Primal Quest - Old Skull Publishing

September 15, 2023September 15, 2023

Describing Scenes to Prehistoric Characters

A cave person carrying a torch and illuminating a cave wall with a weird symbol. — *Art by Felipe Maria*

The way the characters in the game see and recognize people, objects, structure, and other things is not like we do. We see a small oval vertical smooth placid lake hanging on a cave wall that casts your reflection back at you and we immediately recognize a mirror, they will not.

When we look at something we try to understand it with the library of things we already understand, so as to make it “less scary”. And we know more than any other humans ever knew. The characters in Primal Quest do not have this knowledge however, so they will need to “understand” the things they find in the mythical and weird primal world of the game with what they know, which is not much beyond what they see in the primeval setting they live in.

So when you are describing the world to the players, being their sense in the game, make sure to remember that. Try to imagine you don’t recognize any of these things, and can only rationalize them through the natural world and early technological objects. And then try to explain this to the players. Here are some examples to help you get inspired.

Crashed Plane: A huge creature made of this shining hard rock that makes loud clattering noises when hit. It appears to have wings, but one of them was torn apart from its side, and hundreds of small blank eyes stare at the nothingness. A small mouth on the side lies open, and a furry humanoid is getting in, carrying a sack on their back.

August 29, 2023August 29, 2023

Primal Quest – Players as Ancestors

In the mythical primal world of Thaia, the ancestral spirits of the world can sometimes influence the fate of their descendants by interfering with the world and by lending these individuals their talents. Almost like how players do with their characters.

Thus, in Primal Quest, players also act in the role of Ancestors of their characters, watching over them, lending their strength, and granting them benefits from time to time. As their descendants go out into the world and face a myriad of challenges, they grow, change, and earn Ancestral Points (AP). Then, the players can spend these AP either to improve their descendants through Character Improvement or to grant them Ancestral Gifts.

June 16, 2023June 16, 2023

What’s Happening with Old Skull Publishing?

Short answers: A lot and not so much. But let’s dig into this and be more clear. My life has been pretty hectic lately. I suffer from anxiety/depression, and even though I am much better at dealing with this than I was a couple of years ago, things can get complicated from time to time, especially when “real life” gets messy as well. In short, I am OK. I am super tired. I wish I was creating more. But for now I am prioritizing my health (physical, mental and emotional), my family, my kid, and unfortunately the job that keeps a roof over our head and food on our plate. But I am working on getting back on the RPG horse. I miss it too much.

Much longer answer: Old Skull Publishing is basically a fantasy name for a company composed of myself, Diogo Nogueira. It’s almost like a mask I put on to pretend to be something else and have the strength and courage to create, produce, and share this creation with others (and even charge for it). And I LOVE doing that. Creating something, sharing with others, and creating connections through this is one of the things that help give meaning to my life. I am incredibly happy and grateful for all the stuff I’ve created so far, for the connections I’ve made (making me feel welcomed and part of a community), and for the many dear and true friend I’ve met, even if we are thousands of kilometers away from each other. I want more of this. But for now, I can’t dedicate myself to this as much as I did before.

November 5, 2022November 5, 2022

Petty Gods & Playthings – Coming in 2023 (hopefully)

Cover art by Łukasz Piwiński and Title Design by Łukasz Kowalczuk

You are a Petty God, an entity of immense power, great influence, and even deeper sense of self importance.

You want to exert control and influence over mortals and the places they call home. You want to leave your mark in the Mortal Realms. You want to be worshipped. You want champions to fight for you. You want to be more than those other Petty Gods.

But you are bound by the Ancient Laws of Divinehood. So you use your Playthings.

Petty Gods & Playthings is a fantasy role playing game about ambitious gods, their machinations, and the mortals entangled in them.

In this game, players assume the role of a Petty God. A supernatural being with great power, greater responsibilities, even greater ambitions, and very little restraint. Luckily, rules bind these entities in a way they cannot freely unleash havoc on the Mortal Realm. But they found another way to exert their influence.

They control Playthings, mortals whose essence has been infused with a Divine Spark, setting them apart from others around them forever. Promising them a destiny they desire, these gods move them as pieces in a cosmic chess set. Sometimes elevating them to such high stands as kings, archnages, and grandmasters, but other times condemning them to their ultimate doom.

And all of this happens primarily at the grandest city of all: KORGOROTH! The City of the Purple Flame. The City in the Middle. The Hive of Scum, Villainy and, sometimes, Heroes. A city with many titles, many more secrets, and infinite stories to tell.

And you are going to tell them with Petty Gods & Playthings!

I am still developing this, but I am truly excited for the possibilities it will bring to the table. Gameplay in two levels, meta gaming turned into diegetic gameplay, shared world building, and exciting sword and sorcery adventures in a weird and ancient city-state!

More information soon!

May 10, 2022May 10, 2022

Rethinking XP for Gold And Why You Should Too (or not)

I love XP for gold. I especially love the effects this rule has on game play, game design, and theory behind much of what we know of the OSR. I am a firm believer that the way the game rewards play seriously influences the way we play the game (yeah, we play to have fun too, but it’s still there, nudging us in the right direction). Basically, earning XP is like “winning” in an RPG that uses them.

However, I’ve been reading a superb book on Game Design called Theory of Fun by Raph Koster (y’all should totally get it), and one of the insights I had, and one of the big lessons in the book, is that games teach us stuff in a controlled space. That’s mostly its main function. Most of the time we don’t even realize it’s happening, but that’s where the “fun” comes from in games, from learning and figuring out solutions to problems/challenges. And game designers can purposefully create games to change specific things. And that’s what I would like to do.

*Spot art I made for Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea*

XP for gold is great because it teaches us to find better solutions to tough problems. PCs won’t always resort to violence. Violence might very well become the last resort, as we all know our style of play isn’t big on balancing encounters perfectly.