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But you're not using "plot" in the common English usage of the the word. You're using it the same way one would use scenario, set-up, or premise. The premise or set-up of Lord of the Rings is that the Dark Lord is on the rise and one little hobbit has the means of destroying him. The plot is...

As I said in my first post in this thread, I think the point of difference may simply be that one side is using "plot" and "story" to mean something different than the other side is. When I hear someone say they like a plot in their rpg, it sounds to me as if they want something resembling what...

Yeah, but who says you're supposed to do it that way? The key to any good sand-box is giving information to the players. To make the players want to interact with your world, you've got to tell them what's in your world. The only way that choice for the players is truly meaningful is if it's...

It's funny because I've asked "pro-plot" people a very similar question. "Do you mean to tell me that if I don't lead the players by the nose to the adventure, they're just going to sit in the tavern and not do anything?" To which I've had a number tell me, "Yes." Which always leads me to...

You see, this, I don't consider a plot. You've got a situation... A crime at a church, a npc hiring out help to solve the crime, clues at the church lead to the sewer, clues in the sewer lead to the temple, the wererats in the temple are the ones that did it. You have that situation and about...

That kind of gets to the crux of my last post. If that's not what you mean, what do you mean? I think there's a very basic non-understanding between the parties - or at least on my part - as to what the other side means by "plot" and how it relates to how you run an adventure. As a GM, I...

I've been getting some cheap hardcopies of 1e materials that I had gotten rid of, or in some cases, never had. One of things I just reacquired was DL7 Dragons of Light. I think that might be a good, specific example to explore this issue a bit... The basic situation of DL7 is that the evil...

I think missed in this is that when Dash says "when everyone is special, no one will be," he thinks it's bad. When Syndrome says it, he thinks it's good. Dash is the gifted athlete or student who sees everyone put through a mediocre challenge where everyone get the same little trophy or star...

I really like Rob's Points of Light products. Not OSRIC specific, but generic and definitely OSRIC adaptable.

The perception check, whether the 3e version, or the many kludged pre-3e versions I've seen have always been weird to me. It just doesn't match my style of play. There's a gold goblet under the bed. Do the pc's see it? Don't know, depends on whether the pc's look under the bed. There's no...

As it so happens, the late, great Eric Wujcik, the author of Amber Diceless (and, more importantly, TMNT and Other Strangeness :D )wrote a great article on playing an OD&D thief and diceless rpgs. It's right here.

I don't believe they were Gary's in the first place. The Eldritch Wizardry rules were stripped from a proposed yogi/mystic sort of class proposed by Steve Marsh, and their revamp and inclusion in 1e was championed by one of the Blume brothers. But then, the psionic combat rules descended from...

I've been waiting for it... We've almost gotten to the post that inevitably comes in these discussions... It's the post that simultaneously argues that there is no such thing as "old school" gaming and that "old school" gaming sucks. I love those. In my book, it's right up there in terms of...

I liked the 1e psionic system. Or at least, I loved what it tried to do. The basics were that it grafted a class-less spell point magic system onto the mainframe of AD&D. With that extra power came horrible vulnerability to some really awesome monsters. The basic campaign arc of a character...

Let me get this right... There are characters in this prison that have information that the pcs need. The plan is to have the pcs thrown in prison, too, and have them learn this information as the pcs and the others break out of the prison together. If I'm right, wouldn't it be easier from...

If you don't want to scour ebay to get the originals, there are some great options out there. If you don't know what you want, looking into the free resources isn't a bad idea... Here are some of my favorites: OSRIC Swords & Wizardry (core) Swords & Wizardry (white box) Labyrinth Lord Mutant...

Strangely, I don't think I've played or DM'ed any of the listed modules. Some of the more iconic classics I have worked through... B1: I've had some great runs through this module, in the most brutal, the characters fell through the trap door into the pool and couldn't find their way out...

My "house rules" document for my B/X game is 24 pages long. The last 8 pages of it are just the various charts from the rule books cut and pasted for the players' easy reference. Another two pages are campaign background information. So, the actual house rules take up about 14 pages, much of...

I find this thread to be weird. The "talented amateurs" that apparently don't count are the only rpg products that I pay attention to anymore (apart from some of Goodman Games' products, assuming they don't count as talented amateurs). The "talented amateurs" are what got me to be a regular...

Here's what I'd like... Take the 1981 Basic and Expert rules and splice them together into one book. Other than fixing obvious errata (missing spell, dwarf/halfling saving throws), leave the text unchanged. Include in the box dice and a disc with .pdf's of the revised version of B1, the...