No, not the 3.0 one. The old version. Astral Dreadnought on the cover.


This one.


I never owned it, but I recently saw it described as the only real gem out of the later-edition 1st Edition rules supplements. (Which included the original Oriental Adventures, which I am kinda fond of, but oh well..)

Does anyone have any experience with it, or care to share some insight?

I'm getting more involved in AD&D1e again.

I loved that book. Never really used it cept as to entice my players to strive for higher levels.

Edit: I wonder where the heck mine is....

I have it. It's a dry, but entertaining read. I suppose it could be perceived as a "planar encyclopedia". I'm going by memory here, but the book has random encounter tables for the various Inner and Outer Planes. It's a good book, and worth adding to your collection.

Edit: Personally, I've used the book before. It gives a more detailed account of the planar cosmology detailed in the 1e DMG.

It wasn't one of the books I purchased back in the 1st ed days, I didn't end up getting the book until after 3ed had come out and I picked up the PDF, after hearing some praise about it online.
Used it for inspiration for a high level solo game I was running for my wife. It was well worth the PDF price, I was running 3ed so while much the rules stuff wasn't of immediate use to me, but there was lots of inspirational bits and cool ideas, more so, I thought, than the 3.0 version.

Hmmmm...what's on your mind, Mr. :hmm:

Great book.  Lots of ideas to enhance high level exploration.  I liked how they included a lot of the Deities and Demigods gods in the descriptions of the planes and gave some info about their realms.  The appendixes are cool with tables for making alternate Prime Material planes and lists of standard divine powers.  I still use it for my 1e/2e game.

It's the only 1e book I still keep on the same shelf as my "current" RPG books.

I love its view of the planes as harsh, unforgiving landscapes that only the most powerful characters should enter.

The planes are strange, interesting, unique, and overall very compelling.

-O

It has good, solid rules for exploring the outer planes, and deal primarily with the physical natures of those planes.  It's akin to the Wilderness and Dungeon Survival Guides.  Lots of rules, very little fluff.  Great for answering the questions like "What happens when I step through a gate to [insert plane here]?" but not so good at answering questions like "What are the politics of the city of Brass?"

If you're looking for detailed treatment of the denizens and cultures of the outer planes, then look at Planescape.  If you just want to know what happens when a player steps through a gate to the Elemental Plane of Fire, like what kind of terrain the experience, what they need to survive there, and what sort of monsters they'll typically encounter, then the Manual is your book.

As you may have gathered from the comments about "high level play," the answer to the question "What happens when I step through a gate to [insert plane here]" is almost always "You die.  Horribly."

I haven't looked at it since I moved away from home in 1992, so I couldn't say either way...

... it is interesting that people here like it, but the general opinion over at Dragonsfoot is that it's pretty much crap.

The folks at Dragonsfoot are awesome, but anything without the word "Gygax" on the cover has a hard time being accepted over there...

I like the MotP.  Never really got to use it for the rules, but a lot of the planar level descriptions inspired adventures aplenty here.

I dislike it, simply because it completes the slow process of nailing down the cosmology of the planes that had been unfolding since the 1E core rulebooks. I mean, seriously. Quasielemental planes? Paraelemental planes? The vast infinities of the cosmos nailed down to the Great Wheel?

I prefer a slightly more freewheeling approach to extraplanar adventures; it's why I like Planescape and the 4E reforms of the planes (and I'm especially glad that Sigil will feature in the 4E cosmology).

Quote from: Warthur...  I'm especially glad that Sigil will feature in the 4E cosmology ....

It will?  Huh!  My ambivalence about 4e continues ... :raise:

Quote from: AkrasiaIt will?  Huh!  My ambivalence about 4e continues ... :raise:

I dunno how prominent it will be - they just say that it still exists in the new cosmology, is still a City of Doors with portals all over the multiverse, and is still ruled by the Lady of Pain.

(Of course, my love of Planescape is mildly tempered by the fact that the best gaming product set in that universe was a CRPG and not a tabletop product...)

Quote from: KenHRThe folks at Dragonsfoot are awesome, but anything without the word "Gygax" on the cover has a hard time being accepted over there...

Funny you should say that, because as a DF regular, my personal experience is the direct opposite. I'd say that out of all forums I know, DF is in the top two for a Gary personal cult. Not saying there's anything wrong with that, just the way I see it.


But as for the topic at hand, I kind of agree with Warthur. The Gygaxian multiverse, IMO just like Planescape, is just too regulated. You see, you have the various types of elemental and kindof-elemental planes, all arranged in neat geometrical shapes. Then you have the morality-based outer planes, and guess what, they're also all arranged in neat geometrical shapes. (Not to mention that the concept of alignment is no longer just a mechanical abstraction necessary for gameplay considerations, but a fully integrated element of the game setting fluff.)

Whatever, if I want things arranged in neat geometrical patterns, I'll go look at Op-art paintings. For roleplaying, I want something that's wild and exciting and unpredictable and therefore a good background to varied adventures. In this respect, I find that the multiverse described in the Mentzer Immortals book is just more alluring (even though it has the same very basic structure of Prime Plane, Elemental Planes, Outer Planes). And it also adds a whole new level of totally geeky trippiness with dimensions. One-, two-, three- and four-dimensional planes of existence, and how creatures with a different number of dimensions will perceive them. Like, whoa.

I did not like the Manual of the Planes at all. The Outer Planes were okay but everything else needed to go. The Wonderland modules, the 3E FR and Eberron cosmologies, Beyond Countless Doorways, and the City of Brass boxset were much better examples of how the planes should be: fun places to adventure.