Investigation mechanics, like social mechanics, to me seem hit or miss in OSR games, I see there use in certain cases, and a good GM often can do a good mystery or social encounter without any underlying mechanic,

I've never seen social mechanics to be required, I use the good 2d6 reaction roll for discerning my NPCs initial disposition but that is it.


But as for Investigation, I haven't seen any OSR game that had an outlined mechanic or subsystem for handling the concept at all, even as just a guidepost like the 2d6 reaction roll for social mechanics.

What kind of investigation mechanics are you looking for? Investigation is an aspect of game play that the players get to have fun with. I am not sure that reducing the activity to some die rolls would be much fun.

I think when most people talk Investigation mechanics in a TRPG, they're usually thinking of what might be more precisely called "evidence gathering mechanics": research, forensics, lip reading, cryptography, that sort of thing. Most of that stuff does I think need to be rolled, even in an OSR game.

I'm not aware of any OSR game that has those kind of skills, at least not a fantasy one. Stars Without Number might have them, and so might Machinations of the Space Princess, but it's been a while since I cracked either book.

If you're willing to go out of the pure OSR and into the OSR-adjacent space, there's stuff like Rats in the Walls, or a more skills-based game like Warlock! or Dragonbane might have it.

I run a fair number of investigation adventures in my OSR campaigns. What I do, and what I think most people do, is handle that sort of thing through a combination of the game's native skill set (so using Bushcraft for crime scene investigation or similar), and just using attribute checks.

Quote from: ForgottenF on June 06, 2024, 10:14:42 PMI think when most people talk Investigation mechanics in a TRPG, they're usually thinking of what might be more precisely called "evidence gathering mechanics": research, forensics, lip reading, cryptography, that sort of thing. Most of that stuff does I think need to be rolled, even in an OSR game.

I'm not aware of any OSR game that has those kind of skills, at least not a fantasy one. Stars Without Number might have them, and so might Machinations of the Space Princess, but it's been a while since I cracked either book.

If you're willing to go out of the pure OSR and into the OSR-adjacent space, there's stuff like Rats in the Walls, or a more skills-based game like Warlock! or Dragonbane might have it.

I run a fair number of investigation adventures in my OSR campaigns. What I do, and what I think most people do, is handle that sort of thing through a combination of the game's native skill set (so using Bushcraft for crime scene investigation or similar), and just using attribute checks.

That's more along the lines of what I meant, but making them a skill roll doesn't sit right with me either, in the same way persuasion as a skill never sat right with me.

So more or less yes, but in the same way the 2d6 reaction roll is flexible and non-intrusive, it's informative not a replacement for roleplay and actual thinking.

GURPS Mysteries has a good discussion of running investigation games.  One good piece of advice therein is not to make it too hard for the players to figure out.

Mercenaries Spies and Private Eyes has a decent essay on running mystery games.

I wrote a chapter on running investigations and capers for Galaxies In Shadow, but then I've got a good chunk of a chapter on running sports in game.