I half expected this to be about the Appendix N fight.

Anyways, in theory, you shouldn't need anything other than the rpg material and your own creativity.  You can certainly run campaigns using only the information in the book itself and no source material.
But of course, the more you read up, the more well-versed you'll be.  Not just within the genre you're running, but with anything that informs that genre.  

RPGPundit

As people have said cliche is incredibly useful.

I woudl much rather run a game set in a rough copy of "the Star Wars Universe" than a totally unique, original and different Sci fi world becuase the players in "Star Wars" understand the background they get it.

Now I am not talking about cannon wankery, I woudl gleefully change any and all of the details of a Star wars universe with zero reference to teh originals in fact I wouldn't read a single source book most likely I would just riff off what I recall of the movies but that is fine becuase the stuff I recall from the movies is the broad brush stuff that the players will recall from the movies. The gross tastes and textures.
The detail I will add myself and explain toe h players that this is "My" Star wars so whatever I say is what is as it comes from me. But they will know what the space cantina looks like, they will understand the shadow of the large dark wedge of the Empire Battle ship etc etc ...

This is the level of genre you need. Not specifics, the big stuff. How does Conan differ from Lord of the Rings, what makes it Conan-esque (depending on audience I would probably use the movie as a template maybe even have a screening of Arnie in his pomp in the first session before we make PCS) what makes The Skaven great Villans in the Dark Crystal? etc etc .

Now I think RGP books are shit at getting across those broad backgrounds, the warp and wheft of the world. You get a much better feel for what Ravenloft should feel like by watching a few Hammer films and Dance of the Vampires or even reading Jack of Shadows than reading the RPG material (IMHO). So take novels and movies as a stance but use stuff that is well known.

A passing familiarity is usually enough to get by.

It also depends on the game, and how well it familiarises you with the genre and source material.

Cyberpunk 2.0.2.0 still sets the bar for me for hammering the genre home.
TSR's Marvel Super Heroes with its implied tropes (especially the Karma system) and its huge appendix of heroes and villains also makes it easy to stay within the genre and setting of the 80s Marvel universe.

Conversely, both Traveller and Star Frontiers can provide some headscratchers unless you are familiar with the sources of many of their tropes.

Quote from: ArrozConLeche;795943@Bren and @BedrockBrendan,

That's sort of what I figured just trying to imagine myself in the shoes of the GM.



As of now, it's just an idea I'm entertaining and haven't broached it to my friends.

After reading a review of the Crypts and Things, and AS&SH games on this site, I would very much like to try running a game in that swords and sorcery vein with my pals. The only sources I'm familiar with are movies like Krull and Beastmaster, along with the Conan movies from the 80's.

I worry that if that is all I know, anything I set up won't be sustainable in the long run.

There are a lot of advantages to getting into the source material, not least of which is that players are likely to have some acquaintance if they have enough interest in playing.

In my experience, people who know little or nothing of Conan, Fafhrd & Mouser, and Elric - or of science-fiction, superheroes, super-spies, Wild West, Victorian adventurers in Darkest Africa, or what have you - tend to come up short in enthusiasm.

If a game introduction inspires delight, it's a pretty natural response to pick up inspirational sources, as I did when D&D stoked an interest in heroic fantasy (I having previously passed it up in favor of SF).