Graphite Prime

In C&C, all class abilities and saving throws are resolved with Siege: A stat-based saving-throw and class ability/skill mechanic.

Of your core stats: Str, Dex, Con, Int, Wis, Cha, two are primes and the rest are secondaries (there's an option for tertiaries as well; also of note, humans start with three primes). Primes start at 12, secondaries start at 18 (with tertiaries it is 12, 15, 18, a better option in my opinion). These are target numbers -- like classic saving throws.

To make a Siege check, you add your level and your stat bonus to a d20 roll to meet/beat that Siege target number. Further, that target number will probably be modified by the level of the threat, such as saving against a spell cast by a 7th level wizard or disarming a trap set by a 10th level NPC. In many ways, that's logical, but, as you gain levels, you will have to face tougher threats, which leads to the following reality: The more levels you gain, the more skilled you become...and...the more challenging the traps, spells, and locks also become, so... are you really improving? Sure, if you encounter a 1st-level trap, but, this has been a problem since 3rd edition.

The beauty of older systems, with regard to class abilities, is that you actually got better at what you did without the fear of encountering more complicated obstacles. Locks were locks, poison was poison, spells were spells, and traps were traps. Period. Sure, you would occasionally encounter some kind of modifier, e.g., save at -4 against this or that, but that was kind of rare. It was good to know that if you had a 70% chance to disarm a trap... you had a 70% chance to disarm a trap.

Now, I don't want to bash C&C (as I like the game) but Siege can break down, making your base primes unstoppable by around 7-9th level, practically mandating more complex obstacles.

Example: 8th level thief, 18 dex (+3) -- prime (12). That's +11 (level 8, + 3 for dex) to your d20 roll, in essence, the base target number becomes 1 (12 - 8 - 3 = 1) Unless this thief (rogue) meets more complex threats, all successes are automatic, unless you count a natural 1 as an auto-fail. Now the GM, must, to keep things interesting, assign an almost arbitrary difficulty level to your roll. "Oh btw,  that lock was built by a 15th level locksmith!" 

Yeah, no.

Another thing, I know it sounds logical that higher level wizards cast tougher spells, but better saving-throws as you leveled up was a specific counter-weight to the powerhouses that high level wizards became.

• Palladium Fantasy handles this fairly well, with wizards gradually becoming better at casting; their spell's save number improves by 1 every 3 or 4 levels of experience.

And also, should higher level wizards cast tougher spells in a game where each spell is a specific magical formula designed for a specific purpose (Vancian!) regardless of the spell-caster's experience? -- But that's a whole separate topic, because... D&D is actually quasi-Vancian; some spells do in fact scale with caster level. Otherwise, you'd have a 1d6 fireball spell, a 2d6 fireball spell, a 3d6 fireball spell, and so on.

Also, I'm a fan of the notion that if a thief makes his stealth roll, whether moving silently or hiding in shadows, then he succeeds, period. No perception checks. The thief's failure IS the perception check.

And so, here is my Save Redux for C&C (and any version of the game really)...

A more standard saving-throw/ability-check system. The target numbers start the same: Primes: 12, Secondaries: 15, Tertiaries: 18. Subtract any ability modifiers. And those are your fixed saves. These saves improve by 1 every 3 levels. Except for rare circumstances, your roll is NOT affected by caster-level, monster level, or artificially inflated locks/trap levels, etc. See below...

•  0 at levels 1-3
• -1 at levels 4-6
• -2 at levels 7-9
• -3 at levels 10-12
• -4 at levels 13-15
• -5 at levels 16-18
• -6 at levels 19-21
• -7 at levels 22-24

Your Save numbers are frozen at 24th level (and no save can ever go below 2) never to improve (unless your core stats improve, maybe). For any progression beyond this (such as an Immortal system I've fiddled around with for levels 25-36) you would roll with advantage (if for some reason you don't know what advantage is, it's rolling 2d20 and keeping the best result).
We'll use a rogue as an example since they use Siege more than any other class (with comparisons to AD&D saves): 
1st level human rogue...
                                                        New Siege Save                    AD&D

• Str:   12          Tertiary               Siege: 18                  Poison/Death:  13
• Dex: 18 (+3)  Prime                  Siege:   9                  Paralyze/Poly: 12
• Con: 13 (+1)  Secondary           Siege: 14              Rod/Staff/Wand: 14
• Int:   12          Prime                  Siege: 12                             Breath:  16
• Wis:   9          Prime                  Siege: 12                                Spell:  15
• Cha: 14 (+1)  Secondary           Siege: 14

                                                          Average: 13.1                      Average: 14

At 13th level, he looks like this:

• Str:   12          Tertiary               Siege: 14                  Poison/Death:  10
• Dex: 18 (+3)  Prime                  Siege:   5                  Paralyze/Poly:   9 
• Con: 13 (+1)  Secondary           Siege: 10              Rod/Staff/Wand:   8
• Int:   12          Prime                  Siege:   8                             Breath:  13
• Wis:   9          Prime                  Siege:   8                                Spell:   9
• Cha: 14 (+1)  Secondary           Siege: 10

                                                         Average: 9.166                      Average: 9.8

At 24th level, good for sure, but still vulnerable...

• Str:   12          Tertiary               Siege: 11                 Poison/Death:    8
• Dex: 18 (+3)  Prime                  Siege:   2                Paralyze/Poly:    7
• Con: 13 (+1)  Secondary           Siege:   7            Rod/Staff/Wand:    4
• Int:   12          Prime                  Siege:   5                            Breath:  11
• Wis:   9          Prime                  Siege:   5                               Spell:   5
• Cha: 14 (+1)  Secondary           Siege:   7

                                                        Average: 6.166                      Average: 7
Now keep in mind, C&C's saving throws categories are linked to core stats as follows (with some spells affecting different stats):

• Str:    Paralysis, Constriction
• Dex:  Breath Weapon, Traps
• Con:  Disease, Energy Drain, Poison
• Int:    Arcane Magic, Illusion
• Wis:  Divine Magic, Confusion, Gaze, Polymorph, Petrification
• Cha:  Death, Charm, Fear

(I have reworked these saves to my fit own logic, including shifting death saves to your best save and I also reassigned lock-picking and trap-removal to Intelligence; Dex is for avoiding sprung traps). My version with Death being your best save...

• Str:    Paralysis, Constriction
• Dex:  Breath Weapon, Traps
• Con:  Disease, Energy Drain, Poison, Polymorph
• Int:    Arcane Magic, Illusion & Confusion, Lock-Picking, Trap Finding/Removal, Searching
• Wis:  Divine Magic, Fear, Gaze, Petrification
• Cha:  Charm, Loyalty, Morale

C&C gives options for alternate stat bonuses, such as the more modern ones started in 3rd edition. These would only change some numbers by 1.
The above rogue is only slightly better than his AD&D counterpart because of stat bonuses, which other than wisdom, are not applied to saves in AD&D. Your typical fighter would be slightly worse off in Save Redux.
Under Save Redux™ (which can actually be applied to any version of the game) if you want to attempt something that falls under the jurisdiction of another class, like thief abilities, tracking, and other non-mystical stuff, treat all stats like tertiary stats with zero level adjustment; stat bonuses do apply though, so: 18 minus stat bonus. Also, it gets one point harder with every attempt. So a fighter with a +1 Dex bonus (I prefer Int here, but whatever) trying to pick a lock would have to roll a 17+ no matter what his level is. And if he fails, his next attempt is 18+, and if he fails again and tries again, 19+... that would be 30 minutes (3 turns) wasted, and at least one wandering monster check.; (C&C doesn't use "turns" but you probably do). And you could rule that once you hit 20, it ain't gonna happen.
And speaking of monsters...
In C&C, monsters have two saves, physical and mental; one or both can be primary (secondary takes the slot of tertiary). So, that would be 12 or 18 adjusted by the level chart above. Examples...

• Gargoyle (5HD): P:11, M:17
• Young Adult-Adult Green Dragons (10-12HD): P:9, M:9
• Titan (17HD): P:7, M:7
• Goblin (1HD): P:12, M:18

Monsters are slightly more vulnerable under Save Redux™, however, percentage-wise, they're not too far off from AD&D 1st edition.
Now just for fun, I'll take it further and give monsters three saves because a lumbering beast can have loads of fortitude but no agility, so: Fort/Reflex/Will, with varying combinations of primaries, secondaries, and tertiaries. The above four monsters perhaps now look like...

• Gargoyle (5HD): F:11, R:14, W:17
• Young Adult-Adult Green Dragons (10-12HD): F:9, R:12, W:9
• Titan (17HD): F:7, R:10, W:7
• Goblin (1HD): F:15, R:12, W:18

The beauty of Save Redux™ is that it's cleaner; there's no math, and it still gives you that collision of old and new.
All for now.

The more I look...

Under Charisma, Maximum number of Henchman is now called, "Sidekick Limit".

Sidekick?

Yet, in the paragraph below, sidekick limit is described as the maximum number of "henchman" you can have. The word henchman is used once more. (Further rules for this are probably in the GMs guide).

Why the change? Why the new term "sidekick"? 

If OSRIC is supposed to be an efficient reorganization (clarification) of the original rules, why introduce a new term just to use the old term (twice) to explain the new term?

Table needs centering.

Nobody has 10 "sidekicks".  

The addition of the word "sidekick" is the very definition of unnecessary. You don't need another word to describe one that is already there. You'll only confuse the matter. It is terminology bloat. They clearly want to transition to a new term.

The original Player's Handbook calls henchman non-player characters who will "serve" as permanent retainers. OSRIC 3.0 says a henchman is someone who is "willing to accompany your character", it is a "long-term relationship".

Softening up the language is not rules clarification.

OSRIC is turning into something else.

Just saying.

The OSRIC 3.0 layout sucks.

I backed this (of course!) and had high hopes that this would be THE definitive reference, even though I own all of the originals in fantastic condition.

I almost never bash other OSR products. From me it's usually praise or silence. I despise making this post, but it must be made. (I'll slaughter WoTC all day long).

Call me crazy, but I expected OSRIC 3.0 to be the most faithful adaption of AD&D 1E possible... with AMAZING layout.

By all that I've heard, Matt Finch is a great guy... so don't take this personal for God's sake! Doing this is no doubt a herculean effort... and it is much appreciated by many!

But I think many are about to be disappointed.

The art is fine. The font is fine. The layout... ugh. 

The center line between columns isn't necessary, unless there's a table on one side. And the columns are far too close together.

The tables are atrocious! They aren't centered properly and they often overlap onto the next page. Tables should always be self contained on one page, I don't care if this leads to white space and more pages. That's what filler art is for. (Weapon and equipment tables can be an exception here). What are you going to reference during play more than tables? They should be a joy to look at. As it stands, joy is not the word that comes to mind.

I was always tempted to purchase the previous OSRIC hardcover, but never did because the layout kind of bugged me. 

This is worse. This is in no way an improvement. Perhaps the rules are more accurate, but they're still not 100%. And the folks who'll buy this already know the rules.

THEY WANT A NICE LAYOUT.

OSRIC 3.0 won't inspire anyone and won't make it easier to play this game, so what's the point?

I hope to God this looks better in physical form, but I would urge serious layout changes be made, even if it takes another year. Treat the latest free release as just another beta. 

We can wait.

Microsoft recently announced that by October 2026, Publisher will no longer be supported. If you have a hard copy, you can continue using it without support, if not, too bad.

I'm in the too bad boat. 

Everything I've produced and worked on over the last decade or two, adventures, rules, character sheets, etc., was done with Publisher. I have projects that will never be finished now for sure, because with converting and reformatting, you're pretty much starting from scratch. Yet being realistic, my many little projects mostly served as distractions and were destined to stay that way.

So for now, I have archived some things in PDF form, if only for my own reference and have settled on using Word from here on out after researching and tinkering with a few of the other programs. My initial impression of Word was likening it to B/X whereas Publisher is AD&D. Adobe InDesign is another option but costs twice as much as Publisher did.

Blessing in disguise...

I've been diligently working on a new module that I fully intend to publish in 2026. I'm embracing a simpler, A5 format for this one and I'm becoming increasingly comfortable using Word. The original idea for this sprung a few years ago, but for some reason -- perhaps no more distractions -- I'm off to the races and this one's awesome. I'm basing it on 1st edition rules.

Until the New Year.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles & Other Strangeness, Black, White, & Red Redux Edition, by Palladium Books, originally by Eric Wujcik, updated by Sean Owen Roberson.

Magnificent.

I was worried, can't lie. Usually when a game gets modernized, it loses its edge and becomes soft and glittery. Just look at all the latest versions of all the classic games. Can Palladium modernize their books and still be Palladium?

Yes. 

At least for now...

So, two books, reprinting six...

Other Strangeness contains:

• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles & Other Strangeness
• Turtles Go Hollywood
• Truckin' Turtles

Transdimensional Adventures contains:

• Transdimensional Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
• The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Guide To The Universe
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures

It's the same basic Palladium layout, just cleaner. Black and white art with a red tinge... incredible! There is a full color version and alternate covers too, but damn, I made the right choice by going for red in the Kickstarter. Look at that art...


If Palladium plans to go full color, this is how they should do it. Stylize it. They already have decades of great and iconic art to work with. Stylize it.
Oh yes... The classic Palladium weapons chart!

Original Laird/Eastman art with a touch of red. Really pops.

Original covers included...

Just cool...


Nice paper, minimum gloss if any, extremely readable.

And it's not just the appearance... it's also the rules. 
Things are cleaner, tidier, simpler. Gone are the multitude of punches and kicks doing various damage. Now there is only unarmed doing 1d4 + strength bonus. Gone are redundant maneuvers, plenty still exist, but they're clarified.
The combat styles, Basic, Expert (sometimes referred to as Elite, typos I'm sure), Martial Arts, Assassin, Ninja, and Feral, are all redone, stating clearly what you start out knowing and what you gain as you level up. Expert is clearly better than basic, and martial arts is clearly better than expert. Simply put, these charts make sense now.
Combat is cleaner. You start with 2 actions. Skills can give you more and more are gained at higher levels. It's basically the same; just explained better.
Skills are listed with starting percentages right next to them and they simply improve by 5% per level. There are Professional skills and amateur skills. Depending on your origin, you get a combo of both. Professional skills allow an IQ bonus. And note: IQ is no longer I.Q., the periods have been removed from the abbreviated attributes.
All weapon proficiencies improve at the same rate: +1 at level 1, and levels 4,7,10, and 13. That's it.
Everyone starts knowing three basic skills:

• Basic Academics: The general info you know.
• Basic Athletics: Climb ,prowl, swim, etc., but at a basic level, actual skills will supersede this.
• Perception: Self explanatory.

Basic and Advanced mathematics still exist if you want them, in fact, the skill list is the exact same.

Character creation is nice and smooth.
This one's a winner.
Seriously, well done Palladium!