Basic Roleplaying Publications and Links

Basic Roleplaying is a one of the more recent editions of Chaosium's d100 roleplaying game system. A big, generic toolbox able to handle any setting, the great "Golden Book" is now OOP, but still available as a PDF. The following is a list of products for this Basic Roleplaying system still in regular sale, in electronic or dead tree form. Full supplements from Chaosium on top, followed by The Laundry supplements from Cubicle 7 and then the BRP monographs below. BRP links at the bottom.

Basic Roleplaying supplements

• Basic Roleplaying - The Chaosium Roleplaying System
• Basic Roleplaying - Quick-Start Edition
• Astounding Adventures - Pulp Adventures for Basic Roleplaying
• The Magic Book - Four Integrated Magic Systems for Basic Roleplaying
• Enlightened Magic - Sorcery & Alchemy Rules Based on Western Occult Traditions
• Blood Tide - Black Sails and Dark Rituals
• Tales from Dead Men - Blood Tide
• Devil's Gulch - Basic Roleplaying Adventures in the Weird Wild West
• In Search of the Trollslayer - A Heroic Level Adventure for Basic Roleplaying
• Mythic Iceland - Legend & Adventure in Viking-Age Iceland
• After The Vampire Wars 

The Laundry

• The Laundry - A RPG Based the "Laudry Files Novels" by Charles Stross
• Agent's Handbook
• Black Bag Jobs
• The Mythos Dossiers
• License to Summon
• God Game Black
• Cultists Under the Bed
• Unconvential Diplomacy
• As Above, So Below

Monographs

• Basic Creatures - Classic Creatures & Critters for the BRP System
• Basic Gamemaster - Mastering the BRP System
• Classic Fantasy - A Return to the Dawn of Roleplaying
• BRP Witchcraft - Basic Roleplaying Rules for Witchcraft in Different Settings
• The Modern Equipment Catalog - The Tools You Need to Get the Job Done
• BRP Adventures - 13 Adventures in Different Genres for the BRP System
• The River Terror - And Other Adventures for Basic Roleplaying
• Blood & Badges - And Other Adventures for Basic Roleplaying
• A Nation Ransomed - And Other Basic Roleplaying Adventures
• Mission to Epsilon - Five Adventures for Basic Roleplaying
• Aces High - A Weird Wild-West Supplement for the BRP System
• Aces High New Mexico - A Weird Wild-West Supplement for the BRP System
• Agents of the Crown - Victorian Superhero Adventure for Basic Roleplaying
• Ashes to Ashes - Exploring the Darker Side of Human Nature
• Dust to Dust - Further Explorations into the Dark Side of Human Nature
• Berlin 61 - Four Nations, Two Sides, One City. Who Do You Believe?
• Fractured Hopes - A Basic Roleplaying Space Fantasy
• Light without Shadow, Blade without Edge - A Fantasy Adventure for BRP Heroes
• Lords of Tarsa - A Heroic Fantasy Setting for Basic Roleplaying
• Operation Ulysses - Investigating the Disappearance of a Titan-Class Starfreighter
• Outpost 19 - An Archaeological Research Station on the Frontier of Space
• Rubble & Ruin - A World Gone Mad with Killing
• Swords of Cydoria - A Setting and Adventure for Basic Roleplaying
• The Green - Magical Adventures Beneath the Canopy
• Val du Loup - Adventures in the Hearth of the Ardennes Forest

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BRP Links:

• Basic Roleplaying.Net
• Aces High

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Please post it in this thread if you find a Basic Roleplaying publication or link missing from this list!

Note that to keep this thread focused on the product and link list, all but the latest posts will be hidden after they have been responded to.

Lords of Tarsa and After the Vampire Wars are missing. Both are a peculiarity.

I'm pretty sure Lords of Tarsa used to be on this list but seems to have disappeared. Curiously, it is also missing from the Chaosium site, but still available in pdf and softcover at drivethru:

http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/132455/Lords-of-Tarsa

And as discussed in another forum, After the Vampire Wars is temporary until this gencon softcover, special edition has sold out and/if the revised edition comes out.
http://www.chaosium.com/after-the-vampire-wars/

Also, anyone know why Mission to Epsilon is not available in pdf?

Lords of Tarsa was on the list, but removed when it disappeared for the Chaosium site. I've put it back on as you've pointed out it's still available.

Added After the Vampire Wars.

Not quite sure if this is the right place to ask this question, but does anyone know what the thought process is, or may be, regarding the absence of several Chaosium titles/products from drivethrurpg? Or whether there is any chance PDF products will eventually filter out to third party online retailers?

I'm not too keen on purchasing directly from Chaosium given their past track record (online store security failings and then losing all records of past digital download purchases during their web portal upgrade). I know a lot of people hear different things here, so I hoped someone might know.

Lorcan:

Different Chaosium titles are not on DTRPG for a variety of reasons, ranging from not having the time to place them there yet, to no longer having the rights to sell them. If there is a specific title you want to know about, please ask. We have over 100 titles on DTRPG and I do not have the history for every title (being there/not being there) memorized. It could be as simple as someone forgot to add it three years ago and nobody noticed.

As for you not being keen to purchase directly from Chaosium, I understand and respect your reasons. However, I do want to reassure people that we have invested a lot in website data security for our new website, and take record keeping very seriously. The problems from pre-2014 are due to the previous management. The new Chaosium takes our website, its data, and its security very seriously. We are working very diligently on many fronts to re-earn and maintain our customer's trust. 

Is there any chance that the RINGWORLD RPG will ever be made available in PDF or even a reprint ?

1 hour ago, Hionhurn said:

Is there any chance that the RINGWORLD RPG will ever be made available in PDF or even a reprint ?

Not until/unless Chaosium gets permission from Larry Niven.  Chaosium AFAIK isn't allowed to sell or distribute this in any form, at this time. 

I have no idea how much it would cost, how amenable Niven would be to renewing it, etc etc etc.

Similarly for Elfquest and Moorcock's Eternal Champion.

Those licenses haven't been with Chaosium for decades.

On 4/13/2020 at 11:13 AM, Hionhurn said:

Is there any chance that the RINGWORLD RPG will ever be made available in PDF or even a reprint ?

There's a chance, but all of the rights to do that are tied up at the moment. We can't publish or reprint anything for Ringworld until the rights are available and we could get the license again.

NOTE: Chaosium only lost the license because a film company wanted ALL of the rights to Ringworld for their project (which never materialized).

Hello, I'm new to Tabletop Role Playing. I bought the Golden Book but I'm a bit lost understanding it. I was looking for a good video tutorial with examples that could help me out. Unfortunately everything in the way of tutorial seems to be based on D&D. The only other tutorials I've found were on Call of Cthulhu. The Golden Book says that COC was based on BRP. Does that mean that a COC tutorial could teach me the basics of BRP or are they to different? Any suggestions or links would be appreciated.

Thanks

Eldergamer

Yeah,  I don't think that BRP was really in print long enough to create the kind of fan-base that would create video tutorials for it. Compared to other setting-agnostic systems (GURPS/SAVAGEWORLDS/FATE) it seems be more of a tool-kit for RQ/CoC players that want to branch out, than a stand-alone system too; at least that's kind of the  feeling I get from it. 

Mechanically, RQ:RPiG (RuneQuest: Role-playing in Glorantha) is a little bit closer to BRP than 7th ed. CoC (as RQ:RPiG still retains the 'controversial' Resistance Table). Though both games are probably close enough that  that you should be able to get a basic idea of gameplay from tutorials for either game.

It might help to know what kind of game/genre you were looking to use it for: high fantasy, space-opera, swash-buckling adventure on the high seas?

14 hours ago, 1d8+DB said:

Yeah,  I don't think that BRP was really in print long enough to create the kind of fan-base that would create video tutorials for it. Compared to other setting-agnostic systems (GURPS/SAVAGEWORLDS/FATE) it seems be more of a tool-kit for RQ/CoC players that want to branch out, than a stand-alone system too; at least that's kind of the  feeling I get from it. 

Mechanically, RQ:RPiG (RuneQuest: Role-playing in Glorantha) is a little bit closer to BRP than 7th ed. CoC (as RQ:RPiG still retains the 'controversial' Resistance Table). Though both games are probably close enough that  that you should be able to get a basic idea of gameplay from tutorials for either game.

It might help to know what kind of game/genre you were looking to use it for: high fantasy, space-opera, swash-buckling adventure on the high seas?

 

 

 

The kind of game/genre that I'm looking for is all the above. That's why I selected the Gold Book. From the description it was claiming that all genres were possible with the BRP system. That really appealed to me. I mean I like the classic Dungeons and Dragons setting but I'm also a fan of space scifi and the old west. Maybe a mix like Firefly. That's what I was hoping to get from this system.

When I was trying to decide it came down to Gurps and BRP. I liked Gurps and it seamed to do all the things I wanted but I just don't like the 3D6 concept very much. I mean your only going to get 3 to 18. I did however like BRP's D100/2D10. It not only allowed for a 1-100 chance, It seemed more straight forward. Example: Jumping skill is 40 so I have to roll a 40 or less. I also Like the idea of not having classes or levels. You use a skill successfully and you have a chance to get better at it. I love that. Also I like the idea you have magic power and magic points. That seems more like mana in a video game. That makes more sense to me than the way D&D does it.

So, as I understand it you are  wanting  a setting agnostic system based on a  percentile dice mechanic, and the BRP system is a little bit minimal? These are what  I see your options as.

1.) Use what online resources are available, and fill in the gaps; mainly this forum and the many RQ/CoC tutorials. As the latter games are extrapolated from the basic BRP mechanic they should be useful.

2.) Purchase the  RQiG and CoC starter kits (PDFs available for about 10$). Each one has a starter solitaire scenario that teaches  basic games rules  and concepts. You should be able to get a good grasp of what is possible with a BRP derived system.

3.) Check out Alephtar Games 'D100 Revolution': which is a setting-agnostic percentile dice based system. They have a sub-forum here.

4.) BuRPS. Don't like the 3d6 roll in GURPS? Swap it out with a percentile roll. Your GURPS barbarian has a broadsword skill of 16? Welll multiply that by 5% and you have a percentile based skill (and yes, I know the math doesn't exactly track; a 3-18 range will actually break  down to a little over 6%, but it should work).

The main problem I'd see in converting a 3D6 to D% is that 3D6 is a bell curve, where D% is flat. If you used differently colored D6, you'd find there are 196 /combinations/ -- but only 1/196 will give you a 3 or 18, 3/196 to get 4 or 17 (I'm not going through the mental exercise of computing 5/16). Basically, you have 0.5% chance of 3/18, but 1.5% chance of 4/17.

2 hours ago, Baron Wulfraed said:

The main problem I'd see in converting a 3D6 to D% is that 3D6 is a bell curve, where D% is flat. If you used differently colored D6, you'd find there are 196 /combinations/ -- but only 1/196 will give you a 3 or 18, 3/196 to get 4 or 17 (I'm not going through the mental exercise of computing 5/16). Basically, you have 0.5% chance of 3/18, but 1.5% chance of 4/17.

easy solution, use the handy d18 winkyface

On 7/20/2022 at 10:09 AM, Eldergamer said:

Hello, I'm new to Tabletop Role Playing. I bought the Golden Book but I'm a bit lost understanding it. I was looking for a good video tutorial with examples that could help me out. Unfortunately everything in the way of tutorial seems to be based on D&D. The only other tutorials I've found were on Call of Cthulhu. The Golden Book says that COC was based on BRP. Does that mean that a COC tutorial could teach me the basics of BRP or are they to different? Any suggestions or links would be appreciated.

Thanks

Eldergamer

Have you grabbed the "Basic RolePlaying Quickstart"?
It's a  much  shorter version of the BGB, but includes several "worked examples" in the back, short adventures in different genres.

IIRC, It's actually a reasonably complete RPG in and of itself; you could get started with that, and add little bits from the BGB as-needed / as-desired ...?

19 hours ago, 1d8+DB said:

So, as I understand it you are  wanting  a setting agnostic system based on a  percentile dice mechanic, and the BRP system is a little bit minimal? These are what  I see your options as.

1.) Use what online resources are available, and fill in the gaps; mainly this forum and the many RQ/CoC tutorials. As the latter games are extrapolated from the basic BRP mechanic they should be useful.

2.) Purchase the  RQiG and CoC starter kits (PDFs available for about 10$). Each one has a starter solitaire scenario that teaches  basic games rules  and concepts. You should be able to get a good grasp of what is possible with a BRP derived system.

3.) Check out Alephtar Games 'D100 Revolution': which is a setting-agnostic percentile dice based system. They have a sub-forum here.

4.) BuRPS. Don't like the 3d6 roll in GURPS? Swap it out with a percentile roll. Your GURPS barbarian has a broadsword skill of 16? Welll multiply that by 5% and you have a percentile based skill (and yes, I know the math doesn't exactly track; a 3-18 range will actually break  down to a little over 6%, but it should work).

Also, consider Mythras, which used to be RuneQuest 6th Ed and has a wide range of supplements for quasi-historical, fantasy, Super Hero, and Science Fiction play.

On 7/23/2022 at 1:45 PM, 1d8+DB said:

So, as I understand it you are  wanting  a setting agnostic system based on a  percentile dice mechanic, and the BRP system is a little bit minimal? These are what  I see your options as.

1.) Use what online resources are available, and fill in the gaps; mainly this forum and the many RQ/CoC tutorials. As the latter games are extrapolated from the basic BRP mechanic they should be useful.

2.) Purchase the  RQiG and CoC starter kits (PDFs available for about 10$). Each one has a starter solitaire scenario that teaches  basic games rules  and concepts. You should be able to get a good grasp of what is possible with a BRP derived system.

3.) Check out Alephtar Games 'D100 Revolution': which is a setting-agnostic percentile dice based system. They have a sub-forum here.

4.) BuRPS. Don't like the 3d6 roll in GURPS? Swap it out with a percentile roll. Your GURPS barbarian has a broadsword skill of 16? Welll multiply that by 5% and you have a percentile based skill (and yes, I know the math doesn't exactly track; a 3-18 range will actually break  down to a little over 6%, but it should work).

First off, Thank you so much for your response. I'm going to check out every one of you're suggestions.

I'm not sure if your saying the BRP system is minimal or if you think that's what I was saying? I don't think the BRP system is minimal. In fact I was overwhelmed with options which is why I was hoping to find a video tutorial somewhere.

My hope is to make small fun adventures that I could DM for my elderly parents. I like the flow of CoC but not the doom and gloom. I was hoping to use BRP system with the flow of COC as it is mostly theater of the mind and doesn't seem to be overly complicated. I also wanted to be able to bring in old west or scifi which my mother and father really like. I also feel like D100 would be easier for them to grasp.

This is all assuming I can figure all this out myself.

Once again, Thanks for the suggestions. You've been more than helpful.

On 7/23/2022 at 5:41 PM, Baron Wulfraed said:

The main problem I'd see in converting a 3D6 to D% is that 3D6 is a bell curve, where D% is flat. If you used differently colored D6, you'd find there are 196 /combinations/ -- but only 1/196 will give you a 3 or 18, 3/196 to get 4 or 17 (I'm not going through the mental exercise of computing 5/16). Basically, you have 0.5% chance of 3/18, but 1.5% chance of 4/17.

I feel like this kind of conversation starts wars in TRPG communities. I certainly didn't mean to touch one off. The simple truth was 3D6 felt limited in my mind compared to D100 but I didn't do the math or anything. The truth is I wanted to start making small adventures for my elderly parents and I felt like they might grasp D100 better than 3D6. I mentioned that I didn't like the 3D6 because of it's limitations but it was only one part of my overall thought. I should have conveyed that though before you went to the trouble of thoughtfully and thoroughly answering my post. For that I'm sorry. I do however see your point in the above math. Thanks for that.

On 7/23/2022 at 11:07 PM, g33k said:

Have you grabbed the "Basic RolePlaying Quickstart"?
It's a  much  shorter version of the BGB, but includes several "worked examples" in the back, short adventures in different genres.

IIRC, It's actually a reasonably complete RPG in and of itself; you could get started with that, and add little bits from the BGB as-needed / as-desired ...?

 

Thanks for your post. I now have the Quickstart guide and it is much more streamline. Thank you.

On 7/24/2022 at 9:41 AM, ThornPlutonius said:

Also, consider Mythras, which used to be RuneQuest 6th Ed and has a wide range of supplements for quasi-historical, fantasy, Super Hero, and Science Fiction play.

Thank you for your post. I'll have a look.

On 7/26/2022 at 4:01 AM, Eldergamer said:

Thank you for your post. I'll have a look.

Another game worth considering is Revolution D100, as it can be played as a very simple game, or more complex if you want.

A specificity of RD100 is that is uses a short skills list : 12 to 16 skills, depending on setting. This list is complemented by "traits", which are words or short phrases that help further describe your character and can give bonus to skills or new abilities. For instance, the trait Sword Expert could give +30 to your Melee skill when you use a sword, and the Magic Sense might just let you use your skills to perceive magic. Those are just examples, and there's no set list of traits in the game.

Another specificity is that it can use a single mechanism for all conflicts. Whether it's a fight, a race, a duel of wits or anything else, everything can be solved with the same mechanism : assign points to both parties based on a characteristic (STR for armwrestling, CHA for a trial), then try to reduce your opponent's pool with successive opposed skill rolls. The game also has specific rules for combat, but you can use the simpler generic conflict rules if you want a very simple game.

On 7/26/2022 at 11:44 PM, Mugen said:

Another game worth considering is Revolution D100, as it can be played as a very simple game, or more complex if you want.

A specificity of RD100 is that is uses a short skills list : 12 to 16 skills, depending on setting. This list is complemented by "traits", which are words or short phrases that help further describe your character and can give bonus to skills or new abilities. For instance, the trait Sword Expert could give +30 to your Melee skill when you use a sword, and the Magic Sense might just let you use your skills to perceive magic. Those are just examples, and there's no set list of traits in the game.

Another specificity is that it can use a single mechanism for all conflicts. Whether it's a fight, a race, a duel of wits or anything else, everything can be solved with the same mechanism : assign points to both parties based on a characteristic (STR for armwrestling, CHA for a trial), then try to reduce your opponent's pool with successive opposed skill rolls. The game also has specific rules for combat, but you can use the simpler generic conflict rules if you want a very simple game.

Thank you, I'm getting some great suggestions here. I really appreciate them. Revolution sounds like a worthy contender. I'll check it out as well.

Also -- FYI -- this thread is sometimes edited to remove extranea.  Its specific purpose is to maintain the list above, in the OP...

14 hours ago, g33k said:

Also -- FYI -- this thread is sometimes edited to remove extranea.  Its specific purpose is to maintain the list above, in the OP...

Thank you for that. I saved the page so I have a record of the great suggestions and comments people have sent my direction.

Howdy. I'm new to the forum and BRP. I like the system and I see that according to https://www.chaosium.com/brp-system-reference-document/ creators can create their own games or adventures using BRP. Can someone answer my questions?

1. I want a rules-lite world/game/adventures. Can I select which rules and mechanics I want to use from BRP and establish that as my base? Or would I need to just use the Quick Start if I want it to remain rules-lite?

2. If I'm correctly understanding all I've read about BRP being an OGL, then I assume I can create my own world, monsters, and whatnot. Is there someone who I can reach out to to confirm my creations are not going to be "too similar" and fall under the Prohibited list of things not allowed (see link above)?

3. I see that BRP is listed as a system on DrivethruRPG. Are there any restrictions or guidelines for uploading my created adventures and campaigns? (For example, I know CoC has Miskatonic Repository for its community created content with its own Guidelines for submissions.)

4. Any other standards, guidelines, or formatting/style guides I need to be aware of? Or perhaps tips, pointers, or sage advice from someone who's navigated this path before? 

Thanks so much.