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The Web of Time
December 20, 2023
Time is, arguably, the most important aspect of AD&D 1e. I think it’s fair to say that it enhances player investment and engagement.
A player that rolls up a character in 15 minutes only to see that character die 20 minutes later will shrug their shoulders and roll-up another. In contrast, a player that spends 2 hours on a backstory only to see that character die 20 minutes later may feel frustrated that all the glorious backstory has gone to waste (likely in AD&D 1e). Now take both of these players and imagine their characters surviving across multiple sessions, months or even years. When these characters die there’s a much greater impact. Why? The investment of time. One might point to the experiences at the table and the PC’s accomplishments, but these are all derived from the time spent running the PC.
I appreciate that this is obvious but it sets the stage for how AD&D 1e lays time and its tracking down as the foundation for many other mechanics. All of which encourage greater player investment and engagement.
The obvious relationship between time and movement (travel, combat movement, combat rounds, etc.) is used by all editions. But AD&D 1e’s treatment of time is a much larger feature than that of later editions which ignore or hand-wave time constraints. I contend that gameplay informed by time and adherence to time tracking increases player investment and engagement.
How does time interact with other gameplay mechanics? Let’s start with HPs. HP recovery is slow in AD&D 1e. 1HP/day for the first week. This often means, in the absence of magical healing, the PC may be sidelined for a couple of sessions before the player has an opportunity to play them again. This assumes the DM doesn’t handwave time constraints. What’s the effect? It builds anticipation for running that PC again (as is also the case when having to spend weeks of in-game time to level up). I have several personal anecdotes about the excitement of playing a PC again after they have recovered.
HPs also impact time in the dungeon. In AD&D 1e, when a PC is taken to 0HPs, they are uncon. This state may last from 10 minutes to 1 hour regardless of magical healing being applied. The clock is ticking while the party waits and protects their vulnerable comrade until the PC regains consciousness: light sources are dwindling, random encounter checks are being made. When conscious again, the PC is still weak and incapable of any action greater than slowly walking/staggering out of the dungeon. The PC will remain in this weakened state for one week of game time, even if magical healing is applied. This also means that egress from the dungeon is slowed, resulting in more encounter checks, further complicated by having to protect a helpless party member. The tension naturally ramps up as a consequence of game-mechanics. These time-based mechanics make reckless game-play undesirable. Getting knocked down to 0 or negative HPs means the party is at greater risk, not just because they are down a party member, but because they have to dedicate cycles to caring for the injured PC and , due to slowness, they also risk more encounters. The reckless behaviour now turns into an impactful liability for the entire party. Not to mention, the injured PC has to convalesce for at least one week before being able to adventure again.
Exploration activities also have a time-based component. To facilitate progress through the dungeon, maps allow PCs to travel 5 times faster than their normal exploration movement rate. As noted, faster movement means less resource consumption and fewer encounter checks. Mapping is a double-edged sword, itself being part of the reason for slower exploration in general. But specific room/chamber mapping takes 10 minutes per 20 foot section. Searching takes another 10 minutes per 10 foot section of wall in game time. However, PCs can make multiple checks at the cost of time-based resources and increased risks. Informed by accurate mapping, the players must decide if it’s worth the time commitment to search every room (or spend longer in a given room as "there must be a secret door in here somewhere") or only do so if there’s an apparent reason. Hence a map is an invaluable asset for saving time in the dungeon.
The length of time it takes for certain actions: listening at doors, forcing doors open or breaking them down, mapping, searching for secret doors, disarming traps, solving puzzles, overcoming obstacles, etc. all serve to keep the tension high without requiring additional work by the DM to fabricate tension.
Aside from the obvious slower movement rate and all that that entails per above, it may not be clear how encumbrance has an impact on time in the campaign. Encumbrance affects the frequency of visits back to the dungeon and the gear requirements. Taking excess gear into the dungeon limits how much treasure can be carried out (in AD&D 1e, the more treasure that is pulled out of the dungeon, the faster the PC gains experience). Was that grappling hook worth it? These decisions can lead to reconnaissance vs. expedition play and an acknowledgement that there will be multiple visits to the dungeon. A lightly encumbered recon session allows for more mapping and may reveal what gear is necessary for the next delve. Perhaps the party wants to investigate a deep shaft during the next session. This could mean taking lots of climbing gear, maybe even that fancy grappling hook, and, or, hiring NPCs to carry extra gear or loot.
For me, this is the game at its core. And the DM only does as much prep work as they want. Further, during the course of the game, PCs will get injured or killed. As the wounded recover and the dead are buried, there’s ample downtime for the other PCs to build relationships, advertise for hirelings and henchmen, commission special equipment, etc.
Time is the DM’s friend and the player’s resource.
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