CODEX OF OLD SCHOOL AXIOMS
Old school Dungeons & Dragons is not a mystery, a brand, or a philosophy; rather, it is a practice. Its principles were never hidden or lost, only buried under decades of misinterpretation. The purpose of this Codex is to restate those foundations clearly, stripped of pretense, so that anyone who wishes to run or play the game as it was designed can do so with understanding and purpose.
These twelve axioms do not belong to me. They arise from experience...from years behind the screen, dice in hand. If they sound authoritative, it is only because they've been proven by play.
I. THE NATURE OF THE GAME
1. Dungeons & Dragons is a Game of Fantasy Adventure
D&D is a procedural game with rules, turns, and objectives; it is neither a story nor a performance. The structure of the game is built upon the premise of adventurers facing dangerous perils in a fantastical world with the hope of obtaining fortune and glory.
2. The Dungeon Master is God of the Table
The DM embodies the game world and enforces the rules; there is no game without a DM. All authority for administering the game and defining the situation and environment being explored by the players rests with the DM. The DM is both creator and referee and, ultimately, owes fealty to nothing but the game.
3. Rules Matter
The rules are not suggestions; they are the mechanics that set the scope and limits of the world, transforming imagination into a functioning game, generating fairness, challenge, and consequence. It is the responsibility of the DM to know and apply rules with precision. Rules are the parameters by which we agree to play the game; without rules, there is no game.
4. The Dungeon Master is the Adversary
The DM opposes the players out of necessity; the premise of the game rests on the players being challenged. It is the DM's responsibility to provide a dangerous environment that demands both courage and intelligence. Worthy challenge makes victory meaningful; fairness lies in consistency, not mercy. Arbitrary challenge is undesirable, but the rules of the game provide a model for challenge based on both game logic and the needs of play.
II. THE ENGINE OF THE GAME
5. Treasure is King
Wealth is the measure of success and the engine of advancement, tying risk, exploration, and reward into single elegant loop. It drives the game's economy and purpose, unifies the players' motivation, provides an objective goal of play, and inspires a deeper investment in the DM's world building. Any treasure worth having requires effort, and the balance of risk versus reward is a core tenet of game play.
6. Violence is Inherent to the Game
Combat is not the only solution, but it is the defining risk of the game. Violence shapes the economy of resources, time, advancement, and survival. Rules pertaining to violence are a central part of the mechanics, and are an inescapable element of play. All characters are combat-worthy by rule, and the threat of death is a staple of the game.
7. Magic is Limited
Power comes with constraints. Magic breaks the rules of reality, but within finite uses and with clear costs. Its rarity preserves the game's tension, while its presence provides a means to increase player effectiveness and a method of advancement. The game portrays a magical world, but the use of magic must be earned through effort and risk.
8. Play Happens at All Levels
Low, mid, and high levels are distinct phases of the same campaign, not different games. The shift from dungeon to domain is part of the makeup of the game. The rules support play through all stages of advancement, and all stages have value. Game play is not limited to a particular portion of the players' advancement path, and it is the DM's responsibility to ensure appropriate challenges exist at every point along the route, using the rules as a guide.
III. THE SPIRIT OF THE GAME
9. World Building is the Heart of Campaign Play
The world must exist before adventure can matter. Coherent geography, history, and economy give weight to every action. For the DM, creation is its own reward; the joy of creation is in sharing it with the players at the table. Investment of time and effort by the DM creates excitement; shared excitement creates player engagement. As a DM matures and grows in knowledge, so, too, shall the DM's world develop over time.
10. Players Have Agency
The game lives in meaningful choice. Players decide where to go, what to risk, and when to run. The DM provides the world; the players drive the action through consequential behavior. The character is the vehicle for a player's exploration of the game world; it is the interaction of player choice with the world of the DM that creates the story of the campaign.
11. Cooperation is the Key to Success
D&D is a team game. Skill sets of characters are asymmetrical and each individual contributes to the success of the group's endeavors, whether by performing a particular role, providing a useful idea, or absorbing the damage inflicted by dangers and perils. Both variety and redundancy contribute to group success, and groups that learn to respect, trust, and communicate with each other will find this enhances their ability to survive and thrive.
12. Immersion Comes From Engagement
True immersion...losing one's sense of time and space as you become hyper-focused on the task at hand...comes from attention to procedural game play and emotional investment in decision-making. When the stakes are real, practical, and supported by the rules of the game, engagement becomes the byproduct of risk, consequence, and participation, leading to an immersion that is un-matched by playacting or the drama of a told story.
Old school D&D exists in action, not argument. Every choice, every risk, every triumph and failure reaffirms the principles outlined here, guiding players and DMs through landscapes of danger, reward, and consequence. Apply these axioms with thought and discipline and let the game itself be the final arbiter of play. There is no secret wisdom...only the rules, the will to play, and the fortunes of chance.