About the book:
Arnesonian. Gygaxian.
Modern rules clarity, 1974 Sword & Sorcery feel.
In his most ambitious work to date, Kent David Kelly of Wonderland Imprints proudly presents to you the OLDSKULL SWORDS & SORCERY (OS&S) fantasy role-playing game system, the culmination of over ten years of development. Book One: Adventurers is the ultimate guide for old school character creation, providing players and Game Masters with everything they need to orient themselves in the classic world of fantasy, witchery, and high adventure.
The OS&S system is a game unto itself, but it also serves as a mega-supplement for your favorite B/X system of choice, for character levels 1 to 20.
The focus in this tome is on completeness, rather than bulleted summaries. This volume is designed to be fully compatible with other faithful interpretations of the Original Swords & Sorcery Game, such as Holmes Basic, Mentzer Basic, Mentzer Expert, Moldvay Basic, Moldvay Expert, and many other similar and quality game systems crafted via the Open Game License.
(Kent David Kelly and Wonderland Imprints are not officially affiliated with any of these games or their authorial creators.)
Herein, you will find deep and insightful rules for creating your own Player Characters, heroes (and antiheroes) who ready themselves to battle fearsome monsters in search of gold, glory, and ultimate triumph … or a grisly demise in dungeons deep. There are also complete rules for character empowerment, level progression, equipment, spells, personalization, and much more.
Whether you’re a new Game Master (GM), or you’re simply curious about the 1974 “old school” original fantasy role-playing epic, OLDSKULL SWORDS & SORCERY is the perfect starting point for your adventures. Veteran players and Game Masters, along with neophytes, will find unique analysis, rules expansion, and hundreds of useful features to enhance the intricate details of their own existing worlds. With dozens of optional rules systems and optional tiers of complexity, you can easily customize every aspect of the game experience to your liking.
This introductory volume includes all of the known character creation house rules from Gary Gygax’s own Lake Geneva campaign. The rules herein are designed to fully modernize the 1974 game experience, without corrupting the original designers’ intent. You will also find many Arnesonian touches of systems design and game mastery throughout.
Difficult subjects such as alignment, anti-clerics, deities, encumbrance, evil, level limits, and character detailing are fully explored herein. All of these subject approaches are structured around insights and veteran GM advice (rulings), rather than strict rules. You’ll discover detailed spell descriptions, balanced empowerment options for all character types, comprehensive undead turning rules, spell rulings that balance player imagination with play clarity (via all incorporated 1974-1978 errata), and much more.
The OLDSKULL SWORDS & SORCERY game is a universal system that bridges divides between creative schools of thought, providing you with the freedom to make your own choices within a universal framework. This comprehensive character design system is a true basic learning guide, exploring all of the finer aspects of the 1974 fantasy role-playing experience.
Unique in its own vision of classic gaming, OS&S syncs with all of these systems while also featuring many details from Kent David Kelly’s World of Oldskull campaign, providing you with an optional “out of the box” game world if do not have the time or the inclination to build your own.
So don’t wait any longer! Claim your kingdom from dragons and tyranny, find your own heroic destiny in the deep dungeons and halls of horror that lie beneath. OLDSKULL SWORDS & SORCERY is ready to serve as your gateway to adventure. Your untold fate, for death or gold and glory, awaits!
Another proud release from Kent David Kelly and Wonderland Imprints, Only the Finest Works of Fantasy.
