The Dragon #1 is a magazine issue released in June 1976.
Content[]
Features[]
The following feature articles appeared in this issue:
| Title | Page | Author | Rules |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fafhrd & The Mouser Have Their Say | 4 | Fritz Leiber | OD&D |
| The Battle of Five Armies In Miniature | 6 | Larry Smith | Chainmail |
| How To Use Non-Prime Requisite Character Attributes | 7 | Wesley D. Ives | OD&D |
| Magic and Science | 8 | James M. Ward | OD&D |
| Languages | 9 | Lee Gold | OD&D |
| Len Lakofka's Fantasy Miniatures Rules | 13 | Len Lakofka | |
| Hints for D&D Judges Part 2: Wilderness | 20 | Joe Fischer | OD&D |
| Mighty Magic Miscellany | 23 | Peter Aronson | OD&D |
| Royal Armies of the Hyborian Age Additions | 24 | Lin Carter & Scott Bizar | Chainmail |
| Hobbits and Thieves In Dungeon! | 25 | Gary Gygax | Dungeon! |
| Classic Warfare | 26 | Richard Mataka | Classic Warfare |
| Citadel | 27 | Richard Mataka | Citadel |
| White Bear and Red Moon | 27 | Richard Mataka | White Bear & Red Moon |
| The Three Kindreds of the Eldar | 30 | Larry Smith | OD&D |
Fiction[]
| Title | Page | Author |
|---|---|---|
| Gnome Cache, The | 28 | Garrison Ernst |
| Search for the Forbidden Chamber, The | 11 | Jake Jaquet |
Development and release[]
Development[]
- See also: Dragon (magazine)#History
The Dragon was the brainchild of new TSR hire Tim Kask, who served as the magazine's first editor, and Gary Gygax, company president and editor of the company's newsletter, Strategic Review.[1]
Kask was studying towards a degree in Communications at Southern Illinois Community in Carbondale when he began conversing with Gygax, who suggested hiring a full-time editor to develop the newsletter into a bigger publication. Kask had previous experience publishing a college newsletter. Gygax wanted to avoid making a "house organ", a magazine which only publishes content on its publisher's own products. Kask agreed with the philosophy, believing in the adage that "a rising tide lifts all boats".[2]
In August 1975, TSR hired Tim Kask, who served as editor on the final three issues of Strategic Review. The newsletter was then superceded by two magazines: Little Wars, a bi-monthly publication which focused on miniature wargaming and ran until 1978; and The Dragon.[2] Kask was given free rein to manage the magazine as he saw fit, and often ran articles on games other than Dungeons & Dragons.[3] Kask also insisted on running advertisements from competing gaming companies.[4]
Kask began collecting suitable long-form articles during his editorship of Strategic Review, accumulated from reader submissions. His selection criteria for the first issue was largely based on his own sense of what would be fun.[5]
The cover of the issue was drawn by Bill Hannan, Tim Kask's friend and former teacher. The use of a dragon on a stark background was intentional as emblematic of the magazine's title. Kask would later keep the original artwork.[5]
Notable contributors to the issue included fantasy authors Fritz Leiber and Lin Carter (both of whom would be cited in Gygax's Appendix N as inspirations to D&D), D&D fanzine Alarums and Excursions editor Lee Gold, an unsolicited art submission by future game designer Jennell Jaquays illustrating Gold's article, and future long-time TSR employee James M. Ward. Len Lakofka would go on to write over forty articles for Dragon over the following decade.
The issue also featured the first chapter of The Gnome Cache, a serialized novel by Gary Gygax written under the pseudonym Garrison Ernst. It was Gygax's first attempt at writing a novel, loosely inspired by his World of Greyhawk, although not based on any actual campaign in the setting. It ran for seven chapters before it was cancelled by editor Tim Kask.[6]
Release[]
The Dragon #1 was released by TSR in June 1976 for $1.50 US. It was initially bi-monthly, i.e. one issue every two months, or six issues per year. The first issue was priced US $1.50, with a subscription available at $9.00 per year, or $15.00 per year for subscribers outside of the US and Canada.[7]
Delivery of subscription issues was threatened by a UPS worker strike which began in May 1976, which affected delivery in 13 US states, including TSR's home state of Wisconsin.[8][9]
The print run of early issues of The Dragon was 5,000 per issue. Although they only sold around 3,200, the publisher offered a substantial price break at 5,000, and TSR expected to sell some back copies.[10]
Decades later, the issue would become a rare collectable, with a copy in very fine quality valued at $2,125 in the year 2024.[11] The issue was mailed without a mailing wrap, so the mailing label was affixed to the rear cover of the magazine; such issues are thought to be more highly valued than those without a label, which were likely purchased via the Dungeon Hobby Shop as back issues.[12]
Reception and influence[]
Critical reception[]
In 2018, editor Tim Kask referred to the first issue of Dragon as his favorite.[1]
Influence on other works[]
External links[]
- Dragon #1 at RPG.net
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Curmudgeon in the Cellar #60, 31m 36s. Tim Kask, YouTube. Oct 27, 2018.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Curmudgeon in the Cellar #5, 22m 56s. Tim Kask, YouTube. October 8, 2017.
- ↑ Curmudgeon in the Cellar #26, 5m 40s. Tim Kask, YouTube. Mar 13, 2018.
- ↑ The Curmudgeon at Gamehole Con, 26m 36s. Tim Kask, YouTube. Nov 26, 2018.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Curmudgeon in the Cellar #38, 1m 54s. Tim Kask, YouTube. Jun 30, 2018.
- ↑ Q&A with Gary Gygax, page 268. ENWorld, May 20, 2006.
- ↑ Dragon #1 (Jun 1976), p.3.
- ↑ Dragon #1 (Jun 1976), p.5.
- ↑ United Parcel. Hit by 13-State Strike. NY Times, May 2, 1976.
- ↑ Curmudgeon in the Cellar #183, 18m 14s. Tim Kask, YouTube. Jul 31, 2021.
- ↑ Dragon Magazine Index, The Acaeum.
- ↑ Periodicals, The Acaeum.
Template:Navbox Dragon magazine Template:Navbox magazines