Response to 'You Don't Understand The OSR' Video & Advice For Gamers

I just caught this video of the Questing Beast talking with a 5E streamer. I was happy to find it was an intelligent discussion with a lot to learn for gamers of any system, and so I will throw in my two Large Bronzes.

Excuse the rough sketch, Ben.
I'm bedridden by a sudden health emergency but still try to practice my art everyday for work.

CHOOSE THE RIGHT GAME FOR YOU, DON'T DISS OTHERS, FEEL FREE TO CHANGE

My first takeaway is that the 5E guy's title should be "The OSR is too deadly... for me." It is all a matter of taste. I've played in 4E where no one was ever in danger and the players all chewed the scenery for hours between endless combats. I was bored, not my taste. Give me the specter of death and players who are focused on doing great deeds without fear of consequences. This is why I run Stormbringer and prefer to play games like it.

Even 5E guy admits that he once enjoyed a video-gamey campaign, but that it wouldn't appeal to him now. And this is a totally normal reaction. Over our gamer lives we should be trying different modes and games, and even I get tired of Stormbringer from time to time.

Get out to your local FGS and get in a game. It'll do you loads of good.

REALITY CHECKS ARE FINE, BUT REMEMBER THIS IS FANTASY

The conversation sadly gets bogged down a bit in Reality Checks, and references the TPK of the Light Brigade, real war casualty figures, etc. Listen chaps, you are playing a FANTASY game. The creeping sway of reality in RPGs is a blight on the fantasy genre. Whenever I see a post about someone's amazing 'build' in D&D where they use some kinetic spell to speed up cannons and go beyond the speed of sound and blah blah blah I think SHUT THE FUCK UP.

Reality is player knowledge. Back in the day, we split up player knowledge and character knowledge. You may be a physicist in the real world, but your orc berserker probably has no clue abotu gravity or opposing forces, so give it a rest about modifying your axe for greater kinetic power.

Case in pint, Mr 5E is afraid of sinking ships in a fantasy game. He needs to read more fantasy novels, get out of the gamey mindset. Strassha saved Elric, Fafhrd and the Mouser romanced the Sea God's daughters, there should always be an out that comes with a cost (I made a table Less Death More Story). The story is nt exclusively a game thing, it is an imagination thing. And if you only have mechanics without imagination, you might as well play a boardgame or video game. RPGs and fiction are the kingdoms of imagination, and this is true for other genres, such as sci fi, cyberpunk, or horror.

USE WHAT IS IN THE RULES TO GET THE TONE RIGHT

On a similar note, Ben points out that in video games all monsters are hostile vs the OSR, where monster reactions can vary widely. This is why the 4E I played was an endless Gauntlet style series of combats with no punch. I was happy to watch the new Golden Axe animated series reflected this when a new character, played by the wonderful Danny Pudi, befriended the two hammer wielding brothers of the old arcade game.

Although the series is getting trashed by YouTubers for being 'woke' or 'ironic' for losing the 'gravitas' of fantasy, on the contrary, 1980s D&D sessions were filled with humour. Go read The White Box and older versions of D&D - still playable, still loved by many, and filled with laughs. Goodman games leans into this.

One thing missing from the video was mention of alignment. As Ben noted, yes, you can put all monsters to Sleep. But stabbing all of them is definitely Evil or Chaotic. Lawful or Good might bind them or take them back to meet justice. Neutrals just ignore and head on to the treasure. Just as Reaction tables added a whole dimension of interactions with NPCs besides combat combat combat, Alignment conversely added restrictions on behavior and who you likely interact with. I really enjoyed the webcomic Yet Another Fantasy Gamer Comic, which codified alignment visually into characters instantly getting along, laughing at the same jokes, and being able to talk to monsters. That comic finally made ALignment language click for me - just like in high school, the goody two shoes (Lawfuls), wall flowers (Neutrals), and Bullies (Chaotics) all spoke their own language.

BRING BACK ALIGNMENT LANGUAGES!

This also spilled out onto the table Back in the day (late 80s early 90s) you couldn't play at the same table as some others because they always chose an alignment and acted in a way your character couldn't accept. There was a wizard player who was Chaotic on the 3 system, and would always torture captured NPCs and use them as living trap detectors. I was playing a Paladin at that time, and refused to adventure with him. In the end, he was banned from local tables in peoples' basement and (SURPRISE) started his own game shop where he assembled like minded folk.

DON'T ASSUME WHAT'S HAPPENING IN OTHER GAMES, GO AND SIT AT THEIR TABLE

Ben makes great points about not believing the marketing hype around 5E and other games. Whether it is the image of OSR deathcrawls or 5E LARPing drama students, he is right to suggest you need to get out and play at a wide range of tables to understand what good gaming can be. I am mostly over the OSR, but intended to play a DCC game the weekend when my health took a twist. But I am open to lots of gaming experiences, and I think Ben's video ends with the same message.

(PS Don't worry about my health, at home mending, read half of Monster of the Week awaiting surgery)