Appendix N for Generation Z

A heck of a lot has changed since Gary Gygax placed Appendix N at the back of the very first Dungeon Master's Guide. Gary was writing for a select audience - wargamers, fantasy and sci-fi freaks, people to whom he could suggest books that had inspired different aspects of the new game - be that mood, monsters, or spellcasting.
In the 1980s this was a revelation, because the only books I knew at the time were the Lord of the Rings trilogy and even then, it was heavy going.

Now we live in a different world. Kids understand what hit points mean (or at least 'energy bars') and they know what statistics like Strength, Dexterity represent from playing video game RPGs.
They understand Plate Mail +1 and Potions of Healing from games like that too.
They have their own ideas of magic items, magic mounts and spellcasting from reading Harry Potter.
Vampires and zombies are ubiquitous. 
The most popular drama series on TV features dragons, dire wolves and an army of the undead.

I'd actually missed out on most of this, dropping out of fantasy fandom for a few years and actually not having read JK Rowling's efforts, nor watched Twilight.

So I started considering a list that would help frame a 'modern' view of a fantasy world, and instead of just books I included movies, video games and even anime that I felt had either been influenced by Dnd or indeed could themselves influence a young gamer.

This is a huge list but by no means exhaustive so if anyone out there reads this, I'd appreciate your thoughts... 

FILMS

Star Wars series

Indiana Jones series

The Hobbit/ Lord of the Rings series

Pirates of the Caribbean

Alien quadrilogy

Conan films – original and modern

The Mummy series

Blair Witch Project

Dungeons & Dragons trilogy

Hellboy

The Descent

The Cave

The Abyss

Willow

The Dark Crystal

Labyrinth

Krull/ Legend

Clash of the Titans – the modern remake, and the original films including Jason and the Argonauts/ Seventh Voyage of Sinbad

Van Helsing

The 13^th Warrior

Ladyhawke

The Goonies

Inglourious Basterds

Kill Bill

Snow White and the Huntsman

Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters

Jack the Giant Slayer

300

47 Ronin

Disney – Aladdin, Hercules, Frozen, Robin Hood, The Black Cauldron, Alice in Wonderland

Big Trouble in Little China

Avatar

How to Train Your Dragon

Brave

Howl’s Moving Castle

Sherlock Holmes

Pan’s Labyrinth

Monty Python and the Quest for the Holy Grail

A Knight’s Tale

Braveheart

Kingdom of Heaven

Princess Monoke

Highlander

Alice in Wonderland – movie with Johnny Depp et al

Robin Hood – Prince of Thieves

Flight of Dragons

The Road

Scott Pilgrim vs The World

Coraline

Spiderwick Chronicles

Gladiator

Thor series

Dune

Shrek series

TV SERIES

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Hercules: The Legendary Journeys

Game of Thrones

Merlin

Supernatural

Rome

Adventure Time

Atlantis

Grimm

Once Upon a Time / Once Upon a Time in Wonderland

Vikings

Dungeons and Dragons cartoon

Record of Lodoss War

Legend of Cristania

Rune Soldier

Scrapped Princess

He Man/ Thunder Cats

Gorgoth of Barbaria

Grimm

Sleepy Hollow

Xena Warrior Princess

Kindred: The Embraced

Arrow

The Walking Dead

Mysterious Cities of Gol

The Heroic Legend of Arslan

Red Dwarf

Black Sails

GAME SHOWS (!)

Knightmare

The Crystal Maze

VIDEO GAMES - these are just some of my own favourites or games I've heard good things about!

Diablo series

Dungeon Hunter

Zelda series

Elder Scrolls/ Skyrim

Fable

Final Fantasy

Secret of Mana

Dragon Quest

Dragon Age

Baldur’s Gate, Eye of the Beholder etc

Kingdom Hearts

Phantasy Star

BOOKS

Anything at all by Robert E Howard

Chronicles of Narnia

Orcs trilogy

Fighting Fantasy gamebooks

Grail Quest series and Barmy Jeffers books (by JH Brennan)

Harry Potter 

Skullduggery Pleasant series

Pullman’s Dark Materials - Golden Compass etc

Discworld series by Terry Pratchett

Chronicles of Prydain

The Hobbit, Lord of the Rings

Dragonlance series

Usbourne Puzzle Adventures (an awesome source of story and puzzle ideas, DMs!)

Horrible Histories

Spiderwick Chronicles

The Sword of Truth series

Joe Abercrombie’s books

 The Road

The Myth series by Robert Asprin (esp Myth Conceptions)

Gotrek and Felix (only the first book unfortunately although younger readers might enjoy the formulaic instalments that follow!)  

HP Lovecraft, including: The Call of Cthulhu

·       The Whisperer in Darkness

·       At the Mountains of Madness

·       The Shadow over Innsmouth

·       The Shadow out of Time