Primal Quest

Essentials
Weird Stone & Sorcery Adventure Game by Diogo Nogueira

Primal Quest - Essentials is a streamlined set of rules for weird stone & sorcery adventures in a
mythical world where humanity survives side by side with dinosaurs, aliens, and creatures more
ancient than the world itself.

Written by: Diogo Nogueira

Edited by: Wayne Canepa

What Will You Find Here?

● A streamlined rules system using only d6s that gives you degrees of success, additional
consequences, and narrative control with a single dice roll.
● Character creation rules that are quick, intuitive, and incredibly flexible, allowing the
creation of distinctive characters.
● Rules for resource management, encumbrance, and durability that makes the gritty
primal world come to life without complexity.
● Combat and healing rules that make conflict exciting and dangerous. Combat will not
always be the wisest option.
● An open magic system encouraging creativity, ingenuity, and making sorcery powerful
yet costly.
● Rules for making the game easy to run, improvise for, and just fun for the Referee.

The Primal World of Thaia

Primal Quest is being developed side by side with The Primal World of Thaia, a zine for
old-school weird stone & sorcery adventure. Each issue will present more details about the
setting, optional rules, character archetypes, adventures, monsters, and much more. Get the
latest news about The Primal World of Thaia at bit.ly/PQThaia.
Character Sheet
Download Primal Quest - Essentials character sheet at: bit.ly/PQDownloads

Want to Make a Primal Quest Compatible

Product?

You can make material compatible with Primal Quest by adhering to these simple rules:
● You can use text directly from this document.
● Credit Diogo Nogueira for being the original creator of Primal Quest and include a link
to both https://oldskull-publising.com and this document.

This is a general license. Please get in touch at [email protected] if you want to negotiate a
license with different terms.

Safety Tools
We recommend the use of the TTRPG Safety Toolkit to create a safe and welcoming environment
for everyone to play the game in.

Playing the Game

Whenever characters are in a situation where the outcome is uncertain and also impactful on the
narrative, a Test is made.

Test
● Roll a pool of Positive Dice (PD) and Negative Dice (ND). You always roll at least one of
each and may earn +PD or +ND as explained below.
● Subtract the highest ND from the highest PD, then add the appropriate Attribute,
obtaining a Result.
● Compare the Result to the Difficulty. If it is equal to or greater than the Difficulty, it is a
success. If it is lower than the Difficulty, it is a failure.
 Result = PD - ND + Attribute

Difficulty
● Normally determined by a Stat possessed by the target or opposing force (their
Attribute, Def, Lvl, or something else).
● Difficulty 0 is the default if nothing is mentioned. Difficulty of +1 or higher is considered
difficult and usually requires a Test. Difficulty below 0 is usually considered too easy to
require a Test.

Difficulty
0 Moderate | 1 to 2 Hard | 3 to 4 Very Hard | 5 Daunting | 6+ Legendary

Effect
● Effect is determined by subtracting the Difficulty from Result.
● Effect of 0 or higher is a success. The higher the number, the more accomplished the
success.
● Effect below 0 is a failure. The lower the number, the worse the failure.

Effect = Result - Difficulty

Extra Positive Dice (+PD)

Receiving more PD to roll on Tests:
● Invoking a pertinent Tag to their advantage (the tag can be their own, from a piece of
gear, from the environment, from an Opponent).
● Having some tactical advantage, such as attacking from higher ground, flanking an
opponent, or debating against someone whose notes you perused.
● Anything else the Referee thinks benefits a character in that circumstance.

Extra Negative Dice (+ND)

Receiving more ND to roll on Tests:
● When there’s a Tag that applies negatively to the situation (either from that character,
the environment, a condition that they are suffering from).
● Some effects in the game impose +ND, such as spells and powers, monster abilities,
damaged or poorly crafted gear, and so on.
Boons
When a character's PD comes up a natural “6,” they score 1 Boon. Boons can be spent to
generate benefits:
● Apply an appropriate Stat (an Attribute, a weapon’s Dmg, an Opponent’s Lvl) to the
Test’s Result.
● Grant a +PD to their or another character's next Test, as long as it is justified narratively.
● Impose a +ND to an Opponent’s next Test, as long as it is justified narratively.
● Gain some insight about the circumstances, as long as it is justified narratively.
● Some other benefit that is independent of success or failure, as long as the Referee
approves.

Setbacks
When someone’s ND comes up a natural “6,” they score 1 Setback. Setbacks can be spent by the
Referee to generate consequences.
● Apply an appropriate Stat from the opposing side (an Attribute, a weapon’s Dmg, an
Opponent’s Lvl) to the Test’s Result.
● Provide a +PD to an Opponent’s next Test, as long as the Referee justifies this
narratively.
● Impose a +ND to a character's next Test, as long as the Referee justifies this narratively.
● Apply a negative consequence to the situation in accordance with the narrative.

Effort
● Before rolling the dice, a player can declare that they are making an Effort.
● The player may sacrifice any number of Vitality points to gain +PD on a one-per-one
basis.
● If they sacrifice enough Vitality points to drop below 0, their character falls unconscious
and is Dying (see Dying in the Combat section).

Character Creation
Characters in Primal Quest live in a mythical stone age. They are survivors ready to face any
danger in their path.
Attributes
Assign 3 points among Body (strength, dexterity, endurance), Mind (perception, memory,
knowledge), and Heart (willpower, charisma, empathy).
● An Attribute may be reduced to -1 to increase another Attribute by +1.
● No Attribute may start higher than +3.

Tags
Create 5 Tags that define the character:
● Concept: Who is the character? Where are they from? What’s their occupation? Are they
a hunter, a shaman, a lorekeeper ?
● Talent: What’s something that sets the character apart? What can only they do? Do they
have keen eyes, sharp reflexes, or eidetic memory?
● Motivation: What drives the character forward? Is it honor, duty, riches? Or do they seek
power, salvation, or peace?
● Relationship: What’s a close relationship the character has? What would the character
do for them? Do they have an enemy?
● Trouble: What makes the character’s life harder? Do they walk with a limp? Do they have
an enemy?

Equipment
Every character begins with a sack (this doesn't count for Encumbrance purposes). Choose one
of the following options for starting equipment:
● 1 weapon (stone), 1 weapon (wood or bone), 1 armor (any), 1 shield (any), 50’ rope, 3
torches, fire kit, waterskin, 3 units of Food, and 3 units of Water.
● 1 weapon (wood or bone), 1 armor (light or medium), hunting tools, 50’ rope, 3 torches,
fire kit, waterskin, 3 units of Food, and 3 units of Water.
● 1 weapon (wood or bone), 1 armor (light), 3 arcane foci, 3 torches, fire kit, waterskin, 3
units of Food, and 3 units of Water.
See the next section for more details on Equipment.

Other Stats
Calculate the following Stats:
● Vitality: Equal to 10 + Body. Determines how hardy the character is.
● Defense (Def): Determined by armor and shield. Determines how hard it is to hit the
character in combat.
Details
Create the character’s remaining essential details:
● Name: Choose an appropriate name for your character.
● Gender: Determine the character’s gender as they identify themselves.
● Looks: Describe the character. How do they look? What do they wear?
● Personality: What is the character’s personality like? Are they grim and secretive? Or
joyful but deceitful?

Advancement
Characters will change as they adventure through the world.

Experience Points (XP)

Characters earn 1 XP by fulfilling any of the following conditions:
● Survive the game session.
● Use a Tag for the first time in the session (you can earn 1 XP from each Tag).
● Make an impactful mark on the game world (make an ally, acquire an enemy, change the
power structure, defeat a powerful enemy). You can earn XP this way multiple times each
session.

Character Improvements
Players can spend XP to improve their characters in different ways:
● To increase an Attribute by +1, spend XP equal to the new score multiplied by 5 (a
minimum of 5 XP). No character can have an Attribute higher than +5.
● To acquire a new Tag, spend XP equal to the current number of Tags the character
possesses multiplied by 3.
● To change a Tag or rewrite it, spend XP equal to the current number of Tags the
character possesses.

Equipment
Sometimes having the right piece of equipment can make the difference between glory and
death.
Resources
Currency is almost nonexistent in the world and people barter for what they want when they
can’t get it themselves. There may be rare places, like cities, that use currency (such as shells,
beads, coins, clay tablets, tools, jewelry).
● Everything is evaluated in quantities of Resources that it is worth. All costs in this
section are in Resources.
● There are 2 types of Resources: Food and Water.
● Characters need 1 unit of Food and 1 unit of Water per day.
● 3 units of Resources count as 1 unit of Encumbrance.

Encumbrance
Sometimes, carrying too many items will slow a character down.
● Encumbrance Threshold: Characters can carry up to 10 + Body units of Encumbrance
comfortably. When carrying more than this limit, movement is reduced by half, and all
Tests are made with +ND.
● Encumbrance Limit: No one can carry more than 20 units of Encumbrance.
● Unless otherwise noted, one item counts as 1 unit of Encumbrance. Some smaller items
may be bundled together into 1 unit of Encumbrance, at the Referee's discretion.
Remember, 3 units of Resources count as 1 unit of Encumbrance.

Weapons
There are 4 Weapon Categories.
Weapon Cost Dmg Notes
Category

Unarmed 0 0 -

Small 5 1 +PD to hide small weapons. ½ unit of

Encumbrance.

Medium 10 2 -

Large 20 4 +ND to hide large weapons. 2 units of

Encumbrance.

Armor
There are 4 Armor Categories.
 Armor Category Cost Def Notes

Unarmored 0 0 -

Light 10 +1 Can pass as normal clothes. 1 unit of

Encumbrance.

Medium 30 +2 +PD to pass as normal clothes. 2 units of

Encumbrance.

Heavy 75 +3 Can’t pass as normal clothes. 3 units of

Encumbrance.

Shield
There are 3 sizes of shields.
Shield Size Cost Def* Notes

Small 10 +1 Blocks 1 attack before breaking. 1 unit of

Encumbrance.

Large 30 +1 Blocks 2 attacks before breaking. 2 units of

Encumbrance.

Tower 75 +2 Blocks 3 attacks before breaking. 2 units of

Encumbrance. +ND to attacks and can only take
1 action per round.
* After blocking all attacks it can, a shield is broken and no longer provides its bonus to Defense.

Adventuring Gear
Characters will find use for almost anything they can find. Below is a list of some sample items.
It is up to the Referee to determine the current cost in Resources and units of Encumbrance
used.

dried meats • dried fruits • 50’ rope • sack • waterskin • whetstone • healing herbs • 10’ pole •
fire kit • 3 torches • magic mushrooms • bone dagger • stone mallet • wooden stake • sack of
grease • heavy fur • religious symbol • charcoal piece

Durability
When using an item or weapon and a Setback is rolled, it can be spent to damage said objects
based on the material they are made from. When Durability reaches 0, the item is broken.
 ● Wood: Can only be damaged once. Durability 1.
● Bone: Can only be damaged once. Durability 1.
● Stone: Can be damaged twice. Durability 2.
● Bronze: Can be damaged thrice. Durability 3.

Combat
Sooner or later, characters will have to resort to violence to survive the dangers of the world.
Tests in the game are almost always made by the players, but there may be special cases where
the Referee might roll for the Opponents.

Round of Combat
Time in combat and other action oriented activities are measured in rounds lasting
approximately 10 seconds.
● Combatants can normally take 2 actions every round.
● A round ends when every combatant has taken their actions or decided not to take them.

Initiative
Characters and Opponents act in order of initiative.
● Initiative can be defined by the Referee in accordance with the fiction.
● When in doubt, characters need to make a Body Test and they will act before any
Opponent whose Lvl is equal to or lower than the Result.

Movement
Combatants are in constant movement during a battle.
● To move between Range Bands a character must spend an action.
● Getting up, lying down, looking for an item in a character’s sack, and other similar
actions count as a movement action as well.
● Characters can perform other small actions while taking a movement action for free, such
as drawing a weapon, grabbing an item from their belt, shouting something to an ally,
and so on.
Range Bands
This game abstracts distance and range into 3 general bands.
● Close: Just a few yards away. In range of most melee weapons.
● Far: Further away than a few yards, but still within range of a running character. In
range of most ranged weapons.
● Distant: Further than a character can normally run. Usually not in range of any mundane
weapon.

Attacking
Slashing with an axe. Crushing with a giant femur. Firing a bow.
● Choose a target within the weapon’s range.
● Make a Body Test with Difficulty equal to the target’s Lvl or Def.
● The attack hits if the Result is equal to or higher than the Difficulty. Otherwise it has
failed.
● Damage is determined by adding the Test’s Effect to the weapon’s Dmg.

Defending
Characters can dodge, parry, or avoid attacks in many ways.
● Make a Def Test with a Difficulty equal to the attacker’s Result or Lvl.
● The enemy’s attack is avoided if the Test is a success.
● If the Test fails, the character suffers damage equal to the value of the negative Effect
plus the attacker’s Lvl or their weapon’s Dmg.

Blocking
Characters may opt to block attacks if they are using a shield.
● They must declare they are Blocking before they roll for Defending.
● When an attack is blocked, it causes no damage, but damages the shield.
● A shield cannot be used for Blocking if it blocks the maximum number of attacks it can. It
is broken. A broken shield no longer provides its bonus to Defense.

Healing
Characters can rest in a safe space, where they can bind their injuries.
● Short Rest: Takes 10 minutes and allows a character to regain 1d3 + Heart Vitality
points. Afterwards, the character must pass a Body Test with a Difficulty equal to the
 number of Rests taken that day, or they can’t benefit from another Short Rest until the
next day.
● Long Rest: Takes 6 hours and allows the character to regain 1d6 + Heart Vitality points.
It also allows for a Test to recover from adverse effects, such as poison, illness, and other
maladies. A character can only take 1 Long Rest per day.
● Extended Rest: Takes roughly a week in a safe haven. Characters regain all their Vitality
points and can make Tests to recover from injuries and other maladies with a +PD.

Dying
Characters are always at risk of dying.
● When a character’s Vitality reaches 0, they fall unconscious and will wake up in 1 hour (or
sooner if healed) with a new scar (ask the player to describe it).
● When a character’s Vitality drops below 0, they are Dying and must make a Body Test
with a penalty equal to their current Vitality. If they succeed, they fall unconscious and
will wake up in 1 hour (or sooner if healed) with a new scar (ask the player to describe it).
If they fail, they are Injured and will die in 1 hour if not healed.

Sorcery
Some individuals can learn to manipulate the primal forces of the world, harness the magic of
their ancestors, or channel the forces of the void to conjure magical effects. However, power
always comes with a cost.

Arcane Focus
Characters need an item associated with each magic word they want to be able to use in the
game.
● A default Arcane Focus is associated with one magic word only, but more powerful
Arcane Foci (associated with multiple magic words, for example) may be found in the
game world.
● A character can’t use a magic word to cast spells if they don’t carry a respective Arcane
Focus associated with it.

Magic Words
Here are a few examples of possible magic words to associate an Arcane Focus with:
fire • ice • death • mirror • shadow • claw • blade • wolf • transform • reveal • truth • veil • ray •
hand • grasp • entangle • fruit • tree • animal • portal • spirit • converse • spider • web •
message • fly • breathe • mark • slumber

Spellcasting
Sorcery is a powerful yet dangerous tool.
● Describe the effect of the spell and explain how the Arcane Focus allows that effect (a
character can combine multiple Arcane Foci for more complex effects).
● The Referee determines if the effect is a Cantrip, Invocation, Ritual or Miracle.
● The caster or any willing or helpless target they touch can spend Vitality to add +PD to
the Test on a one-per-one basis.
● The character makes a Mind Test against the appropriate Difficulty. If successful, the
spell works as intended. If it is a failure, it has no effect and any Vitality points spent are
lost.

Cantrip
Mostly narrative effects that don't cause direct mechanical impact in the game, such as
producing a small flame, changing hair color, making something small briefly disappear.
● Base Difficulty: 1
● Casting time: 1 action.

Invocation
Effects that can be reproduced by an individual with appropriate equipment. Such as creating
light equivalent to a torch, firing a magical arrow, or climbing a smooth wall.
● Base Difficulty: 2
● 1+ND to the Test
● Casting time: 1 round

Ritual
Effects that would require a group of individuals to recreate, such as bashing a castle gate open,
building temporary shelter, or shooting a fireball from a catapult.
● Base Difficulty: 4
● 2 +ND to the Test
● Casting time: 10 minutes
Miracle
These are truly extraordinary effects that cannot be reproduced without magic or advanced
technology, like becoming invisible, causing an earthquake, or making a meteor fall from the sky.
● Base Difficulty: 8
● 4 +ND to the Test
● Casting time: 6 hours

Running the Game

When running this game, keep these things in mind:
● Present a dangerous world, full of possibilities and threats.
● Remember to be the characters’ senses, describing not only sight and sound, but smells,
tastes, sensations, texture, and touch.
● Telegraph danger before it strikes the characters. Death always leaves a trail.
● Always present multiple choices for the players and be open to new possible solutions as
the players will certainly find them.
● Show the consequences of their actions, for better or worse. The game world is alive and
reacts to the characters.
● Always be fair. You’re not playing against the characters, but you’re not playing to help
them either. You’re a referee, a neutral arbiter. Let the dice fall where they may.
● Reward good ideas and determination. Not everything will work all the time, but don’t be
stingy when the characters risk so much. At least let them try and make sure they know
the risks.

Luck Test
When in doubt about how things will unfold, ask for a Luck Test.
● The character makes a normal Test without adding any Stat, but adding appropriate
Tags.
● The higher the Result, the more favorable the outcome.
● The lower the Result, the more unfavorable the outcome.
● A Result close to 0 means it is not that good, nor that bad. Come up with a compromise.
Random Encounters
For every 30 minutes of game time, roll 1d6.
● On a 1, an encounter occurs. Roll another d6: (1-3) variations of a common encounter;
(4-5) unusual and uncommon encounter; (6) weird and dangerous encounter.
● On a 2, an omen of an encounter occurs. Roll 1d6, as above, and describe what the
characters witness.
● Any other result means nothing happens for now.

Opponents
All non-player characters (NPCs) are referred to as Opponents. They have much simpler Stats
than characters.
● Level (Lvl): Determines how powerful the Opponent is, their level of challenge. Used as
the Difficulty of Tests made against them.
● Damage (Dmg): Determines how devastating their attacks are. Used to calculate damage
of their attacks.
● Vitality (V): 1d6 per Lvl. May vary at the Referee's discretion.
● Special Abilities (SA): What the Opponent can do that sets them apart. There are no hard
and fast rules for them.

Reaction
When in doubt about how an Opponent reacts to characters, ask for a Luck Test. Use the Result
on the table below.

Luck Test Result Reaction

-5 Hostile

-4 to -3 Unfriendly

-2 to +2 Unsure

+3 to +4 Friendly

+5 Helpful
 Exploration
The world is full of wonder and horror to be discovered. Adventure awaits!

Rate of Exploration
Characters can normally travel 24 miles per day.
● If carrying more than their Encumbrance Threshold, characters can travel 12 miles per
day.
● Use a hexagonal map, where each hex is 6 miles to a side and 12 miles across.
● When passing through difficult terrain in a hex, characters travel at half speed.
● Characters need to rest for 6 hours per day when traveling, or they need to pass a Body
Test with a Difficulty equal to the number of days without sleeping to keep going.

Getting Lost
When traveling through unknown lands, characters can get lost.
● Ask for a Mind Test with a Difficulty determined by the environment (see table below).
● If the characters are successful, they keep traveling according to their plans.
● If they fail, they get lost and travel to a randomly adjacent hex, believing they are going
the right direction.

Terrain Type Difficulty

Plains, Valleys, Roads 0

Forests, Hills, Badlands 1

Thick Forests, Tundra, Deserts 2

Swamps, Jungles, Mountains 3

Camping
Characters will often need to camp in the wilderness to rest.
● Characters need to find a secure location to make camp. The Referee may ask for a Mind
Test for them to find one.
● Only 1 Random Encounter roll is made when the camp is in a secure location. Otherwise,
make 2 rolls.
 ● Characters can take a Long Rest when the camp is in a secure location. Otherwise they
can take only Short Rests.

The Primal World of Thaia

Don’t forget to get a copy of each issue of The Primal World of Thaia. This zine will present a
primal world of weirdness and adventure for use with Primal Quest and Old-School Essentials!
Each zine will bring new details on the setting, optional rules, character options, adventures and
much more!

For more about The Prinal World of Thaia go to bit.ly/PQThaia.