PRINCIPIA APOCRYPHA

Lost Principles of Old School Gaming

Modern Principles and Advice for running

Tabletop RPGs in the Old School Style from
Ben Milton & Steven Lumpkin
curated, presented, & expounded upon by David Perry
with miscellany from Bryce Lynch & Chris McDowall
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PRINCIPIA APOCRYPHA
Lost Principles of Old School Gaming
 Version 0.9ish
September 17, 2017
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Attribution Key
✦: Ben Milton
Maze Rats - drivethrurpg.com/product/197158

☆: Steven Lumpkin
Agendas for Old School Gaming - roll1d100.blogspot.com

✻: David Perry
The humble additions of a fan of both Old School and New School gaming

NOTE: Some principles have their title changed, and some editing,
trimming, and recombination has been done to the original source text to
better fit context. The symbol indicates the source of the majority of the
text in the paragraph preceding it.

Cover artist unknown

Fonts used: IM Fell English SC, Averia Serif Libre
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons
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 Original or another Old School game, not
Introduction all the principles may be applicable, but
they should help distinguish how they play
differently from Apocalypse Engine games.
World of Dungeons was the first
widely-available RPG system that If you’re familiar with Old School gameplay
attempted to emulate an OSR-style game in and want to bring that mindset to an
the Apocalypse Engine. However, I felt like Apocalypse Engine or OSR rules-light
the lack of GM Agenda and Principles system, these principles may help you
tailored to this style was an unfortunate identify where your ingrained GM habits
omission. I imagine new gamers looking at might clash with the system, and get a
World of Dungeons and being quite lost, handle on how a set of principles can aid in
and even (especially?) if they are familiar running these games, especially if your
with Dungeon World, they may be quite players are new to Old School play.
thrown off track by the lack of context.
If you like the Old School play paradigm
Likewise, many OSR rules-light systems and want to instantiate it within an
(such as The Black Hack) lack advice for Apocalypse Engine or rules-light system, or
how to run the game as a GM, and most of want to run pre-written Old School
those that do (such as Whitehack) provide adventure modules with these systems, this
very basic practical advice, rather than the should make a perfect Agenda.
codified stylistic and procedural framework
It should go without saying, of course, that
that I find so useful from the Agendas and
the principles may not all apply equally to
Principles of Apocalypse Engine games
your game or a certain adventure,
(Maze Rats being a welcome exception).
depending on its style, tone, scope, etc.
So, I decided to compile and piece together
In the Addenda is a list of games that
some of these principles. They are
support Old School style play, which you
primarily pulled from two sources that are
might consider running with these
excellent in their own right: Maze Rats by
principles, and other sources of inspiration
Ben Milton (PWYW on DriveThruRPG), and
and advice. I would personally recommend
some posts and vlogs on Steven Lumpkin’s
against simply switching out Dungeon
blog, roll1d100.blogspot.com. These sources
World’s principles with these as it may
are attributed using the symbols noted in
clash with the intentions of DW’s design. If
the frontmatter. I’ve taken some liberties to
you wish to run a PbtA game with them, I
edit them for context, trimming, rewording,
recommend instead using Freebooters on
and combining some, to produce a more
the Frontier or World of Dungeons.
cohesive whole, as well as adding a few
pieces myself.

If you’re familiar with Apocalypse Engine

games and are interested in playing The
 to which these Principles are addressed;

Old School many Old School games use Judge or

Referee. I decided that none of them have
quite the right connotations or truly align

Principles with all the Principles. So, I will default to

the most commonly used term, GM.

for GMs
Note: I’ve gone back and forth on what
term to use for the person running a game,

Honor the dice Challenge them

Divest yourself of their fate Offer tough choices
Build responsive situations Build challenges with
answers...
Ponder the next chapter
...And challenges without
Embrace chaos...
Subvert their expectations
...But uphold logic

Make them think Instill fear, deal death

Player ingenuity over Deadly but avoidable combat
character ability
Keep up the pressure
Cleverness rewarded, not Telegraph deadliness
thwarted
Let the dice kill them
Oblige fictional positioning
Ask them how they do it
Let them manipulate the
world
Make tools unique
Don’t mind the fourth wall
Fill their senses
Reveal the world
Layer environments
Bring the world to life
See your world as real
Make your details matter
 Don’t overdo the preparation! Keep your
Honor the dice situation ideas loose enough that they can
be adapted to the PC’s choices and the flow
of the game. Remember that unused prep
Divest yourself of their fate can always be recycled in later sessions.
You are not an antagonist to the players or After each session, ask the players what
characters. Honestly portray the world and they plan on doing next and prep a few
its denizens as they would react to the situations related to that. The direction of
characters’ behaviour. Don't intend to the game should be guided by the player’s
orchestrate the characters’ actions.✻ decisions, not the GM’s.✦

Be fair and impartial. Do not fudge rolls, do Embrace chaos...

not roll in secret. This keeps the game
honest and dangerous, and prevents any Listen to that capricious muse, the dice.
accusations of favoritism or railroading. It Relying exclusively on your own
also encourages the players to manipulate imagination can be exhausting and
and engage with the fictional world, rather predictable, and can feel less like an
than with the GM.✦ objective world to the players. And external
inspiration and random results help you
divest yourself of their fate.✻
Build responsive situations
Don’t detail a plot to be played out; rather, Use random tables to keep the game fresh.
establish situations with multiple actors The surprising twists that random tables
pursuing their own ends. Let the players’ add can bring an energy and mystery to the
actions affect this environment, and have game that is hard to improvise.✦
those changes affect the players. Let the
Collect random tables. NPCs, names, items,
situations worsen if the players don’t
plot hooks, complications, relationships,
address them.✻
locations, etc. Some great sources of tables:
During open sandbox play, create a number Maze Rats, Perilous Wilds, Dungeon
of nearby situations that contain a reason Alphabet, Dungeon Dozen, and Abulafia, a
to get involved, some problems to wiki where you can automate your own, at
overcome, and optionally a threat that will www.random-generator.com ✻
worsen the PC’s lives if not dealt with.✦
...But uphold logic
One way to create interesting situations is
If there is an obvious reason for a particular
to draw a grid that maps the relationships
wandering monster to be here, that's why
between the elements of a situation and
they're here; don't bother rolling a random
how they relate and interact, or how the
activity or reaction. This can help maintain
party might intervene.✦
verisimilitude and let players make
reasonable plans. It also emphasizes the
Ponder the next chapter surprise and intrigue of the instances of
Don’t prepare a plot for the players to randomness when you do use them.✻
follow. During the game, observe how the
players deal with a situation, and
extrapolate the effects of their actions
based on what you know. Don’t plan the
results ahead of time; players rarely do
what you expect them to.✦
 from translating this into mechanical
Make them think advantage.✻

Ask them how they do it

Player ingenuity over
Assume characters have common sense, but
character ability don’t assume their specific actions.
Old School PCs are very minimalistic Encourage or require the players to
because the character sheet is mostly there interrogate the fiction of the environment
for when players make a mistake. Players “manually” rather than eliding it via a roll
are not meant to solve problems with die or assumed character skill. But if they give
rolls, but with their own ingenuity. up, let them roll for a chance at a hint.✻
Therefore, present them with problems
that: Let them manipulate the
● Can be solved with common sense world
● Have no simple solution The focus of the game should be on creative
● Have many difficult solutions ✦ problem solving, not brute force, so give
players the tools to make that appealing.
For example: Cross a moat full of When you give players tools, you give them
crocodiles. A door in the bottom of a new ways to engage with the world. ✦
dungeon will only open if sunlight shines
on it. Retrieve a key from the bottom of a For example: rival factions to manipulate,
lake of acid.✦ potions with weirdly specific effects, items
that can be combined or repurposed,
Cleverness rewarded, not dungeons with shortcuts and back
passages. Add elements that allow the
thwarted players to bend the world to their will.✦
Clever solutions to a problem should
usually work, as long as they are within the Make tools unique
realm of possibility. Be generous. If the
A good tool doesn’t increase PCs’ damage or
action is unlikely or dangerous, call for a
add an ability bonus; it does an odd, very
save or ability check, but only forbid a
specific thing that is only powerful when
creative solution if it is clearly
used cleverly. This turns every problem into
impossible.✦
a puzzle and encourages creative
If players tend not to think this way, solutions.✦
present them with situations that are
Examples: A rope that becomes as rigid as
nearly impossible to tackle head on, and
steel on command. A coin that lands on any
strongly reward even slightly creative
result you wish when flipped. A bell that
solutions. One of your goals as a GM is to
produces a 1-foot sphere of silence around
encourage this mentality. Feel free to tell
it. A ring that instantly grows you a
your players that cleverness will get them
different beard for each finger you put it
farther than brute force.✦
on.✦

Oblige fictional positioning Don’t mind the fourth wall

Give them the benefit of the doubt when
Don’t worry too much about meta-gaming,
they’ve worked to give themselves the
or what the characters should know or
upper hand in the fiction. Don’t shy away
realistically deduce about a situation. Favor
player ingenuity over character characters have a core capability to get past
embodiment.✻ the challenge, or maybe you've just placed
the solution somewhere else for them to
Challenge them find. Use these to encourage players to dig
into the fiction, and explore. If a challenge
is critical for the continuation of the
Offer tough choices adventure, consider placing a few solutions.
Three is a good number. "Okay, a key, a
Make the players weigh risk versus reward. potion of Eat Metal... and if they befriend
The deeper players go into the wilderness the Bisected Serpent, it can bore a hole
or dungeon, the more perilous things through the stone."☆
should become. Whether because their
resources are running low (food, health, ...And challenges with no
equipment, light, etc.) or because danger
builds the longer they linger, keep the answer
players asking if it is worth pushing their "The deeps are stalked by a living
luck just a little bit farther. The greatest maelstrom of ravenous psychic energy. If
treasures are always the hardest to reach.✦ the players want to get the Golden Falcon
they'll have to get past it, but I have no idea
Risk and reward are also at the heart of
how they'll manage that." These are critical
combat. The PCs’ low health is meant to
for old school gaming. These exist to force
push combat quickly toward the point
players to be creative in ways that surprise
where players ask themselves, “Should I
everyone at the table. Be cautious with
retreat to fight another day, or do I risk it
placing these as challenges critical for the
all to finish them now?” The thrill of that
continuation of the adventure (unless you
choices is at the heart of combat.✦
intend for players to retreat and come back
Look for situations where all obvious later), but sprinkling them around can
choices come with a heavy cost. These surprise everyone at your table.☆
situations encourage unorthodox solutions
and lateral thinking.✦ Subvert their expectations
It’s inevitable that players will have
Build challenges with knowledge about common fantasy elements
multiple answers... from pop culture and other games. Inject
common monsters, locations, and situations
Avoid singular chokepoints to progress.
with your own unique twists for them to be
Give them obvious and
surprised by. This encourages players to
equally-but-differently difficult
explore these differences and solve new
alternatives. You can also keep an extra
problems that they don’t know the solution
option in your pocket that they have to dig
to already.✻
for. Maybe it’s obscure, but preferable.
Maybe it’s just as difficult, but more
beneficial.✻

"There's a magically locked iron gate the

players have to get past... how could they? I
guess one of the NPCs has a key... and
there's a potion of Eat Metal hidden in
room 12C." When you build your
adventures, seed them with challenges that
you know the answer to. Maybe the player
 likes their death to be random chance.
Instill fear, deal When a PC dies, it should be their fault.✦
death Let the dice kill them
Remember, we're not antagonists to the
Deadly but avoidable combat players, but their survival is on them.☆

Combat in Old School RPGs is neither If the dice say that someone is dead, they’re
balanced nor fair, and PCs should dead. Protecting the PCs from death results
encounter foes far more powerful and in games that lack tension and players who
numerous than they are. Players should only solve problems with brute force. When
learn to treat combat like real-world a PC dies, tell its player to roll up a new
warfare and use ingenuity, preparation and character and have them re-enter the scene
underhanded tactics to rig the results in as soon as plausible.✦
their favor. Encourage the players to
outsmart and out-plan their enemies if they Absolute and unambiguous character death
want to survive.✦ is essential for both the risks and rewards
of play to have weight. Character creation is
Megadungeons especially are not about simple and quick in these games for a
endless combat encounters or “clearing the reason, not to mention they may have
dungeon”. Dungeons constrain and focus hirelings or retainers to inhabit if they die.
possibilities, so that (while difficult to And don’t worry about players not feeling
choose between and difficult to face), they attached to their characters; they will once
are easy for both the players and the GM to they gain something to lose.✻
identify, reason about, and plan around.
This ensures that clever solutions can be
discovered and rewarded.✻

Keep up the pressure

Whether it’s through random encounter
rolls when time passes, or because the
dungeon is filling with sand, or because a
PC will die in 10 turns from poison, keep
the players desperate and on a clock.
Maintain a tension between the desire to
explore and loot, and the terror of
remaining too long.✦

Do be sure to let them breathe; back in

town, on long trips through the wilderness,
or if they seek and find (or build) safe
asylum. But always consider a chance for
trouble, be it 1-in-6 per hour, day, week, or
otherwise.

Telegraph deadliness
Give players the chance to think their way
around threats and obstacles by
telegraphing them ahead of time. No one
 Give the players a stake in the world. As the
Be their senses game goes on, players may accumulate a lot
of money from completing jobs and looting
treasures. Encourage them to use this
Reveal the world money to buy property, hire retainers, or
Don’t hide important information from the found factions. This can open up new ways
players. If the PC could reasonably know for the players to interact with the world
something, tell the player and move on. The and affect its history.✦
game is about making decisions, and
players can’t make good decisions without See your world as real
good information.✦ This place you've created, or are reading
about–it's a real place. It exists! You could
Layer Environments go there, if you had the technology! You
What are the PCs aware of already? What don't, though, so it's up to you to
do they notice at their first glance? Which communicate it to others. What do you see,
of those "first glance" things hides when you're there? Hear, smell, taste, feel,
information revealed on closer inspection? sense? What do you know about that's
How would players get that information? hidden, and what subtle signs are there?
What's obvious, what's subtle, what's The players will be probing your vision of
hidden, and what's invisible? Create layers this place for useful information. Put your
of information for the players to peel back mind into that world, explore, and bring
and explore.☆ back what's valuable. Likewise, apply a
real-world logic to populations and
Some pre-written adventure modules challenges, rather than building a carefully
handily indicate the obvious stuff in a balanced sequence of fights. If an encounter
location most clearly, so you don’t need to is too tough to fight, it's up to the players to
parse these layers yourself. If that’s not the deal with some other way.☆
case, take care not to blurt out the secrets
in a list of the contents of a room.✻ Make your details matter
Bring the world to life When you're seeing your world as real and
building layered environments, also
Old School RPGs shine with improvisation remember to keep details of your world
and extrapolation, not rigid plots. During gameable. Players should be able to act on
the game and in between sessions, think the information you're telling them: "Her
about how the other characters and factions eyes are a shifting mottled green" helps
would respond to what the PCs are doing, players remember the NPC, sure–but "...and
and develop them accordingly. Your you notice she never stands more than one
guiding principle should be “What are the long step away from the table and its
logical consequences?”✦ contents" gives them information they can
Treat NPCs like real people. Think about act on. "The pillars are ornately carved
what NPCs want, especially in combat. marble... the furthest one is crossed with a
NPCs want to stay alive, and will rarely latticework of cracks." Your details should
start fights that they don’t have a high allow players to make informed decisions
chance of winning. Only fanatical NPCs will and take effective action. You can hide
fight to the death; most will try to retreat or these details within your layered
surrender if they are losing. Also, environments for players to discover, but
remember that enemies and allies can be remember to make them matter.☆
made to switch sides if given the right
motivation.✦
 was behind it, what would you do? Probably
Old School Principles drag it to the side, right? Looking for an air
for Players current? Lick a finger and hold it up.
Judging the slope of a floor? Spill a little
water on the ground. Engage the fiction of
the game world as real. Describe the real
Your sheet has no answers actions you take to achieve the effect you're
Rules and mechanics are only triggered by looking for. Remember, other games may
the fiction. To do something, describe your have dice rolls to do this for you- many old
character doing it; if you need to roll school games don't, so engage!☆
anything, the GM will let you know. When
presented with a problem, instead of Dead ends are opportunities
“using” skills or abilities on it, look to the
That dead-end hallway may hide a secret
environment and investigate the situation
door, or maybe there's another passage to
by asking the GM questions.✻
investigate. The gargantuan monstrosity in
the courtyard? Maybe you can get around
Heroism is proven it, or negotiate. A recalcitrant noble? Maybe
Unlike many modern RPGs, your character someone knows how to get some leverage.
doesn’t start a hero. Your meager means Couldn't pick that iron door? Maybe one of
and abilities at first (or zeroth) level those unidentified potions will help. Old
encourage lateral thinking to get you out of School games have lots of hard blockers.
trouble. And rising to a challenge means When your first attempt fails, change
something when lives are on the line. ✻ tactics- the dead end is just the beginning
of your solution. Often, digging into the
Live your backstory fiction and engaging the world as real will
Don’t put too much work into establishing a open up new and unexpected avenues.☆
backstory for your characters. Their
experiences at level 1 (or 0) will feel much Let your creativity flow
more real. Their likely early death won’t Your class and/or race can do some unique
sting quite as much, and the survivors truly things the other folks can't. Learn to
have tales to tell, and levels to cherish. ✻ recognize when it's your turn to shine, and
when it's someone else's. When it's your
Dig into the fiction turn, really go for it. Outside of the game
Discard your assumptions about D&D, and mechanics of your character, what are your
be curious about the game world. Pay unique inspirations and ideas? Do you see a
attention to details- about characters, the clever use for a magic item? Do you want to
environment, social situations, and more. try negotiating with the ferocious monster?
Take notes on them! Make maps of them! Do you see a weakness in the defenses the
Those details can save your life. When you others don't immediately recognize? Could
write your notes, write questions for you combine a few of these opportunities in
yourself too- What do they eat? Do they a unique way? Open up your brain, and let
have any social rituals? What's that smell? in the weird and the creative. The world is
Why is there a breeze in this room? Is there so bizarre... it just might work.☆
an empty space where a room should be?
Information is leverage, my crafty friend.☆ Combat is war, not sport
Don’t expect encounters to be “balanced”.
Engage the fantasy as real Approach combat with as much trepidation
If you were in a room with a heavy vase in and preparation you would in real life. Nor
one corner, and you wanted to know what are encounters self-contained. Think
outside the box, outside the encounter area,
outside the dungeon.✻

Know when to run

Old school adventures often present
encounters that, to a modern gaming eye,
look like fights- only, if you fight them,
you'll just die. Learn to dig into the fiction
to see the relative power of what you're
facing, and don't be afraid to cut your
losses. A party that drags away one dead
body is a party on their way to a Cleric,
instead of on their way through a monster's
digestive system.☆

Play to win, delight in loss

Everyone wants to succeed, and certainly
everyone wants to play with friends they
feel are aiming to succeed- but that may not
always happen. Your characters may get
turned into frog-people, lose limbs, be
stricken by leprosy, turned into stone,
cursed to burp up slugs, entombed in the
earth for 10,000 years, or just die from
being stabbed in the gut by a farmer with a
pitchfork. Learn to love the disgusting,
horrifying, shocking, surprising, and even
disappointing ways your characters are set
back.☆
 Miscellaneous 30 Principles of
Adventure Design
Addenda Bryce Lynch, summary by Jon Miller

I. General Tips: The 5 C’s

A Procedure for Play 1. Color: The referee should give brief but
evocative descriptions of locations,
Chris McDowall - Into the Odd
monsters, NPCs, and treasures. Avoid the
When you're Refereeing Into the Odd and vague or generic.
the players do something, look at the list 2. Context: In order for their actions to be
below. Work from top to bottom, and when significant and purposeful, players must
you find a solution to what you're trying to generally have some information about the
resolve, don't go any further down. likely consequences of their actions, such as
likely reactions of monsters or NPCs.
1. Can you make this into a Dilemma? If
3. Choices: There should be more than one
so, do it. Give a clear choice between
course of action available to players in
two desirable outcomes. The players
order for the adventure to continue. Avoid
pick one or try to come up with a way
choke points—both literal choke points in
to get both, usually by expending a
the physical layouts of dungeons and other
resource or taking a risk.
locations, and figurative choke points
2. Does it make sense for it to just which require a unique decision or solution
happen? If so, go right to the in order for the adventure to proceed.
Consequences. Make their action 4. Consequences: Player actions should be
matter in the world and push things allowed to make a real difference in the
forwards. Give them information adventure and in the campaign. Avoid a set
about the new situation they find storyline or sequence of events immune to
themselves in. If the consequences player interference.
can ripple out to effect the world, all 5. Creativity: Related to (3) and (4), reward
the better. player creativity by allowing them to
pursue unanticipated courses of action or
3. Is it still uncertain? If so, call for a to produce unanticipated consequences,
Save. Saves always carry a risk, so rather than restricting player action and
explain what's at stake before the player creativity by setting up arbitrary
players commit to their action. constraints in the location layout or course
of events.
4. I guess it was impossible; give the
players more Information to help
them come up with reasonable action.
II. Hooks
If in doubt, give the players more 6. Don’t rely on a single hook; use multiple
information and ask them frankly kinds (treasure; reward; magic; glory;
what they're actually trying to political power).
achieve with their actions. Don't be a 7. Create a rumor table with hooks and
distant referee, get down in the mud color.
with them and discuss the situation. 8. Hooks should appeal to the players (not
just their characters).
9. Hooks can and should be made complex /
nuanced; e.g., working for an evil NPC, or
working for rival factions.
10. To support sandbox play, particular Example: Instead of stating that “One of the
dungeon, town, and wilderness locations, guards in the camp is a cruel bully,” say
monsters, and NPCs should all have hooks. that “The burly Manfred takes a leak on
poor Tobias’s bedroll, and then he snatches
III. Locations Tobias’s roasted chicken dinner from his
hand and quickly gobbles it down.”
11. Location descriptions should be terse
22. Use truly evil monsters to evoke a Sense
(not verbose) but evocative (not boring,
of Terror.
obvious, generic).
12. Only include background info that
affects gameplay. Avoid long descriptions of V. Treasure
irrelevant info. 23. Treasure should be valuable enough to
13. Rooms should have features that players motivate players and to make the
can interact with to produce meaningful challenges worthwhile.
consequences. Give concrete descriptions of 24. Non-magical treasure should relate to
secret doors, traps, etc. the setting and give clues or information
14. Floor plan tips: about monsters, NPCs, locations, etc.
a. Multiple routes (vs. choke points or 25. Avoid standard magic items.
linear, one-way paths). 26. Give evocative descriptions of magic
b. Multiple entrances / exits. items. Give concrete descriptions of their
c. Multiple stairs per floor. appearance and how they must be
d. Open spaces with balconies, manipulated to produce their magical
galleries, and ledges at various effects.
elevations. 27. Use magic items to evoke a Sense of
e. Pools and rivers that connect Wonder.
different rooms or levels.
f. Bridges and ladders. VI. Format and Functionality
28. Include the following kinds of
IV. Monsters and NPCs references:
15. Create interesting, believable a. Rumor / hook table.
motivations for monsters and NPCs. b. Monster / NPC table which lists
16. Create factions of monsters and NPCs their main traits, motivations,
(which lead to a dynamic, interconnected location, etc.
strategic situation). c. Room / building table which lists
17. Give players the choice of allying, the rooms in a dungeon (or other
attacking, or having other relationships keyed locations).
with monsters and NPCs. 29. In published modules, put maps and
18. Create schedules, routines, tactics, and monster stats on separate sheets (so they
orders of battle for monsters and NPCs. are easy to refer to in play).
19. Wandering monsters too should be 30. On maps, use keyed symbols to indicate
given motives, goals, hooks, and tactics. standard features (e.g., lit / unlit, locked /
20. Avoid standard monsters. Failing that, unlocked, secret, trapped, etc.), rather than
describe standard monsters in a a verbal description in the location key.
non-standard way (e.g., don’t just name
their species).
21. Give evocative descriptions of monsters.
Give concrete descriptions of their
appearance and activities. Go for the
telltale sensory detail, rather than the
generic abstract trait. Show, don’t tell.
Games Supporting Old More Free Old School
School Style Play Resources
The Original Fantasy A Quick Primer for Old
Adventure Game School Gaming
● Dungeons & Dragons, particularly the Matthew Finch
Basic & Expert sets, aka B/X, and other
lulu.com/content/3019374
early editions such as 0e/OD&D and
1e/AD&D A classic introduction to playing Old School
style RPGs for modern gamers.
Closely inspired by early D&D
● Basic Fantasy Role Playing Philotomy’s OD&D Musings
● Dungeon Crawl Classics
Jason Cone
● Labyrinth Lord
● Lamentations of the Flame Princess save.vs.totalpartykill.ca/grab-bag/philotomy
● Microlite81
Another classic collection of thoughts on
● OSRIC
Old School gaming. Half is specific to
● Swords & Wizardry
OD&D but the bits on dungeon design and
the mythic underworld are widely
Apocalypse Engine Games
applicable but often ignored in modern
inspired by early D&D games.
● Freebooters on the Frontier
● Funnel World Tomb of the Serpent Kings
● World of Dungeons
Skerples
OSR Rules-Light Systems coinsandscrolls.blogspot.ca/2017/07/osr-to
mb-of-serpent-kings-20.html
● The Black Hack
● Into the Odd Excellent introductory dungeon covering
● Macchiato Monsters many aspects of Old School play in action.
● Maze Rats
● Whitehack
● Searchers of the Unknown

By no means is this an exhaustive list!

A guide to editions of D&D:

web.fisher.cx/robert/rpg/dnd-id/

A huge list of games inspired by D&D:

taxidermicowlbear.weebly.com/dd-retroclo
nes.html