I fell down the rabbit hole of fantasy role playing games in 1979. The OSR has provided me with the opportunity to rules tinker freely. I am sharing my efforts here. I am not a game designer. I am a GM/DM/Referee/What ever they’re calling it these days who likes to play with rules.
Posts:
- March 2024 Update #2by StevenSome minor house keeping.
- March 2024 Updateby StevenThings are going well. The play test is moving into trying out the more involved systems in the rules. NPC arcane and divine spell casters went smoothly. The process once dreaded but now is enjoyable. I have moved charm magic to the archive for now. I am not satisfied with it’s output. That’s all for now. Good gaming!!!
- February 2024 Updateby StevenSorry for the lack of posts. Real life, play testing, and project development have kept me on the run. Knave Update: The Knave 2E Kick Starter was a wild success. Congratulations to Ben Milton for a well deserved success. Knave 1E is licensed under CC By 4.0. Knave 2E is not. I am not, will not, can not use any of the 2E material due to it’s restrictive license. We, myself as a content developer and my gaming group, will continue to base our campaign on 1E. This is a bit of a disappointment given how much I enjoyed the …
- June 2023 Updateby StevenPerks/Skills/Abilities has been updated to version 1.2. Many typos and crude grammatical errors were fixed. Also update the training times and costs for perk level advancement. Please get it from the downloads page. So big thanks to Ben Milton for Knave 1E being CC 4.0 BY, Nameless Designer for Heroes of Adventure being CC 4.0 BY, Blacky the Blackball of Gurbintroll Games for Dark Dungeons X being Public Domain. Having these resources has enabled me to rapidly move forward on a set of domain rules, price lists, mass combat rules.
- May 2023 Updateby StevenThanks to my buddy DJ, I was able to to do a round of play testing. I have made revisions based on his suggestions and what worked or did not work for me. I am adapting parts of Heroes of Adventure by the Nameless Designer. It has a lot of great ideas and systems I really like. It is licensed CC 4.0 BY. If you like what I am doing with his work, please go to https://nameless-designer.itch.io/heroes-of-adventure and support him. Big thanks to creators who use the CC 4.0 BY license. By making their rules so open saves me from …
- 2023 – February 18 – Post OGL Updateby StevenHere is an update of where I stand after the last few years work was torched. Here are the updated files. Next on the agenda: If you have any suggestions, please leave it in the comments. Thanks.
- 2023 – February 18 – OGL Updateby StevenWell, a lot has happened since my last post. Here is the current state of affairs. I gave this a lot of thought and came up with my personal action plan.
- 2023 – January 9 – WotC OGL 1.1 Dropsby StevenRead ’em and weep. The OGL is dead. This is a closed gaming license. See below. Nothing left to say except, when things shake out, I’ll let you know.
- 2023 – January 9 – WotC OGL v1.1 updateby StevenThis past week has brought a slow rolling crescendo to a head. Please read and understand that Wizards of the Coast is seeking to destroy all third party developers and their works. Their “de authorization” of OGL v1.0 & 1.0a eliminates all the value of my current work as it exists. Their inclusion of unlimited and uncompensated theft of others creations along with a 25% tax on successful creators shows that their hubris and greed have reached levels that make Greek gods roll their eyes. Business contracts almost always favor one side or the other. But this 1.1 OGL gives …
- 2023 January Updateby StevenHappy new year. All of my currently used rules and additions are up. Please stay tuned for updates and additional content on the Knave Expansions page. I have to say that this combo of rules and supplements has me creating and enjoying gaming more than I have in a long time. It’s good to be back. Links to my resources are in their relevant posts. I don’t work for or profit from any of the links to payed products.
- Core Components of My Gameby StevenMany things go into making a usable RPG. For The Knave SRD: See my last post. For the commercial version of Knave: Link here. Knave ++: Link here. Glaive: Link here Simpler Systems Options: Character Sheet:: PDF & ODT. Basic Fantasy: Website here. Chivalry and Sorcery 2E is my favorite economic/social rule set. Sadly it is no longer in print. It’s original authors have moved on to the great gaming table in the sky. I heavily use the PDF’s. Later versions greatly expanded the page count while not increasing it’s utility to me. It may be a commentary on me …
- Knave 1.1E SRD & My Game Versionby StevenI am attaching the PDF and ODT versions for your review. Knave 1.1E PDF & ODT. The version I cut for my game PDF & ODT. The rest of the system that makes this a viable game will be in the core components post.
- Why Knave?by StevenSo there I was. Having spent a lot of time and energy making my dream RPG. See my posts on the Alternative Rules and Supplements for Early Editions for a fuller explanation. I had decided on a B/X style game powered by Basic Fantasy and additions from the SRD’s. Although each change or addition I added was small, the cumulative weight of the Frankensystem I had created was to much. While I was planning on starting a severe pruning and editing of the system, I stumbled across Knave. So what is Knave? Here is the answer from the designer’s own …
- 2022 Updateby StevenSorry for the large gap in posting. I made the classic error of over confidence. I was over confident of: I found that as play test material was being prepared, that I hated the rule set. I did not want to create anything with it and would not be willing to play it. Mea Culpa. I screwed up. I went back to the drawing board. Simplifying and streamlining began in earnest. Then I found a recommendation for Knave. Knave is a B/X adjacent game. Please check out the articles, expansions, and content on the Simpler Systems Options page for greater …
- Character & NPC Sheetsby StevenCharacter sheet link NPC sheet link
- A brief description of Module #6 – Misc Rulesby StevenThis is my current catch all module for rules that are not large enough for their own modules. Download link
- A brief description of Module #5 – Book of Spellsby StevenIf you are happy with your game systems spell list, please ignore. All the early edition, pre 2E clones, utilize simplified spells and lists. I prefer the 3.5E schools of magic and lists. This is my rendition of that portion of the SRD. I have tuned it for my campaigns and gaming preferences. As always; fold, spindle, and mutilate. Download link
- A brief description of Module #4 – Dark & Dangerous Magicby StevenLet me begin by recommending two excellent games. This makes being a mage a much more tense and exciting experience. You will find in my adaption of the above rule sets: Download link
- A brief description of Module #3 – Skills, Talents, & Abilitiesby StevenI have played level based games, skill based games, and hybrid games that combine aspects of both. I currently prefer the hybrid model as it allows me the freedom to mix and match as my game needs and preferences shift. Short and sweet. Download link
- A brief description of Module #2 – Arms, Armor & Combatby StevenI have used many different combat systems over the years. I have come to accept and appreciate the early editions level of abstraction. I no longer enjoy crunchy for crunchiness sake. I like for choices in conflicts to have meaning. So weapon choices, or do I carry a shield, or light vs heavy weapons have effects in the game world. Skill/talent/ability training choices will also impact play. A goblin who has mastered the short sword is to be feared. Download link
- A brief description of Module #1 – Character Creationby StevenI began playing long ago and far away in my misspent youth with access to the DM’s 1E players handbook. He had the 3 LBB’s. He soon there after obtained the DM’s guide and we were off to the races. We soon discovered rpg magazines, rules expansions, and other games. Lots of ideas and options have come and gone over the years. Module #1 is a compilation, distillation, and finally putting it into black and white of: Download link
- NPC Sheetby StevenDirect PDF Download Direct ODT Download
- 2021 Project Completedby StevenI am not a game designer. You will hear this more than once from me. Understanding I am not a game designer freed me from the delusion that I had to write a game system. I’m sorry. No fantasy heart breakers here. After reading lots of games and dredging through materials saved to my hard drives, I contemplated licenses. This is where I found myself. I prefer: Fantasy games Open Licenses and SRD’s Free or low cost PDF’s to determine if I want to support a game line. Accessible designers or company representatives. So I chose to focus on early …