Tenkar's Tavern: Chaosium's Basic Roleplaying to go OGL with an SRD?

Monday, December 2, 2019

Chaosium's Basic Roleplaying to go OGL with an SRD?

Sure, Mongoose made their licensed version of RuneQuest Open Game License and released an SRD, then did the same with the later Legend rules, which are both built off of Basic Roleplaying (BRP). But to have Chaosium do the same for their actual "house" rules? Color me surprised:

Interesting development.

Original thread here: https://basicroleplaying.org/topic/10565-new-version/page/5/?tab=comments#comment-162231

Tip of the hat to Rob Conley of the Bat in the Attic blog.

2 comments:

Tim SniderDecember 2, 2019 at 8:03 PM
Isn't this basically the GORE system? https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/28521/GORE
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Vile TravellerMay 24, 2020 at 5:01 AM
No surprise given nuChaosium's well-known dislike of the Open Gaming movement, but this turned out to be the most un-open game licence ever. No serious 3PP would touch this with a 10-foot pole. I see a few innocent fan efforts being kicked around, but I hope this will fade away soon. If you want D100 OGL, go for Legend. If you want a reasonable D100 licence, talk to The Design Mechanism.
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Why "Swords & Wizardry?"

Believe me when I say I have them all in dead tree format. I have OSRIC in full size, trade paperback and the Player's Guide. I have LL and the AEC (and somewhere OEC, but I can't find it at the moment). Obviously I have Basic Fantasy RPG. Actually, I have the whole available line in print. Way too much Castles & Crusades. We all know my love for the DCC RPG. I even have Dark Dungeons in print, the Delving Deeper boxed set, Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea. BOTH editions of LotFP's Weird Fantasy and some dead tree copies of the Greyhawk Grognards Adventures Dark & Deep

I am so deep in the OSR when I come up for breath it's for the OSR's cousin, Tunnels & Trolls

So, out of all that, why Swords & Wizardry? Why, when I have been running a AD&D 1e / OSRIC campaign in Rappan Athuk am I using Swords & Wizardry and it's variant, Crypts & Things, for the second campaign? (Actually, now running a S&W Complete campaign, soon to be with multiple groups)

Because the shit works.

It's easy for lapsed gamers to pick up and feel like they haven't lost a step. I can house rule it and it doesn't break. It plays so close to the AD&D of my youth and college years (S&W Complete especially) that it continually surprises me. Just much less rules hopping than I remember. (my God but I can run it nearly without the book)

I grab and pick and steal from just about all OSR and Original resources. They seem to fit into S&W with little fuss. It may be the same with LL and the rest, but for me the ease of use fit's my expectations with S&W.

Even the single saving throw. That took me longer to adjust to, but even that seems like a natural to me now. Don't ask me why, it just does. Maybe it's the simplicity of it. At 45 52, simplicity and flexibility while remaining true to the feel of the original is an OSR hat trick for me ;)

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Monday, December 2, 2019

Chaosium's Basic Roleplaying to go OGL with an SRD?

2 comments:

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