RPG Primer and Old School Playbook

[lars_alexander]

Don't drop it, Solomoriah. This primer will be helpful, and is quite necessary.

When I started playing rpgs at the age of twelve, the rules were overwhelming. We read the rules, but didn't understand half of it, and applied them differently. (And had quite a few fights.) And this happened with a few different systems from Das Schwarze Auge, AD&D2, Star Wars WEG to Shadowrun. When I picked up FATE a while ago, I felt overwhelmed again.

A good primer on how to run a game in general, and tutorials for specific systems are worth a lot.

I have a similar project in mind (for my companion supplements, and the German edition) with a focus on little tutorial exercises that people can run through in order to learn specific rules, and their application, as well as possible rulings (fiat).

Alexis Smolensk of the Tao of DnD blog published 'How to play a character', and 'How to run a game'. I bought and read the former, and I think his point is valid: that there are few books, and people out there who help you to play, and run the game better. http://tao-dnd.blogspot.com

So, please, go on, and help beginning players to run their games better!

[chiisu81]

The only other guides I've read for playing and running are from Greg Stolze (near the bottom of page); they're quick reads and quite good.

[seandon4]

Yeah man. I keep coming back for the next part. Going to read the new parts now Keep it up.
EDIT: Writing one of these things (supplements) is a lot of work -- at least for me. So thanks Solo!

[seandon4]

Just read the new part and I'll say it's long been needed: questions about armor class and converting between other OSR systems are some of the most common questions. So, happy to see this -- sorry I don't have the best eye for typos and editing errors, but I'm trying and I'll let you know if I spot anything. Regards.

[Solomoriah]

Well, okay. So I'll carry on with it for the moment. Thanks, guys.

[Blazeguard]

I concur. Please, please, pleeeeeease, don't drop this. I am finding this incredibly helpful already and can't wait for it to be finished.

[Solomoriah]

Alright, then. I'm uploading R9 right now, and it's complete. I'm planning to do a little polishing, but unless someone finds something badly wrong, this is what I'll be publishing.

[-1warrior]

Great.

I assume that it will be published separate from the BFRPG project?

[Solomoriah]

Gah. It's complicated.

On Lulu.com, I'll keep it separate since they have a "showcase" for the Project.

But on CreateSpace.com, there's no actual point. They don't have a "Project" showcase, but rather an "Author" showcase. I think this actually hurts sales of JN1 and JN2, since they aren't "mine" and so are not on my showcase page. By the same token, this IS "mine" and no matter whether it's on the same account or a different one it will be on my showcase. But before I knew that I created a separate CreateSpace.com account for my personal works (I just haven't published any) so even though it's pointless I'll put it there.

Here's the deal, though. This is not a Basic Fantasy Project production... it's all mine, and it will not share the "branding" of BFRPG. Still, I can see that it would be beneficial for some of those who are also buying the Core Rules. I suspect, given that it will be on my Amazon.com author showcase, that it might benefit from some add-on sales there.

Like I said, complicated.

[-1warrior]

I was referring to Lulu mainly. Thanks.

One thing I might recommend in downplaying the importance of miniatures a little. I find that in my games, they take away from the players using their imagination, which I feel is a major part of role playing. Yes, I know you say you don't need them, but you do say that they have many advantages. Just my opinion.