Role-Playing with Warhammer

Firsthammer Adventure Gaming
The first edition of Warhammer is titled Warhammer: The Mass Combat Fantasy Role-Playing Game and includes rules for dungeon delving and character advancement as well as tabletop miniatures battles involving troop units and leader personality figures. Using the game to role-play in the traditional sense requires a bit of effort on the part of the referee, but is supported. Like TSR's White Box this GW "white box" leaves a few things undefined. Filling in rules where I think the game may need them is part of what I enjoy about the White Box(s).
Vol. 3: Characters explains how to roll up a player character, including random numbers for stats like Initiative, Strength, Toughness, Weapon Skill and so forth. Firsthammer uses the familiar Warhammer stat line (that has appeared in every version of the game since Firsthammer), with the exception of Toughness being a letter rather than a number, but the concept works the same. Characters may be a Fighter/Warrior or a Wizard. Races include Humans, Elves (supermen!) and Dwarves. Background Professions give the character some skill. Psychology is an interesting part of the game and allows for characters and monsters to lose morale and run away.  Some creatures project fear or terror and cause opponents to runaway before the fight begins. Other situations such as loss of a leader, wounds or loss of companions may cause a morale test and result in fleeing or surrendering.
The concept of Life Force is introduced in Vol 1: Tabletop Battles and we learn all characters have a Life Force score and that casting spells deducts points from Life Force equal to the Magic Points spent. Humans, Dwarfs and Elfs all roll differently for starting Life Force, Human - d10 x 200, Dwarf  - 2d6 x 200 and Elf - 2d6 x 200. Necromancers may drain Life Force from victims and add a d6 x 100 pts. to their own total. Life Force is connected to aging, but there are no specifics given in the rules as written beyond this point. There are a number of ways aging through use of Life Force could be handled. A simple solution could set percentages, such as at 50% the character appears old from then on. Another use of the Life Force can be to add a random mutation table such that excessive use (10% or more in a day?) of Life Force may result in hair turning white, eyes starting to glow, skin becoming scaly, growing a forked tongue, tail, horns or claws. Tentacles or bat wings seem a bit too extreme to me, but may be appealing to some.
Experience is earned for killing or capturing enemies, surviving an adventure, and for acquiring gold. Fighters and Wizards advance separately on their own tables with Fighters gaining Initiative when reaching the second level while Wizards gain Constitution (Magic points). Additional advances entitle the character to add to specified attributes or skills. Men, Elves and Dwarves all vary in terms of their maximum levels of advancement. Firsthammer lends itself naturally to houseruling and the addition of subclasses could easily be done thereby customizing the rules to better fit a certain milieu. Foresters, Clerics, Witches, Thieves, Paladins and other specialized characters could have their own advancement tables. Skill lists could be expanded and skills rolls added. Keeping the skill mechanic consistent with a d6 roll seems logical.
The combat system is the standard roll a d6 per attack that anyone familiar with later editions of Warhammer will recognize. The d6 mechanic is simple to grasp, but each plus or minus one modifier changes the odds by 16%, so there is nothing subtle here. Armor entitles the character to a save and toughness can turn a successful attack into an insignificant scratch or bruise. Most characters only have a single Wound however, so getting wounded takes one out of the fight (in most cases). In the regular mass combat game, a Wound is the same as being dead, but for role-play an injury table is available that elaborates on what a wound means for your character (broken jaw, etc.). Results are given in terms of Severity, Discription, Out of Action, Time to Recover, lasting Effects and ultimate Risk of Death. Warhammer First Edition (Firsthammer) is a deadly game even with the mitigation of the Injuries table.
Initiative determines who strikes first in combat as well as how quickly the character may react to changing situations. In situations where the party is surprised Initiative can be houseruled as playing a part. Initiative can be used as a mechanism for determining a characters ability to use reflexes and quickly react to sprung traps or ambushing monsters. Initiative can also be used to determine ability to quickly puzzle through a situation demanding quick thinking. Strength, Toughness and other ability scores can serve similar game functions by applying some creative rulings.
Vol. 3: Characters contains a chapter titled Creating Adventures and though brief, it gives some good ideas for possible missions such as rescuing a "lovely Italian princess", exploration of an island, dangerous territory or a dungeon, an assassination or kidnapping, "or anything you like!" A cost table is provided for equipment along with rates of pay for one's "profession" or job which can be used to expand into an economic system if desired. Additional material to assist the referee in running traditional role-play sessions includes encounter charts and treasure tables along with a sample adventure, The Redwake River Valley.
Firsthammer offers both a tabletop battle experience and small group role-playing both using miniature figures, something rather unique in the hobby and something more common in the early days. Player characters act as leaders of units of figures on a battlefield adding a dimension to play which I don't see much anymore. a couple years later Games Workshop (GW) would separate the Fantasy Battle line from the Fantasy Role-Play line of products with publication of Warhammer Fantasy Role Playing in 1986. The grim, gritty world which first sees light in Firsthammer supplements and came to be known as "The Old World" in later GW products has become one of the most recognizable of game milieux.
As a role-playing game, Firsthammer offers a lot of the style and tools I appreciate in a game. It's a do-it-yourself box full of inspiration and encourages the player characters to be involved in the milieu in ways not often explored, that of leading troops into battle. The mechanics are straight-forward and easy to add to or modify and although rolling a single d6 has its limitations, there is a certain accessibility it provides.
The later Warhammer Fantasy Role Playing (WHFRP) line of products has seen three major editions and as many publishers. GW itself chose to focus exclusively on miniatures games and first farmed-out WHFRP to Hogshead Publishers, then to Green Ronin and Fantasy Flight. I have read rumors that Cubicle 7 now has the rights to WHFRP and may release a new edition this fall (Gencon?). I am looking forward to that.

Dungeonesque

5e Old School
Dungeonesque by Rogue Comet is one of the game products I brought home from Origins a couple weeks ago. I purchased it on impulse, drawn to the small ivory color box and the promise of yet another nostalgic old school version of role-play. Dungeonesque promotes itself as old school 5th edition. The folks at the booth selling Dungeonesque knew nothing about it, and I had read no reviews at the time, so I basically took a gamble, laid down my cash and walked away with what I hoped would be yet another hobby treasure.
Dungeonesque actually comes in two versions. One looks like the image above, contains four digest sized books and reminds me of White Box in appearance.  The four volumes are titled Book 1: Characters and Combat, Book 2: Eldritch Wizardry, Book 3: Worlds & Adventure and Book 4: Concise Bestiary. The other version comes in a larger box, contains two letter sized books (Player and GM) and appears to suggest the Red Box version of Basic. Both are based on the 5th edition SRD. In the ivory edition you can play a cleric, fighter, rogue or wizard. The rules as presented here are very similar to WotC's current D&D Basic Rules which (along with the Dungeon Master's Basic Rules) is available as a free download on WotC's D&D website.
What sets Dungeonesque apart from the D&D Basic Rules is Book 3: Worlds & Adventure. In Book 3 the authors describe their version of old school play and give the referee some advice and a few tools to assist in running 5e as an old school game. (This to me is of course the most interesting part of the package.) Book 3 has a section called Rules & Tools covering "old school rules" which are presented as a group of houserules. The concept of "rulings, not rules" is discussed along with "non-balanced encounters", "roleplaying, not skill checks", morale, slow natural healing, death saves and character mortality. The idea that we "play to see what happens" in old school rather than lead our players through a pre-conceived story is explained briefly. Another section is devoted to converting 1e play aids for use with 5e/Dungeonesque. There is a section on "Hexcrawls" which are described as a common way to play "old school". Add a host of random tables and some treasure descriptions and we come to the end of Book 3. The use of random tables to generate encounters, treasure and other aspects of the game is also described as an "old school" method.
Mixed in along with the above "old school" elements are some stand-out anomalies, however. Book 3 suggests a "social contract" for the campaign in which each player along with the referee create a list of Yes and No world features thereby sharing the creation of the milieu so as to suit everyone (or no-one?). Another section takes an in-depth look at the use of montage rules in play. The inclusion of such player empowerment techniques seems markedly non "old school" to me. I understand and appreciate why later rule sets have become very lengthy and include rules for nearly every situation. I understand "balanced" encounters and player agency. To me that is not old school. Old school play is trusting the all-powerful referee to interpret and apply the rules in a fair and just manner while attempting to keep the game fun for everyone. Old school player agency is to "vote with one's feet". In other words, if the referee isn't fair, don't play again. Find a new referee (or talk out your differences).
I have not played using Dungeonesque, but I have attempted to run an old school campaign with 5e. Personally, that experience was unrewarding for me and therefore the players, sensing my lack of enthusiasm, lost some of their interest in playing as well. (For a top game, the referee has to be excited about running that game.) I find 5e characters overpowered and the rules too mechanical for my personal taste. If I had not started with White Box and continued to use the White Box game philosophy all these years, I would probably look at 5e differently. Part of my enjoyment refereeing is making up rules on the fly to handle situations where my players want to try something not covered in the rules as written. Therefore, the more complete the rules, the less fun I have.

Warhammer 1st Edition

England's White Box
The box cover by John Blanche is an instant eye-catcher. I purchased Warhammer 1st Edition back in the early 1980s as an impulse, no doubt the box art had something to do with that. The 1st Edition, Firsthammer if you will, tries to be all things fantasy tabletop, including a role-playing game. Later editions would drop the role-playing element (a separate Fantasy Role Play would be published) and add "Fantasy Battle" to the name to distinguish it from other Warhammer products, but back in 1983 this was the only Warhammer.
Authored by Bryan Ansell (Citadel Miniatures), Richard Halliwell and Richard Priestly and with art by Tony Ackland, Firsthammer bills itself as The Mass Combat Fantasy Role-Playing Game and includes three booklets (just like the other White Box!). The booklets are titled, Vol 1: Tabletop Battles, Vol 2: Magic and Vol 3: Characters. The system is recognizable to anyone familiar with any later version of Warhammer including the ever-present stat line, Initiative, Weapon Skill, Bow Skill Wounds, Toughness, etc. (Toughness is a letter here not a number).
Each volume is illustrated by Tony Ackland and the b&w images are very inspiring (some later appear in other publications). Sprinkled among the typewriter text are a number of figure illustrations probably from Citadel's catalog and there are numerous references to using Citadel Miniatures in one's Firsthammer games. As it says on the tin, Firsthammer is about Mass Combat and the rules emphasize having several figures on a tabletop battlefield. There is a section on fighting in dungeons and an emphasis on characters, so Firsthammer is really a type of hybrid between a big battle wargame and a role-playing game. The role-play elements focus on the use of miniatures, which may reflect a gaming trend in England at the time.
The rules for characters are very basic and using Firsthammer to play campaigns requires a bit of work on the part of the Games Master (I prefer Referee as I think that term better reflects what we do, fairly apply the rules and make interpretations). Like most older games, the Firsthammer rules specifically spell out that the GM should invent or change rules as seems best for play. Despite being rules lite and somewhat incomplete in spots, Firsthammer has a lot of good ideas.
There are two types of characters, warriors and wizards. Wizards seem a bit more complex than warriors, although even warriors go a bit beyond White Box and possess skills. The included list of skills could be improved on and seems a bit weighted towards seafaring skills. One listed skill I find odd today is "transvestite". I suppose a character being able to convincing portray a member of the opposite sex could have some useful and perhaps entertaining applications during gameplay.
Firsthammer wizards have four levels of magic mastery and like White Box, they carry titles such as Novice/Initiate, Acolyte, Adept, and Magician/Mage. The spell list is likewise arranged into four levels of power or experience and contains many bog standard fantasy spells and a few original ones (worth borrowing) including Droop which causes an enemies weapon to become useless, a version of Alarm which once placed will alert a wizard of how many living souls pass near the spot where the Alarm mark was left. Several of the spells seem to be aimed at battle use and affect an entire unit of figures.
Magic spells are cast using a point system and not only is renewable Constitution spell points used, but also Life Force points of which each being only has a limited amount.  As Life Force is "burned up" the wizard ages and may acquire mutations. This is suggested, but not detailed in the actual rules, but I think it is a rather grand idea!  Most spells also require the wizard use a Talisman in casting the spell. Talismans are magic charms and include philtres, amulets, relics, a staff or wand and other objects. Some may be consumed in the casting of the spell and will need to be replenished. Certain spells can be cast over and over, the wizard merely paying the points and using the appropriate Talisman (if any), other spells including Cure Light Injury may only be cast once per day.
The rules mention the existence of specialist wizards and gives the example of the Necromancer, who can steal Life Force as well as control undead. There is invitation for the enterprising GM to invent other specialists. An elementalist is mentioned but there are no rules for such. Priests, druids, and illusionists (to borrow from White Box and supplements) would certainly be possible in a Firsthammer campaign. How the GM sets up the milieu and casts the PC character possibilities is an important element of individualizing play.
A list of enchanted objects includes a few worthies. Elberath's Leash is a delicate silver cord which when placed around the neck of a creature binds it to the will of the person holding the leash. Garathea's Cord is a thin red rope of enchanted strength which allows great weights to be lifted or pulled with little effort. Firsthammer is a work (like many early RPGs) which combines original thought content with things freely borrowed including other magic items and quite a few monsters which seem lifted from recognizable sources such as White Box and the literary works of J.R.R. Tolkien. This however does not make them any less useful for game play.
I recently discovered the Oldhammer community of gamers who are devoted to older Games Workshop (GW) games including Firsthammer. The parallels with the OSR (Old School Renaissance/Revival, etc.) are striking. It seems that sneering at "new fangled rules" (as one Oldhammer blogger put it) is not strictly limited to those of us ensconced in the RPG part of the hobby. I am not sure how popular Firsthammer was in the early '80s, but it was the first in a long line of games and supplements to bear the brand name and today it remains an interesting combination of battle game and role-playing. American RPGs including Tunnels & Trolls, White Box and the Advanced Game, and probably RuneQuest as well, were known in England, Great Britain and the UK at the time of Firsthammer's introduction and no doubt were having the same kind of revolutionary influence on the game hobby there as in America. The fact that Firsthammer still has a following I find encouraging. Older games can still provide fun, even if they are a bit "long in the tooth".

Hyperborean Adventure

Pleasing One's God and Acquiring Treasure
One of my favorite games at this year's Origins game convention was Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea. I love saying the name of this game, even to myself. Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea (AS&SH) is an old school game which seems to most resemble Advanced 1st Edition. There are some changes to make the game feel more like a swords & sorcery product, such as the PCs being human, floating airships and other lost ancient technologies and some weirdness in the vein of H.P. Lovecraft.
The scenario I played at Origins was a creation of the referee running it so I hesitate to go into too much detail regarding his module. We played a group of Hyperboreans, the original inhabitants of Hyperborea who are tall, pale humans, tasked to perform three labors by our god. The game involved weird science, puzzles, combat aliens and playing morally ambivalent PCs. The referee had prepared each of the pre-generated characters with an interesting background, motives and personality quirks that made them easy and fun to role-play. The players and referee all got into the game and for about four hours we were able to suspend disbelief (as they say) and enter the magical weird world of Hyperborea.
Hyperborea is what sets AS&SH apart from other simulacrums and is the real selling-point for AS&SH for me. Hyperborea seems to be a pocket dimension connected to other worlds by the arboreal northern lights. In my own running of the system I took PCs from earth under the aurora borealis, landed them in Hyperborea alongside a nation of whose ancestors had also come from Earth, but had been in Hyperborea since the time of ancient Greece. Hyperborea contains a number of trans-located peoples from historic Earth including Vikings, Kelts, and Eskimo as well as native inhabitants. The setting is highly evocative of author Clark Ashton Smith and such settings as he might have created.
I really enjoy an atmospheric setting thick with an alien and weird feeling and Hyperborea can deliver that as well as any setting or milieu I have experienced. A talented referee can use word choice, pacing and tone to enhance any game and potentially evoke such an experience in players. There are certain rules and settings which are specifically written to assist the referee in this process. The ones I am most familiar with include Lamentations of the Flame Princess, Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG, Call of Cthulhu and AS&SH. It can absolutely be done with White Box and other systems, but the ones I mention have specific tools in place to assist the referee in achieving the weird feeling.

The version of the game I have is a boxed set of two spiral bound booklets, a map and some old fashion polyhedral dice. AS&SH author Jeffrey Talanian is planning a fall release of a new hardback edition of the game published by his North Wind Adventures company.  I met Mr. Talanian at a Gencon several years ago when he was working with Gary Gygax and Troll Lord Games on the Castle Zagyg project. Meeting game designers and talking shop with them is another of the perks of attending a game convention.

Origins, Free RPG Day and RuneQuest

Gaming Adventure
Origins 2017 was last week and I was able to attend all five days of wondrous excitement. Origins used to be a gaming convention where there were lots of new products released, but publishers seem to wait for Gencon to make their big releases now. I did see a number of new products underdevelopment and was told I could purchase them at Gencon, or later. A very fun boardgame for four called Dragoon lets you play a rampaging dragon who is out to accumulate gold through tribute, conquest or pillage. The components and gameplay are both excellent and although it was not available for sale at Origins the folks at the booth told me it could be purchased at Gencon. A new card driven tabletop role play game from Catalyst called Dragonfire played well in the demo and I will be also looking for it at Gencon. Dragonfire is I believe a Wizards of the Coast licensed D&D product and the card engine is based on Catalyst's Crossfire (Shadowrun) game.
I mostly go to conventions to play games and I was able to get 11 RPG sessions in during my five days at Origins this year. Three of them were Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG games run by Brendan LaSalle (hoping I got his name correct) who runs an excellent table. I believe the four adventures were his own creation so I won't give away story details here, but they really captured my imagination. The Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG rules capture the weird and fantastic elements very well and it is a good tool for playing those type of games. A lot of my friends enjoy Pathfinder, so I played four games in the Legends of the Shining Jewel living campaign. I also joined a friend in a Shadowrun game.
Free RPG Day was Saturday and I scored a copy of Chaosium's RuneQuest Quickstart. Two of my event sessions were with the Chaosium folk's running the new RuneQuest Quickstart rules. As a long time fan of the RuneQuest system and Glorantha, the default setting for the current version as well as 1st and 2nd edition RuneQuest on which the current version is based, I am pleased that RuneQuest is back and being supported again. The additions to the rules seem positive to me and include scores in passions and rune affiliations. Both runes and passions may be evoked to assist the PC in situations where they would apply. The rules for magic have been slightly altered and PCs have magic points as well as the Power attribute score.  Casting spells, both spirit magic and rune magic involves making a successful die roll now as well as expending the magic or rune points. Overall the power level of the RuneQuest PC seems to be a bit greater now than in 2nd Edition.
Gaming conventions are an excellent way to meet new people, reconnect with old friends, see what new is being worked on and try games for the first time. Whether it is a big con or a small one I find the gaming experience about the same. Gamers everywhere are friendly and eager to share the games they love and it is hard for me not to enjoy myself at the game convention. For someone like me who prefers the older games, flexibility and a willingness to try something new definitely helps. There is an overall expectation of having fun together and that usually carries through to insure that everyone at the table is entertained. I have found games I really enjoy and want to definitely play again, and I have discovered that some games are not my favorite, but I have rarely regretted having sat down at the table and spent a few hours playing a game once. We play the role of adventurers and investigators in our games. I find adventuring out and investigating something new in the gaming hobby can be very rewarding.

Vancian Magic

An OSR Supplement
Greg Gorgonmilk has edited a couple of stories by Jack Vance, four articles by Gary Gygax, and some optional rules by SHADRAC MQ and assembled them, along with some evocative illustrations and an afterward by Greyharp, into a supplement of almost 100 pages that nicely explains the magic system used in The World's Most Popular RPG system. Gary Gygax's choice for White Box's magic system has been the topic of much discussion and many "house rules" over the years, but has also stood the test of time as a game mechanic and remains in use up to and including the current 5th Edition of the game. This supplement attempts to explain the origins, game adaptations and use of what has come to be called the Vancian Magic system.
So what is Vancian Magic and where does it come from? Jack Vance is listed by Gary Gygax in a more than one source as one of his favorite authors. In a number of Mr. Vance's Dying Earth stories various users of magic cast spells by speaking powerful syllables (and making specific gestures) which have previously been committed to memory. The act of casting the spell erases all memory of those syllables from the magician's mind and requires an extended time of study in magic tomes in order to re-memorize the spell. The capacity to memorize magic in this way requires an exceptional mind and in the stories even the most accomplished user of magic can hold but a few magic spells in memory at a given time.
Mr. Gygax explains in the articles included in this supplement why he chose Vancian Magic for White Box. He cites the fact that a system of memorized spells requires very little bookkeeping on the part of the player, simply the writing down and crossing off of the spells. The Vancian system worked well with efforts to balance the classes and scaled with the level system. As the magic user advances in level more spells can be memorized and therefore cast and spells of a higher potency can be eventually learned. Thus there are six levels of magic user spells in White Box. Cleric magic is similar except the source for the magic is divine.
In the included articles, Mr. Gygax defends as well as explains the Vancian Magic system. He is particularly critical of various magic point systems which he states have no place in White Box and if used make for a totally different game. He indicates that he dismissed such a system in designing the game as being too much record keeping. It is quite evident in his characterization of the mechanics for magic use as well as combat that speed of play was an important consideration as was planning ahead and making decisions during play. Player skill seems more important to him than character skill.
Realism, or the search for realism in the game, is another recurring theme of many of Mr. Gygax's writings. He refers to such efforts as the "bugaboo" of the hobby and even though he admits to occasionally succumbing to the urge to discuss game concepts in realistic terms, he adheres to a position condemning the search for a more realistic fantasy game. As argument to support his contention, Mr. Gygax reminds us that White Box is a game and games are foremost about fun and also that the subject is fantasy.
SHADRAC MQ offers an alternative list of spells for the game all with very Vancian names. In his system spells are first learned using the o-level Arcane Cypher. Once "deciphered" the spell can be memorized for use and cast per the usual Vancian way. The author includes a generous number of spells, thirty each for levels 1-6. The spell "The Excellent Prismatic Spray" from the story Turjan of Miir is a 6th level spell described thus:

The Excellent Prismatic Spray
R: 2" D: Instantaneous AoE: ½" square/level Save: None
Darts of prismatic fire instantly slay 2d20 hit dice of creatures. 8 HD or more get a saving throw.

It is a relatively short range spell, but one of potency able to instantly slay powerful creatures and is therefore in keeping with the description in the story.
The Vancian Magic Supplement is an interesting compilation of material from a number of sources, most long out of print. As a play aid the supplement includes both an explanation of the magic system used in White Box and subsequent editions and a useful alternative list of magic user spells if one desires a bit more Vancian "color" in their game. I find it an enjoyable read.

The Majestic Fantasy RPG

A Setting Specific Tabletop RPG
Robert Conley has shared (on his bat in the attic blog) his working draft of new roleplaying rules for his Majestic Wilderlands setting. Mr. Conley has published several pay aids under his own Bat In The Attic imprint as well as with Goodman Games and others. His Majestic Wilderlands setting is one of my favorite published settings and now Mr. Conley is in the process of writing a game system compatible with Swords & Wizardry (itself based on White Box) specifically for his Majestic setting. This product not only gives us tailor-made rules for the setting, it also is an excellent model for how to modify an RPG for use with your own campaign. It seems to be one of Mr. Conley's unique gifts that his play aids are not only highly useful and entertaining at the table, but also instructive regarding "how to" design one's own setting, adventure, sandbox, and now rules.
The current digital file, which Mr. Conley calls a supplement, covers four classes, five races (men, elves, half-elves, halflings and dwarves) and details for up to 5th level play. Presumably there will be a full version covering all the classes, races and levels of play his campaign supports at some future point. For now this supplement gives a lot to work with and demonstrates how to set things up for specific campaign play. The classes and races presented here are specifically designed for the campaign. Rather than a generic cleric class, Mr. Conley gives us his Cleric of Mitra (other classes are Burglar, Fighter and Magic User). Because what characters do outside of adventuring impacts the campaign world there is an ability system to handle these activities. Rather than the usual table of percentages Burglars (and other classes) get ability bonuses which increase as they level. The ability bonuses may be used to customize a character so that Burglars may specialize or focus their advancement in areas the player chooses. Majestic Burglars and Clerics are part of an organization and therefore are more closely tied to society than in most out-of-the-box systems. Abilities include areas of expertise such as athletics, research, stealth and thaumatology. Abilities are tested by throwing a d20, adding (or subtracting) the appropriate attribute modifier and comparing the result to a target of 15. The 5th Edition system of advantage and disadvantage applies. A modified score higher than 15 succeeds.
In addition to a saving throw verses magic, The Majestic Fantasy RPG uses magical immunity which is a d20 roll adding any bonus and looking for a total higher than 20. Casters need to memorize spells in order to cast them conventionally, although ritual casting from the spell book can be attempted taking more time and using more components. The spells listed are mostly those found in Swords & Wizardry, White Box, etc. Combat involves critical hits and fumbles and players have the option to try for various combat stunts such as a face shot or disarming attack.
There is a lot of really good game content available on the internet today, much can be easily adapted for use in my own campaign. Even when I don't use something I have read, I am often inspired with ideas of my own which I end up sharing at the game table. The best content is useful, inspiring and teaches me something. The Majestic Fantasy RPG is that kind of play aid. I can hardly wait for the fully finished product.

Balrogs and Bagginses

OSR Tolkien
Balrogs and Bagginses (B&B) is not really a retro-clone, but a new re-imagining of Middle Earth as an RPG variant in the old school style. The author of B&B, Lars Dangly, borrows from early editions of the game as well as other sources, freely combines ideas from J.R.R. Tolkien's writings and his own imagination to give us a variant set of rules for use with White Box and other published editions of the game. On the front cover the author clearly states this isn't a complete game and requires access to The World's Most Popular RPG. The 58-page digital file is nicely illustrated with art taken from various Middle Earth sources and is written in a witty and sometimes humorous style making it fun to read.
Redesigning the game for a Middle Earth milieu will mean different things to different people and B&B represents but a single interpretation of the best way to game Middle Earth. In adapting a game written to cover many literary sources, Mr. Dangly has made several major and minor departures from published editions. Character classes are replaced with a less rigid system of character "roles" based on the races of free people and the "walk of life" players imagine their character will follow.
B&B characters have seven rolled attributes, the usual six plus Luck. Characters also have Abilities, some are tied to race or homeland and some are prerequisites for certain Roles. A Flaw may be taken in order to give the character an additional Ability. Traits are a character's "loves, hates, quirks, fears, virtues and vices" and these take the place of Alignment and may give situational bonuses and shape behavior.
Abilities may give a character skills such as tracking or gambling, may increase hit dice (from d6 to d8 for example), may bestow birthrights such as nobility, or magic such as healing or sorcery. Elves may take the Light of Valinor which gives the ability to turn undead (as a cleric). Traits are chosen by the player, but many are associated with certain races or homelands such as melancholy for elves and greedy for dwarves. Certain Traits such as Greedy make the character susceptible to Corruption by the Enemy.
Race determines which Homelands and Roles may be assigned to a character. The generic Role is that of Adventurer - one who roams the land exploring and having adventures. A dwarf character may be a merchant, miner or soldier in addition to an adventurer. An elf character  may be a noble or wood elf or adventurer. A hobbit may be a bounder, a bumpkin, a country squire, a merchant or an adventurer. Dunedain roles include northern ranger or adventurer. The roles available to common men are many and include adventurer, berserker, brigand, horselord, huntsman, knight, merchant, noble, pirate, ranger of Ithilien, rider of Rohan, scholar, soldier, thief, witch, wizard and yeoman.
Experience points are earned for recovering treasure (coin, gems and magic items), defeating foes, surviving adventures, making saving throws and casting magic spells, succeeding at goals and notable actions be they glorious, honorable, infamous or just hilarious. Experience points earn advancement in levels which in turn grants the character increases in hit points, die rolls involving abilities and attribute scores. Traits evolve through play and a character's behavior may result in  granting a new trait or removal of an existing one. Characters who fail to resist (Wisdom saving throw) the influence of The Enemy gain new traits through corruption. Saving throws are made by choosing an appropriate Attribute, rolling a d20 and adding (or subtracting) the attribute modifier and comparing the result to a target number set by the referee. An easy task needs a modified roll of 10 or better to succeed. B&B uses the advantage/disadvantage mechanic from 5th Edition so a saving throw may in involve rolling two d20s and taking the higher (advantage) or lower (disadvantage) roll.
Magic and its availability is something the author suggests be considered carefully for the Middle Earth campaign.  Mr. Dangly points out that there are a number of possible ways to use magic in the game. Certain types of magic may be appropriate for elves, other types for the sorcerer servants of The Enemy. Some groups may want to include acolytes of the Necromancer or Saruman, hedge mages, orc shamans or scholars of Gondor who have access to ancient Numenorean secrets among the magic user types in their campaign. The author offers a brief list of suggested spells found in published editions of the game which could be incorporated into a Middle Earth campaign.
B&B offers some referee advice on running adventures and campaigns using Middle Earth and these rule additions as well as a brief bestiary and guidelines for adapting monsters from published editions of the game for use in a Middle Earth campaign should the group wish to bring those creatures into play. Mr. Dangly suggests a Middle Earth campaign should be a cooperative affair with players and referee discussing many aspects of play prior to the start of a campaign. He also suggests all players take turns as referee so as to create a collective world and to "give different voices to different stories".