Core Position
Where Oath-Bound departs from the AD&D 1e baseline and why. This section establishes the frame within which all other rules operate — the principles that shaped the design decisions, the scope of deviation from the source system, and two specific areas where Oath-Bound takes a defined position: alignment and rule weight.
Read this section before the domain-specific rules. The decisions recorded here explain why the rest of the system looks the way it does.
Underlying Principles
The core design commitments that govern Oath-Bound as a system. What the game is trying to do, what it is not trying to do, and the values that resolve conflicts when rules and fiction pull in different directions.
System Deviations
A structured overview of where and how Oath-Bound departs from the AD&D 1e rules. Organised by domain. The companion to the DMGO — where the DMGO records the relationship chapter by chapter, this page provides a cross-cutting summary of the deviations as a system.
Alignment in Oath-Bound
Alignment as written in AD&D does not translate directly into Oath-Bound. This page explains the Oath-Bound position — what replaces the alignment axis, how the pantheon and covenant system carry the load that alignment carried in the source material, and what this means in practice for character creation and play.
Rules Used Softly and Hard
Not all rules carry the same weight at the table. Some are applied strictly; others are treated as defaults that yield to fiction and referee judgment. This page identifies which rules fall into which category and why — a practical guide to where the system expects precision and where it expects discretion.