Just like it says on the tin - what do you see as the definitive OSR product? You'll need to go beyond your comfort zone on this, as we discuss +Matt Finch 's Quick Primer to Old School Gaming in episode 1 (and even this is an entry that people either agree with closely or disagree with strongly - I've noticed little middle ground.)
Is there a certain set of rules, adventure, setting, resource, etc that you can point to on your bookshelf (virtual is fine) that oozes OSR in your mind?
There are no wrong answers (except those that aren't posted ;)
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"Fight On!" magazine oozes OSR in my mind. I love many of the Darkness Beneath's levels.
ReplyDeleteAlso, "ACKS". "Fight On!" feels more "Old School" to me, but "ACKS" is a ruleset I really love. Currently reading the great "Domains at War" books, BTW.
The Dungeon Alphabet. No question in my mind.
ReplyDeleteThe closest second is Labyrinth Lord.
I'll second The Dungeon Alphabet. I also really like Joe Bloch's Castle of the Mad Archmage which I've used for years since its initial PDF release.
ReplyDeleteLooking at my shelf, it's a close call between my copies of Fight On! and Carcosa. If I had to pick a ruleset, I'd say Spears of the Dawn.
ReplyDeleteProbably Labyrinth Lord. Runner up: OSRIC and Stonehell.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this. Labyrinth Lord with the Advanced Companion is pretty much how we actually played "back in the day".
DeleteFight On! comes to mind. An "amateur" collaboration by DIY gamers, is very much what this thing we're doing is all about.
ReplyDeleteThere isn't one...and that's the point.
ReplyDeleteSwords & Wizardry Complete for me.
ReplyDeleteYou know I wrote Swords & Wizardry on G+ but I've been thinking more about it and I wonder if you couldn't argue that OSRIC is the definitive OSR product?
ReplyDeleteNot only was it the first, but it set the tone for all that came after. Whether you're talking about people who copied it's approach or rebelled against its example. It's got a pretty pivotal roll in the movement that isn't just historical.
Hard to argue against "Fight On!" or "Dungeon Alphabet", but I'll put in a word for "Tome of Adventure Design" (which I consider to be Matt Finch's magnum opus).
ReplyDeleteDungeon Crawl Classics RPG. That's the first OSR product which sparked my interest enough to try roleplaying again. And look at me now...
ReplyDeleteKeith Sloan makes the point before I could. Good show.
ReplyDeleteIf I had to pick one product, it would be Mazes & Minotaurs.
To me the OSR is about reinventing the past, not mimicking it.
ReplyDeleteLamentations products are the high water mark.
I'll second OSRIC, but also suggest C&C was there first. However I think in terms of pure feel and that special "thing" that the OSR is S&W Complete takes the cake.
ReplyDeleteI like all of them, but the "The Dungeon Dozen" is my new standard.
ReplyDelete