Primers, Principia and DM guides

General
#1

Continuing the discussion from Rulesets to introduce new players:

As I said some days ago I’m trying to compile some kind of “OSR primer” composed of a ruleset, a “GM Guide” of sort and some adventures. The idea is to have a nice document with everything you need to start playing old school games and partecipate in the community.

Our current choice for the “DM Guide” part is the Principia Apocrypha and some selected blog articles, with the Principia having the lion’s share. We choose them because we feel that they have the best format both for complete newbies and for people who come from different game styles.

I would still like to read more suggestions for other primers, both as a possible replacement of the Principia and as additional chapters to be added.

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#2

These are the game principles from Trophy Gold. Applies to OSR in general too.

Player Principles

Be curious. Both as a player and as the character you are playing, you are an explorer. Ask questions of the gm as well as your fellow players. Probe your surroundings: open doors, look behind statues, shine a torch down the dark hallway. Pay attention to the details you’re given.

Play to win. Play like your life depends on it, because in this game, it likely does. Use your wits, and when you have to fight, fight dirty.

Play to lose. At some point, your luck will run out. Embrace it and lean into it.

Gm Principles

Play to find out what happens. Even if you sit down with a pre-written incursion or adventure module, go into the game with a willingness to let the session unfold on its own terms.

Make the world and everyone in it seem real. Describe the world in sensory-rich detail. The people and monstrosities that inhabit it should have tangible goals and memorable traits.

Be a fan of the characters. This doesn’t mean “let them win.” It means “give them challenges that make you root for them.”

Value player skill over character ability. The characters are purposefully thin. The players should make them feel real, including their own wits and clever solutions.

Sometimes, disclaim decision-making. You are co-creating the story with your players. Let them chime in to flesh out the world, describe things they see, and get invested in what’s happening. Also, when you don’t have an answer, leave things to fate and let the dice decide.

Provide problems without obvious solutions. You don’t need to have all the answers. Give the players lots of chances to be creative, and then reward their creativity.

Ask leading questions and build on the answers. Make players co-creators of the world to get them invested in it. Ask them about their characters, the things they know and observe. Make them complicit in their own fate.

When there’s no rule, apply consistent rulings. This game doesn’t have many rules. If you need to make a rule up on the spot, do so, then be fair by using that rule in all similar situations.

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#3

Also this blog post has everything one needs to start playing OSR stuff. How will your compilation be different from what already exists? Not trying to stop you, just interested.

#4

First of all, it will not be in English :smiley:

There are a lot of good English resources out there, but my local OSR community (I’m Italian) is composed of people who read English resources and, sometimes, produce Italian content. The current problem we all feel is that the Italian content is somewhat “advanced”, in the sense that it’s written as part of an already ongoing conversation. If you started reading my blog (or any other Italian OSR blog) without knowledge of the OSR scene there are good chances you would have no idea about what we are talking about.

Since we are doing this, we decided to not just translate the first blog posts we came across when we entered the community but select and update what we were going to translated. Basically, that post can be considered what we want to do, in another language and two years later.

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#5

Okay, this is very cool. I believe we have pretty much the same situation here in France. Only recently have I seen blogs doing actual intros to OSR in French.

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#6

Very cool! We need more people to help get this info to non English speakers. I’m in the US but I’m involved in a number of Brazilian OSR communities there. They very often request translations for things that have been out in English for a very long time. I imagine the same goes for Italian players.

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#7

First, I would collect and categorize all of your local OSR creators, so it is easier to navigate in your blogosphere for newer people. Also, I would probably lean into the DIY aspect of OSR. So provide links to terrain tutorials for example, and provide tools to hack the games. Maybe trying different mechanics, or advice for monster and dungeon design. Moreover, what I think is really overwheling to new DMs is campaign building and management, so I would include tools like the Gygax 75 challenge.

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#8

For DMs, I like the Quick Primer by Matt Finch. It used to be on Lulu (404s now) but I found a copy on scribd. It has play examples which is nice:

For players, I like these 25 tips for dungeon delving:

Also, in the back of B2 there’s this section titled Tips to the Players, which I thought was great:

It often helps for beginning players to have advice on how to play D&D. Many points ore overlooked by novices in their eagerness to get on with the adventure. The following points are given to help these players.

Most importantly, players should be organized and cooperative. Each player should hove complete information on his or her character easily on hand and should supply the DM with this information quickly and accurately if asked. As parties will usually involve a variety of alignments and classes, players should work together to use their abilities effectively. Arguing among players will cause delays, attract monsters, and often result in the deaths of some or all of the members.

Cooperation should also be given to the DM. He or she is the judge of the game and his or her decisions are final. If a player disagrees, he or she should calmly state why, and accept whatever the DM decides. Shouting, crying, pouting, or refusing to accept decisions only angers the other players. The game should be fun for all involved. Not everything will go the way players want it.

Planning Is another important part of play. Players should be well equipped, comparing each member’s list and balancing the items on each. No character should be overburdened nor under-equipped. This may mean shoring the costs of extra items. Rope, oil, torches. spikes, and other useful items should always be carried. Plans should be considered for encountering monsters and casting spells.

Caution is also necessary and is a part of planning. A party that charges forward without preparation is almost certainly doomed. Danger should be expected at any moment and from any direction, possibly even from one’s own party. Lying and trickery are not unknown. Cautious play will help avoid many (but not all) tricks and traps and may save a life. However, too much caution is as dangerous as too little. Many instances will require bold and quick actions on the part of the players, before all is lost.

Above all a player must think. The game is designed to challenge the minds and imaginations of the players.

Those who tackle problems and use their abilities. wits, and new ideas will succeed more often than fail. The challenge of thinking is a great deal of the fun of the game.

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#9

This was the first OSR related thing I read and it really helped me understand the concept a bit more. I include a print out version of this in my ref binder, it’s surprising how many people get really curious as to what you’re doing when their only exposure to D&D is 5e. Whenever I play an OSR game in public (we have a lot of D&D themed breweries in my area), I find myself passing Matt’s write up to multiple people that start asking questions. I do however think it could do with some updating.

Edit: Wanted to include something else that really helped me early on with OSR - Jim Murphy’s video about gaming as if it’s back in the 70’s: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZN5NeYsh7Y

#10

Funny thing is: I DMed in an OSR style before I knew what OSR was. So when I read the primer I was like: “Aha, that’s what I’ve been doing for several years now…”

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#11

Same thing happened to my best friend! I showed him the primer and it dawned on him that he wasn’t the only one doing roughly the same thing. Now he’s knee deep in the OSR community!

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#12

They are a bit long, rough and rambling but I got a lot out of watching the whole of Steven Lumpkin’s 2-part talk on OSR. He just goes into topics a bit more and makes a Principles list for Players too. I wouldn’t recommend it for most people but it does delve into things a lot more than the text primers and you might be able to get more out of it for your own primer.

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#13

http://jrients.blogspot.com/2011/04/twenty-quick-questions-for-your.html I’d also consider this, possibly a few sessions in.

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