The Riddle of Steel

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The Riddle of Steel
RPG published by Driftwood Publishing
Authors	Jacob Norwood
First Publication	2002

"Though still a game, it is closer to representing real fighting than any RPG combat system ever written."

– The Core Rules Book, getting far too big for its britches (emphasis is from the original).

The Riddle of Steel (TROS) is a roleplaying game from Driftwood Publishing. Its a sword-and-sorcery fantasy game, its most notable characteristics being its detailed melee combat rules and use of Priorities to generate character concepts and statistics.

This game, though not often a subject of /tg/ discussion, has become the system for a highly popular series of Deathmatch Threads, in which bizarre characters would fight to the death for the pleasure of the crowd.

The noteworthy fights:

-A 4'8 Georgian Woman versus a Spanish Swashbuckler

-The same 4'8 Georgian Woman versus the entire Vatican City and then a Firing Squad

-A Drunken Finn with a knife versus a confused Croat

-A Time Traveling Serb versus a Scottish Shepherd

-A Bear with a Poleaxe versus two Camels with Rapiers

-Legionary Sulla versus A Gauntlet of Ethnic Stereotypes

-An angry German named Rickshaw versus Genoese Bas Rutten

Groins were stabbed, good times were had, and the Spirit of Steel lives on. A D20 modification of the game was introduced with marginal success, remakes were proposed, and are in the works. The future of TROS is unknown, but a round of dickstabbing is one thing /tg/ is clearly always up for.

See also: Song of Swords, a spiritual successor made by the host of the Deathmatch threads.