The Old-School Essentials Box Set Is Back!

The Old-School Essentials Box Set Is Back!

Box Sets are Back on the Menu!

Back in the misty days of October 2019, Old-School Essentials was launched in two formats: a chunky hardcover Rules Tome and a tasty box set. While the Rules Tome has been reprinted several times since then, the now legendary box set sold out by January 2020 and has never been reprinted — until now!

After 2+ years of constant demand, we're preparing to bring the Old-School Essentials box set back into print — and now also to be accompanied by an Advanced Fantasy expansion box set!

We have everything lined up: a brand new box cover by the legendary Erol Otus, all new cover art for the books, loads of new interior art, an improved structure of the books, and all known errata fixed.

Back the Kickstarter!

There's just one more thing we need: your support! As producing box sets is an extremely expensive business, we're launching this Kickstarter to ensure there's sufficient demand.

Check out the Kickstarter here.

Early Bird Free Extras!

The first 48 hours of a Kickstarter are critical to its success, so please jump in early and spread the word to your gaming friends! If you pledge in the first 24 hours, you'll get some extra special freebies as a big thank you for your support — a fantastic T-shirt with art by David Hoskins and a copy of issue #2 of Carcass Crawler, the official Old-School Essentials zine!

Stretch Goals

We've got loads of fantastic new content for your games lined up as stretch goals, including:

  • Expanded lists of adventuring gear, weapons, and armour.
  • 5 new character classes.
  • A series of mini-adventures written for Old-School Essentials by some of the leading lights of the old-school scene!

All stretch goal content will be available on general sale later on, for those who don't back the Kickstarter.

What’s Changed From the Original Box Set?

The box and book cover art is brand new and there’s a lot of new interior art (50+ pieces). The rules of the game are identical, but we’ve fixed all known errata and have made a few organisational improvements based on feedback:

  • The introduction to the game and rules for character creation are now in Book 1: Characters, along with the character classes and equipment.
  • The rules for magic are now in Book 2: Magic, along with the spells.
  • The description of monster game statistics is now in Book 4: Monsters, along with the monster listings.
  • The treasure tables and general rules for magic items are now in Book 5: Treasures, along with the magic item listings.

What's Next For Old-School Essentials?

Carcass Crawler issue #2 will be going to the printers imminently and should be available on general sale in April. Check out the full contents of issue #2 here.

The Dolmenwood campaign setting continues to be the main focus of development here at Necrotic Gnome, to be published as a set of three gorgeous hardcovers. Expect 600+ pages of flavourful new classes and equipment, lavish setting lore, easy-to-run wilderness hex descriptions, woodland exploration procedures, weird and wondrous fairy tale monsters, and gorgeous art — all in Necrotic Gnome's renowned easy-to-use style.

Check out our in development / coming soon page.

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