OSRIC Hack

Use OSRIC for this game.

You start off in a loincloth in a ten-by-ten cell.

The cell door is locked.

You have whatever your level one class gives you.

You figure out how you escape.

Start this game solo or with a group of four level-one characters per player.

Outside the door is a random dungeon. Use your Oracle dice to determine if you find anything needed or helpful in each room, especially light sources, usable armor pieces, weapons, food, water, and other supplies needed to live. Every hall, passage, door, room, and chamber are randomly generated.

Number of monsters encountered? Be realistic; it will usually be one to the party size, rolled randomly.

Remember, wandering monsters are one in six every three turns.

Resting? Your cell is safe, given that the door is still intact and nobody suspects anything. Something comes by every day to drop off gruel. Play it by ear. Or there is no resting.

Roll the dungeon randomly using the charts in OSRIC, or better yet, use the Book of Lost Tables since this creates dungeons too, and can do random hex-crawls and settlements, which we will need later.

Also of use is the Book of Lost Lore, and Table 147 is the monster reaction table - so every encounter may not be a fight. Perhaps some of those creatures are locked down here with you. They may help you escape. They could also pretend to be your friend and turn on you at any moment or when it doesn't look good. This book also has tables for random gear, sundries, armor pieces, weapons, and other items.

Stairs have a 50-50 chance of being an exit.

Once you leave, go to the Book of Lost Tables and begin your hex crawl. Hopefully, you will find a settlement. Roll a random alignment, race, and size using the tables in the Lost Tables book. Use "roll under" d20 ability score rolls to make survival rolls, and don't forget the skill system in Book of Lost Lore, but those will cost you XP. This book also has survival skills and hunting rules.

Give every character a skill pick as a background or former profession if this part is too lethal, or be generous with achievement XP when significant milestones are hit; escaping the dungeon should be a substantial reward if you go this route. Building a shelter, finding food and water, and other "firsts" should be rewarded. Perhaps give XP for each hex explored and uncovered. 100 XP every day they survive.

If your character dies, start again. In the same dungeon somewhere, perhaps in a new one.

Ignore OSRIC's training and level-up rules; in this school of survival and hard knocks, you level up on the spot or use the cost as a debt later when civilization is found, needed to fill in gaps and brush up on training before any further progression can happen.

Hopefully, you will haul enough loot to civilization to rent or buy a house and establish a home base. You may find friendly NPCs or hire retainers. Once you have a home, the game opens up, and you may have to return and fight for it as you explore the world. Let the Oracle dice decide.

Then, you can build your kingdoms and legends from there.