This review covers the 1981 D&D Basic Set as edited by Tom Moldvay, the second edition of Basic D&D following J. Eric Holmes’s 1977 original and preceding Frank Mentzer’s 1983 revision. Only the Moldvay edition is addressed here.
Basic D&D History
The 1981 Basic Set was published by TSR, edited by Tom Moldvay, and released in January of that year. It came as a boxed set containing a 64-page rulebook with a red border and cover art by Erol Otus, six polyhedral dice, a marking crayon (since the dice weren’t pre-filled with paint), and, in early print runs, the adventure module B2: The Keep on the Borderlands, a revised version of Gary Gygax’s module included to give new groups something to play right out of the box.
TSR never released official print run figures for the rulebook itself. It is estimated that more than 1 million copies of B2, The Keep on the Borderlands, were printed, making it arguably the best-selling module in D&D history, though that distinction may since have been challenged by Wizards of the Coast’s own Lost Mine of Phandelver.
Long out of print as a standalone product, the rulebook has since returned as an official Wizards of the Coast print-on-demand and PDF reprint through DriveThruRPG, alongside the companion Expert Set rulebook edited by David Cook and Steve Marsh. Used copies of the original boxed set are also available through the secondhand market.
Playing the Game
Basic D&D uses descending armor class, the same convention used in AD&D: 10 is unarmored, and better protection lowers the number, down to -10 for the best protection.
Initiative is side-based only, one d6 roll per side, with no individual or alternate system offered as an option.
Player character death is absolute. Reaching 0 hit points means the character is dead, no exceptions, a harsher standard than AD&D’s unconscious-at-zero, dead-at-negative-ten rule. This has led Basic D&D to have a reputation of being deadly, especially to low-level characters.
Further adding to its deadly reputation is that failing a poison saving throw will kill any character, regardless of level.
There’s no advantage or disadvantage mechanic. Bonuses and penalties are handled case by case as situational modifiers, the same general approach AD&D uses.
Experience tables differ by class, and gold recovered from treasure converts directly into experience points, matching the same underlying structure found in AD&D.
The weapons player characters use all do 1d6 damage by default but rules listed as optional provide different damage by weapon type.
Player Characters in Basic D&D
The defining change from AD&D is race-as-class. Humans choose freely among four classes: cleric, fighter, magic-user, and thief. Every non-human character is simply “a dwarf,” “an elf,” or “a halfling” instead, with race and class collapsed into a single choice that carries its own fixed set of abilities.
- Human (Cleric, Fighter, Magic-User, or Thief)
- Dwarf
- Elf
- Halfling
Dwarves are essentially fighters, elves are fighter/magic-users, and halflings are thieves.
This rulebook covers character levels 1-3 only. Higher levels required the separately sold Expert Set. Demi-human level caps do exist for dwarves, elves, and halflings, but they don’t come into play within this book’s level range.
Spell lists are proportionally small compared to AD&D. Magic-users, along with elves who draw from the same list, have access to 12 spells at each of the first three spell levels, 36 spells total within this booklet. Clerics receive no spells at all until level 2. Even then, since this book only covers levels 1 through 3, clerics never advance past first-level spells, a list of 8 total. Combined, that comes to roughly 44 spells covered here, well short of AD&D’s roughly 150.
Character creation moves faster than AD&D. Race-as-class removes a layer of restriction-checking, and a first-level character can typically be created in 15-20 minutes.
On the character sheet complexity scale, this edition sits at a 2. Saving throw categories and class abilities still need tracking, but the simplified race and class structure removes much of the bookkeeping AD&D requires.
Basic D&D Readability and Playability
Moldvay’s writing style, unlike Gary Gygax’s, is easier to digest and assumes the reader has no prior experience with D&D or role-playing games in general.
The booklet is laid out in numbered parts covering introduction, character classes, spells, the adventure, encounters and combat, monsters, treasure, and information for the Dungeon Master, each section self-contained and easy to locate.
Two examples of play walk the reader through actual table procedures. Both use a sample party of Morgan Ironwolf the fighter, Silverleaf the elf, Fredrik the dwarf, and Sister Rebecca the cleric, later joined by Black Dougal the thief. The second walk-through follows that same party through a combat encounter step by step.
The rulebook includes a step-by-step walkthrough for building the beginning of a sample dungeon level, intended to teach a new DM how to design one, though it doesn’t extend to a full ready-to-run adventure. The Keep on the Borderlands, included separately with the boxed set, served that role instead.
No separate basic or simplified version of this specific rulebook exists, since the Basic Set already occupies that role within the wider Basic and Expert product line. A free legal PDF isn’t available, though an official paid PDF and a physical print-on-demand reprint are both available through DriveThruRPG.
Summary
This edition is far more approachable than AD&D for someone brand new to tabletop gaming, which was its purpose. It’s a genuine all-in-one booklet, covering everything a player or DM needs for character levels 1-3, including a bestiary of over 100 monsters, so nothing else has to be purchased just to start playing. Race-as-class and the smaller spell lists trade some depth for a much shorter path to a finished character and a table that’s ready to play.
From the DM’s side, having player rules, monster stats, treasure guidelines, and dungeon-building instruction inside one 64-page booklet, backed by two fully worked examples of play and a complete ready-to-run adventure module, makes this an easier edition to prep and run than AD&D’s three separate, more idiosyncratically written books.
As a starting point for someone new to the hobby, this edition holds up well, teaching by direct example rather than by reference alone. Players coming from later editions with a wider array of character options may find the four available classes and the level 1 through 3 ceiling limiting, though that ceiling was always meant to be temporary, with the Expert Set built to pick up right where this book leaves off.
