Ever since the 70s, fantasy roleplaying has had a list of fiction that was used to inspire the creators of Dungeons & Dragons. What we need is that same list for other genres…
What Is An Appendix N?
When the first edition of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (AD&D) Dungeon Masters Guide came out in the late 70s (that’s 1970s for some of you young ‘uns…), one of its appendices was a list of books and stories that inspired Gary Gygax and the other creators of D&D. That appendix was Appendix N.
That list was a list of classic books and stories that inspired so many people over the years, not just to play fantasy roleplaying games, but also for entertainment, writing and other pursuits. From J. R. R. Tolkien to Michael Moorcock, from Poul Anderson to L. Sprague de Camp, the stories in Appendix N was essentially a course syllabus on fantasy literature.
Even though many great authors have written fantastic works since those early days, the original list is still one of the best places to start if you want inspiration or just to get into the fantasy genre. Whether you agree with every entry, or want other works that were left off the list does not matter–the important part is Appendix N is a start, a place to work from.
Why We Need Them For Other Genres
The thing is, we need that list for other genres, too. When I first started thinking about this a few years ago, there was nothing else out there. Since then, folks have started trying to come up with their own versions of Appendix N for science fiction, adventure, horror, western or other genres.
And that is A Great Thing. We need that same kind of foundation, that same kind of place for new readers or gamers to start from–and build upon.
And it is not just for noobs. I find myself going back to the AD&D Appendix N for something to read that can spark my creative juices from time to time… Why not have that same kind of list to do that for, say, western gameplay?
We need that same kind of foundation, that same kind of place for new readers or gamers to start from–and build upon.
No matter how long you have been roleplaying, these lists can still have the same value. And the best thing about building these lists for other genres? We can build it ourselves, as a community.
Plans For the Future
And that is exactly what I plan to do–find lists for other genres, post them here (or links to them), then invite other gamers to comment on what should be added, changed or just what they like. It will be an ongoing project, and will be updated as time goes on.
One question I have is what form of media do we want to include in these lists? Is it only books, or do we include movies? What about games or comics? Those were options not really available to the creators of D&D back in the day, but it is a question for all of us now. Think about it.
The initial lists will be published on the Appendix N page. This will include the full, initial Appendix N from the DMG for fantasy gaming. I will also add placeholders for other genres. Eventually, I will separate them into their own pages, but for now they can all be found together.
If you have any comments or additions you think should be on these lists, please let me know in the comments below! I really want to hear from you–let’s make these lists together!
Marko ∞
