Recent content by Enaknomolos

I share your feelings. I love the idea of a good city supplement, but that actual ones I've come across tend to be too static, gigantic lore dumps, or (some of the older ones) just a bunch of generic encounter tables. I really like Hyena Child by Gazer Press, though. It details 17th century...

Not entirely alone. I agree. I think 1e Pendragon is brilliant, but Prince Valiant still feels ahead of most 'cutting edge' game design even in 2026.

Exactly the same in the UK too: one day and then unavailable anywhere for quite a while. It was obviously not a marketing ploy.

There is Stara Szkoła which is very much combat-focussed sim; but the same publisher Codex Integrum also do settings based on the medieval baltic, guides to historical weapons, and so on. They're very sim-orientated, although Stara Szkola also aims to be very light and fast. That said, as far...

I wasn't that jazzed about Pioneer; but looking at the preview and what we know so far, I think that it is a strong contender for a version of contemporary simulationist as a style. By that, I mean rather than trying to tie 'contemporary' to some ultimately arbitrary time period, 'contemporary'...

I'll add Dicey Tales to the list. It's Barbarians of Lemuria adapted to pulp, and it does it excellently.

Some Mongoose releases are strongly sim too. The World Builder's Handbook, in particular, packs an absurd amount of contemporary astrophysics into a gaming supplement. I think it's also a clear example of one sort of situation where simulation does require complexity. If you want your sci-fi...

I think the fashion metaphor works fairly well here. If you are designing a game today, you have a whole bunch of history you can learn from that simply wasn't available to someone in 1985. At the same time though, and even if you're really good, the game that you design almost certainly won't...

I think this thread has led me to the conclusion that the engineering metaphor ('mechanics') is fundamentally misleading when trying to understand the ways that RPG systems change over time. I don't think analogies with self-serious high arts such as literature are any better. I think a better...

I loved AW, but have reached the point where I consider 'PbtA' branding to be a warning flag on a new game. It's a bit melancholy really. I also consider 'OSR' a warning despite being nostalgic for old D&D, avoid 'NSR' games despite liking the Black Hack, and expect nothing but disappointment...

I think this is exactly right. There's a reason why Traveller is the first system Ron Edwards mentioned in the intro to Sorcerer, and why a bunch of Trav fans were so enthusiastic about FATE that they made Diaspora. The core game lends itself extremely well to loosely structured narrative play...

Maybe it's a hint: the game won't be D&D or Daggerheart: they're going to run it with Tom Molday's (1983) system:p

The best modern Sword & Sorcery magazines: Tales From the Magicians Skull: the most polished, with great art and the most established authors. Also the most gaming-adjacent, with a section on converting creatures to DCC in every issue. New Edge: works as the hub of new sword & sorcery as a...