Philosophy

Philosophy#

F.R.O.T.H. (“Fantasy Rules of the House”) is a category of TTRPGs, or a way to interpret and categorize a subset of TTRPGs.

Under these definitions, a FROTH game can be any TTRPG publication or system that fulfills two or more of the following criteria:

  • Is based on other rules systems, like derivatives from some version of D&D or BRP.

  • Uses clasic TTRPG procedures or conventions like rolling dice when there is uncertainty to resolve actions.

  • Is not a huge product or brand from a big publisher; more like an indie production.

  • Is a personal hack of some other TTRPG for use in your own table with your friends.

  • Is a “one page RPG” of sorts, that heavily depends on the reader’s previous experience with other big TTRPGs.

  • Is a mashup of rules, procedures and practices found in several other TTRPG systems or publications.

  • Has a DIY philosophy or ethos.

This is not a hard rule, more like a feeling of sorts. You just know if a TTRPG is a FROTH game or not.

What about other established subcategories of TTRPGS?#

Certain games that belong in well-established subcategories, like OSR or Nu-SR, could be easily considered FROTH games, if they fulfill the previous mentioned criteria. Many other games in the “neotrad” or “narrative/storytelling” camps could also be considered FROTH games.

For instance, I would consider Mork Borg by Stockholm Kartell or Worlds without Number by Kevin Crawford to be FROTH games, but not Old School Essentials by Gavin Norman.

Cthulhu Dark by Graham Walmsley is clearly a FROTH game to me, while Call of Cthulhu by Chaosium or Trail of Cthulhu by Pelgrane Press are clearly not.

Dread by Epidiah Ravachol is “different” enough in its jenga-tower mechanics that I wouldn’t consider it a FROTH game. The same goes for Ten Candles by Cavalry Games or The Zone by Raph D’amico, for similar reasons.

Is FROTH derogatory? or Should it be considered a compliment?#

Both and neither. The concept of a FROTH game came to me because some of these subcategories feel utterly superflous (specially when trying to explain their differences to someone who is not in the loop of RPG design and taxonomies). What is the real difference between Cairn, Knave and Shadowdark to a person who doesn’t know about TTRPGs? Are those OSR? Nu-SR? narrative games? rules-light games? Indie hacks? Those are just FROTH games to me.

But FROTH games are also what’s best of the TTRPG world and overall community: They show that DIY ethos that few other media can replicate as easily. You don’t have to write a 400-page tome or spend 5 years with a team of 20 people to develop a good TTRPG. Also, once you buy a TTRPG book, you could play with it forever and nobody can take that away from you. Once you, as a GM, start to tinker with some of its rules or procedures, you put on the game designer hat and there’s no going back… you start creating your own FROTH game.

In some communities and blogospheres, some people use the concept of “DIY elfgame” for a very similar meaning than my “FROTH game” wording. That is also not derogatory but also not very serious.

Why the F for Fantasy?#

R.O.T.H. didn’t sound as cool as F.R.O.T.H.

Seriously, most TTRPG hacks and indie derivatives are medieval fantasy based. And the hobbie began calling itself “fantasy gaming” or “adventure gaming” before settling into the current “roleplaying game”.

Obviously a sci-fi or post-apocalyptic game could be considered a FROTH game. Any genre works. But let’s be honest: Epic Fantasy is at the heart of every TTRPG enthusiast. Even if they now hate it, they probably begun with Fantasy somewhere.

Wait, Are you trolling?#

No. Well, maybe a little. It’s kindof a tongue in cheek way to categorize TTRPGs without being too serious or scholarly. This is just a classification I make for myself, and also to centralize all of my hacks and house rules for my FROTH games and designs. Others can ignore this or use it for their own experiments. Some of you have already started using “FROTH games” to refer to indie hacks and fantasy heartbreakers of all sorts. That’s cool. It’s okay if you don’t like it, you don’t have to use it.

Contents