The Burning Wheel: Character Burner


Luke Crane - 2004
    The Burning Wheel is an award winning fantasy roleplaying game in which player take on the roles of vibrant, dynamic characters whose very beliefs propel the story forward.

Amber Diceless Role-Playing: Diceless Role-Playing System


Erick Wujcik - 1991
    * A Complete new role-playing system! * Three complete adventures, including "Throne War," "Battleground on Shadow Earth" and "Into the Abyss!" * Attribute Auction system where players bid against each other, creating a unique family of immortals! * Enter a universe where Pattern lets you "walk" to any world you can imagine, where Logrus tendrils can reach across infinite dimensions, and where Shape Shifting lets characters sprout wings! * A mature, demanding, and time-consuming system that puts character development above all else! * Over 100 pages of tips on role-playing style and technique with dozens of crystal-clear examples!

Arbiter of Worlds: A Primer for Gamemasters


Alexander Macris - 2019
    This primer will teach you how to build living, breathing worlds for your players to explore; how to host game and manage game sessions; and how to create powerful experiences of adventure that your players will talk about for years to come. Learn the secret to becoming a judge, an adversary, a worldbuilder, and a storyteller and become an arbiter of worlds! “Every Macris campaign starts with a rich, open world; the edge of a massive map; and the ability to find adventure in any direction. After playing in a dozen of his campaigns, I can assure you that Macris is the best prepared, most thorough GM on the prime material plane. He balances “deadly adversary” and “the party’s greatest supporter” perfectly. I’ve been lucky to contribute to some renowned video game worlds, and to discus world design with some of the most accomplished writers alive. And I’m honestly not sure there’s been someone more thorough at and passionate for world building than Macris since ... maybe Tolkien? (Okay, maybe G.R.R. Martin, but he’s not as organized or efficient.) It takes organization, creativity, and careful technique to build a massive world efficiently and deliver it effectively, and Macris can show you how he does it.” - Dr. Michael Capps, award-winning videogame executive, writer, designer (*Gears of War*, *Fortnite*, *Unreal Tournament, Unreal Championship*) “Armed with decades of experience as both a player and a designer, Macris cuts to the marrow with razor sharp insights in an unapologetic and often painfully insightful analysis of every imaginable facet of being a Game Master. From implication of play inherent in a game’s design, to world building, to the often delicate nature of unspoken social contracts inherent in the hobby, the guidance found in Arbiter of Worlds is a much-needed breath of fresh air to veterans of the hobby and a forged-in-the-fire bootcamp for those taking their first steps behind the screen.” - James M. Spahn, Ennie and Origins Award Winning RPG designer “A superb read. He makes his points the way you would expect a Harvard-trained lawyer to do. If you read this book, you are going to come out knowing real things you did not know before that will help you run games at the table…” - Courtney Campbell, Hack & Slash

Player's Essentials: Heroes of the Forgotten Kingdoms: An Essential Dungeons & Dragons Supplement


Mike Mearls - 2010
    Each class comes with a set of new powers, class features, paragon paths, epic destinies, and more that beginning players can use to build the characters they want to play and experienced players can plunder for existing 4th Edition characters. In addition to new builds, this book presents expanded information and racial traits for some of the game’s most popular races, including dragonborn, drow, half-elves, half-orcs, and tieflings.

Ars Magica, Third Edition, First Printing


Ken Cliffe - 1992
    

RuneQuest


Steve Perrin - 1978
    These early chapters show the secret workings of the 'world machine.'• Combat Skills - contains information on use, cost, training, and problems with weaponry. It provides a unique combat system free of ambiguities.• Battle Magic - everyday spells available to all characters. You can enhance weapons or armor, detect items, or combat spirits• Other Skills - available in a wide variety are such useful personal skills as Riding, Tracking, and Picking Pockets.• Rune Magic - provides spells which deliver the power of the the gods to their devoted followers; also discusses the cults which channel such powers and the deadly tribal shamans.• Monsters — from Aldryami to zombies, this extensive chapter gives stat' guidelines for a menagerie of beast (dumb and smart) which can menace players and make life difficult.• Treasure - there are complete guidelines for compiling treasure which is commensurate with the comparative 'toughness' of the monsters to be dealt with.• Referee Notes - useful guidelines for the novice or professional referee, including optional rules.• Charts and Tables - included are play-aids for running a campaign in the Dragon Pass area; among others are encounter, reaction, and experience tables.• Convenient Pull-outs - the center sheets of the book make up a digest of the most important charts, tables, rules, and procedures, which can be lifted from the book for easy access.

Stormbringer: Fantasy Roleplaying in the World of Elric


Ken St. Andre - 1981
    

King Arthur Pendragon: Epic Roleplaying in Legendary Britain


Greg Stafford - 1985
    Smite bloodthirsty giants, crush treacherous invaders, brave the mysterious lands of faerie, and dabble in Celtic magic. Pendragon is a roleplaying game based on the legends of King Arthur, Lancelot, Guenever, and the Knights of the Round Table. To become a knight of the Round Table you must uphold the chivalric ideals of courage, honesty, fair play, and justice. Armed and armored, you are the law of the land, in a life-or-death struggle to join the fellowship of the Round Table. This book contains everything you need to explore the mysteries and dangers of Arthur's Britain

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition Rulebook


Dominic McDowallTS Luikart - 2018
    You’ve seen them. The twisted ones, the arrogant ones, the lost ones. Oh, you’d like to walk away and life be all cake and daisies, but you know you’re going here instead. You’ll try to convince yourself it’s because you’re greedy for the loot, or can’t resist a fight, but we all know the truth. So ready your sword, clean your pistol, and watch out for that dog – he might be small but he’s unreasonably vicious.Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay takes you back to the Old World. Get the gang together, create your (anti)heroes, and set off to make your way through the vile corruption, scheming plotters and terrifying creatures intent on destruction.The Fourth Edition Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay Rulebook contains everything you need for grim and perilous roleplaying adventures in the Old World.

Queen of the Spiders (Supermodule GDQ1-7)


E. Gary Gygax - 1986
    

GURPS Magic


Steve Jackson - 2004
    Includes 300 new spells. There is information for the GM to create their own magic system. This book is a flexible magic system for playing the world of a favorite author or any type of wizard you can imagine.

Basic Roleplaying: The Chaosium RolePlaying system (Basic Roleplaying)


Charlie Krank - 2008
    BASIC ROLEPLAYING is designed to be intuitive and easy to play. While character attributes follow a 3D6 curve, most of the other BASIC ROLEPLAYING mechanics are even simpler. Virtually all rolls determining success or failure of a task are determined via the roll of percentile dice.

Sly Flourish's Dungeon Master Tips


Michael E. Shea - 2010
    You’ve read both Dungeon Master’s guides. You’ve run a few games. You pick up ideas here and there on the net. Or maybe you're an old grizzled vet who has run games for 20 years.Maybe your game is feeling a little stale. Maybe your encounters didn’t run exactly as you wanted them too. Maybe you feel like you're stuck in a rut. Maybe you feel a bit overwhelmed when you have to come up with an exciting, creative game every week.You’re not looking for a huge tome on game theory. You don’t need yet another take on world-building. You’re looking for some practical tips you can use today to help you focus your energy in the right places and make some kick-ass D&D games for you and your friends. You want something you can read quick and start using right away.My friend, here is the book for you.This book was written to give you solid usable tips to help you build your story, design exciting encounters, and run a great game when you’re at the table. It’s a short book, designed to be read quickly and referenced often.Oh yeah, and it’s got some awesome original artwork by Jared Von Hindman of Head Injury Theater.This is a completely original book. Every chapter was written from scratch to help you focus on what’s important and get past some of the roadblocks we all face when designing a D&D game.

Monsterhearts


Avery Alder - 2012
    When you play, you explore the terror and confusion that comes both with growing up and feeling like a monster.Based on the Apocalypse World engine, this is a game with emergent story, messy relationships, a structured MC role, and a focus on hard choices.It’s designed to evoke stories like True Blood, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Ginger Snaps or The Twilight Saga. If you like supernatural romances, or stories of monstrosity and personal horror, or if you just like watching sexy people ruin their lives, then you’ll love this game.

GURPS Fantasy


William H. Stoddard - 2004
    It discusses the genre in depth - with all its subgenres and inspirations (myth, novels, movies, etc.) - letting you design just the kind of fantasy setting that you want.GURPS Fantasy gives detailed, concrete advice - from the basics of the landscape itself, through its inhabitants and cultures, to the details of believable histories and politics. It also examines the nature of supernatural forces, and discusses the impact of wizards, monsters, and gods. And, of course, it looks at the many different ways that magic and users of magic can work in a fantasy world. And, perhaps most importantly, it advises GMs and players alike on the kinds of characters appropriate to fantasy - including ordinary folks, people with fantastic powers, and nonhumans.Whether your model is Tolkien, Jordan, or Leiber, this book will let create a town, a country, or an entire world. Like all Fourth Edition books