and with VOIP (also free), you are not that far from face to face gaming.
www.gwindel.eu/GTscreenshots/GTscreenshots.html
Not perfect, but if you have difficulties to find people to play....

[magehammer]

Thanks, guys.

I found the 5.5 rules in print at FRP games (I use them for all of my print gaming needs), and I have emailed Flying Buffalo to see if they have any plans on putting it up as a PDF for sale somewhere.

I am close to taking the plunge and buying this game. Money and PDF availability is what is keeping me from going. It looks like from all that I read, that 5.5 is the way to go in conjunction with 7e. I know I could play it without 5.5, but it just seems like I will not be getting the complete picture without 5.5.

Thanks for everyone's help.

[lionrampant]

Actually, the big assistance in having 5.5 first is that the way the 7th edition rulebook is written is rather conversational, and understanding the background of earlier editions of the game makes it significantly easier to really understand the background for why some of the rules are the way they are. I would totally encourage you to pick up the 7th edition PDF set, as for only $10 it is a really good deal. Generally when people don't understand the rules, we just hash it out on the message boards here. Like that "two-weapon fighting" thread that keeps going, and going, and ...

[magehammer]

Cool. Okay, I will let you guys know when I have picked it up and then I am sure I will have some questions. I am hoping, though, that my 24 years of reading game systems will serve me well. 7th edition it is, and then if I love it, I will buy the print of 5.5 (unless the PDF comes out first).

[Boozer]

Hi Magehammer - welcome to the Trollbridge.

Good luck with your email to FB - let us know what reply you get, I think a few of us would be very interested to hear their reply...