RetroRoleplaying: The Blog

The first beta version of Microlite74 Swords & Sorcery is available for free public download. Draft copies of "between betas" work will still be available to RetroRoleplaying Cancer Fund donors. This beta incorporates feedback from donors and from members of my Sunday group of players. However, the rules are still "very beta" and will be subject to many changes based on further thought on my part and feedback from those who download the betas and choose to give me comments and ideas.

One already noticeable change is in the classes. The Physical Combat Bonus (PCB) and Magical Combat Bonus (MCB) in the beta rules are smaller than the were in my A First try at Classes post. Higher level characters were just too superhuman in the original draft. Spirits have been added and Sorcerers have the ability to bind them. I am considering having spirits bound to items as the main source of magic items in the game. One think I haven't changed much is the monster list. At the moment it is taken directly from Microlite74. However, I am considering making some changes, removing elves, dwarfs, and other intelligent species that don't really fit a S&S campaign and adding more large normal animals like lions and tigers. Suggestions on handling the monster list are strongly invited. Heck, suggestions on anything and everything are welcome.

Download your copy of Microlite74 Swords & Sorcery Beta 1 from the Mediafire link below. It's 370K PDF file.

Download Microlite74 Swords & Sorcery Beta 1

I no sooner posted about the The Searchers of the Unknown RPG Collection than I received a new of new and updated variant rules sets. Rather than wait an entire year to include this, I decided to release a 2012 Revised Edition (as i did with the Microlite20 ROG Collection in 2010). The 2012 Revised Edition adds the SotU Wilderness Encounter Generator, Brickmasters of the Unknown GrueHawk, and Supers of the Unknown! as well as updated versions of Cyborg Samurai Are Go!, Wheelspins in the Wasteland, Scavengers & Spacewrecks, and Swashbucklers of Mars. It's probably worth the download even if you just downloaded the original edition I uploaded a few days ago.

You can download the current (2012 Revised) edition of The Searchers of the Unknown RPG Collection here. The current edition is approximately 3.75 megs and about 68 pages. The download is via Mediafire.

I noticed that many of the links to the various Searchers of the Unknown games listed in my Searchers of the Unknown One Page RPG: The Many Variants post from about a year ago have gone bad. Some of them seem to have disappeared from the Net completely (except behind Scribd's download paywall which is really annoying given that the games themselves are free). Therefore I decided to quickly toss together a collection of SotU games as a PDF and make it available for free download.

The Searchers of the Unknown RPG Collection is a compilation of Searchers of the Unknown based games. This collection is made available for free and is not to be sold. Each individual game is a separate entity. is copyrighted separately (if at all), and is available for free. The author of each individual game is solely responsible for his or his work. No editing of individual games has been done.

If you aren't familiar with Searchers of the Unknown, it is a one-page roleplaying game where player characters are entirely defined by a minimalist old school Dungeons & Dragons one line tat block (e.g. "AC 7, MV 9, HD 2, hp 9, #AT 1, D 1d8 mace") something like monster stat blocks in early editions of D&D. All actions are based on those stats. Armor class is the old school “lower is better,” but the way armor class is used in SotU it makes sense with armor class generally helping against attacks but hindering initiative and attempts to be stealthy. The basic SotU generally uses a level plus AC roll under mechanic, using an opponent's AC when attacking or the character's own AC when trying to be stealthy. Saves require a roll under level plus 4. Variants versions of SotU use D20 or Target20 rolls. In the basic game, all characters are human adventurers. Supplements add demi-humans and spell-casting classes. Like Microlite20, the original Searchers of the Unknown rules inspired a large number of similar games based on the same principles, ranging from simple variants like SotU Refired to modern day games, science fiction games, after the holocaust games, etc. Most of these games are complete in one or two pages. A few have additional supplements of their own.

In addition to the standard Searchers of the Unknown rules (and a small number of optional systems and expanded rules), The Searchers of the Unknown RPG Collection (2012 Edition) includes the following Searchers of the Unknown-based role-playing games: Dwarven Glory (and supplement), Karry on Krawling, Witches of N'kai, Adventurers!, Cyborg Samurai Are Go!, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Funkin Fists of Fu, Jung Guns, Raiders of the Unknown, The Bastards, Brickmasters of the Unknown, Mutant Got Gunz, Mutant Scavengers of the Ruined Earth (and a supplement), Tempora Mutantur (and many supplements), Searchers in Spaaaace!!!, Scavengers & Spacewrecks, Swashbucklers of Mars (and a supplement), and Song of the Symbi.

You can download the current (2012 Revised) edition of The Searchers of the Unknown RPG Collection here. The current edition is approximately 3.75 megs and about 68 pages. The download is via Mediafire.

The new two volume 2012 Edition of The Microlite20 RPG Collection is now available for free download. The Microlite20 RPG Collection is a PDF compilation of Microlite20 based games. This collection is made available for free and is not to be sold. Each individual game is copyrighted separately, is based on the Open Game License (because the original, Microlite20, is OGL), and is available for free. Each game is a separate entity with its own copyright and license. The author of each individual game is solely responsible for his or his work. No editing of individual games has been done. The original 2010 edition was a single volume with around 600 pages. The 2012 edition is two volumes with a total of over 1300 pages.

In addition to the standard Microlite20 rules (and a large number of optional systems and expanded rules, The Microlite20 RPG Collection (2012 Edition) includes the following Microlite20-based role-playing games: Microlite20 House Rules, MicroFantasy, Alter Microlite20, Ultramicrolite20 Revised, Ultramicrolite20 Revised II, Nanolite20, Microlite20 Modern, M20 Modern: Expert, Microlite20 Modern-Day, M20 Hard Core Rules, Swords against Sorcery, M20 Heroic, Iron Heartbreakers, Microlite11, WildWalker’s M20 4e, Microlite20 Variant 4e, Microlite 4E, Micro Action Fantasy, MULRAH, Lite20, Mini20, Realms of Renown, Microlite74: Basic, Microlite74: Standard, Microlite74: Extended, Microlite74: Companion I, Microlite77, Microlite20 OSS, Advanced Microlite20 OSS, Argo, M20 Hyborian Age, Microlite Conan, Prehistoric Microlite20, Microlite20 Bronze Age, Microlite Dark Sun, Omerian Tales, Beacon, WarEngine RPG, Yamato M20, Challenges & Champions, Microlite20 Elf Lords, Microlite20 Resident Evil, Microlite20 Cthulthu, Microlite20 Vampires, Microlite20 2012, SpyLite, Giant Bug Invasion, Cyberpunk, SuperLite, Microlite20 Costumes, Tumbleweed, Gunsmoke & Goblins, Owl Hoot Trail, Microlite Storytelling, TileHack, Dragoons, ZombiePocalypse, Relics & Ruins, OmegaLite20, RABID, Microlite20 Vermin, Where No Man Has Gone Before, Galactic Methuselah, FrontierLite, M20 Star Wars, Microlite20 Star Wars, Scions of a Primordial Planet, Micro MechWarrior, Stargate 1895, Blaster D20 Microlite, Pendragon D20 Microlite, Diabolical D20 Microlite, PathfinderLite20, Microlite20 Golden Edition, DungeonFinder Player’s Guide, DungeonFinder GM’s Guide, DungeonFinder Book of Monsters, and Grimm Lite.

The downloads are free. However, if you like it please consider a donation to the RetroRoleplaying Cancer Fund. As usual, we have a huge pile of doctor bills, so donations are really appreciated).

You can download the current (2012) edition of The Microlite20 RPG Collection here. The current edition is in two volumes. The first volume is approximately 23 megs and about 1080 pages. The second volume is approximately 30 megs and about 300 pages. Both volumes are available for download through Mediafire.