Solo Actual Play

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johndice
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Solo Actual Play

Post by johndice »

Heya everyone,

I wasn't quite sure where to post this but thought I'd share it because the subject of playing Basic Fantasy solo comes up quite a lot. Basic Fantasy is one of my favorite rulesets to use in solo play, so I thought I'd share this small actual play I made of the Bear Dungeon found in Basic Fantasy Adventure Anthology 2. Maybe it will be interesting to others interested in solo play,

(
The Bear Dungeon actual play.pdf
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Cheerio!
John
GrimlinJoe
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Re: Solo Actual Play

Post by GrimlinJoe »

johndice wrote: Wed Feb 03, 2021 10:51 am Heya everyone,

I wasn't quite sure where to post this but thought I'd share it because the subject of playing Basic Fantasy solo comes up quite a lot. Basic Fantasy is one of my favorite rulesets to use in solo play, so I thought I'd share this small actual play I made of the Bear Dungeon found in Basic Fantasy Adventure Anthology 2. Maybe it will be interesting to others interested in solo play,

(The Bear Dungeon actual play.pdf)

Cheerio!
John
Love this. This is awesome to see
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billiambabble
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Re: Solo Actual Play

Post by billiambabble »

I've never used an oracle or Mythic to help with solo gaming with older systems, but I haven't often got very far in prewritten modules. These approaches seem a little abstract for me and I'm having trouble understanding this write-up (because of my lack of knowledge). Do you still feel in control of the characters? (genuine question btw)
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johndice
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Re: Solo Actual Play

Post by johndice »

Heya! Yes, very much so. Its an emulation of the GM aspect. Like waiting for the GM to respond to whatever your character decides to do, but its a little more structured.

Normal Example:
Player: I kick in the door of the tavern to make an an impression!

GM: hmm a group of rowdy dwarves look at you angrily as you interrupt their drinking song.

Solo Example:
Player: I kick in the door of the tavern to make an an impression!

GM emulator: I roll to see what my character finds inside and roll greed/musical.

I ask 'are these dwarves?' The result is Yes, and...

I ask are they angry? The result is yes.

I interpret everything as:

a group of rowdy dwarves look at you angrily as you interrupt their drinking song.

Cheerio!
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billiambabble
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Re: Solo Actual Play

Post by billiambabble »

Interesting. Thanks for breaking it down this way, I may have to investigate further. :)
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Calcifer23
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Re: Solo Actual Play

Post by Calcifer23 »

johndice wrote: Wed Feb 03, 2021 10:51 am Heya everyone,

I wasn't quite sure where to post this but thought I'd share it because the subject of playing Basic Fantasy solo comes up quite a lot. Basic Fantasy is one of my favorite rulesets to use in solo play, so I thought I'd share this small actual play I made of the Bear Dungeon found in Basic Fantasy Adventure Anthology 2. Maybe it will be interesting to others interested in solo play,

(The Bear Dungeon actual play.pdf)

Cheerio!
John
This is so awesome! I love the format, it was an enjoyable read. :) Inspiring me to start a solo adventure, never used a module before, you made it look so easy!
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johndice
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Re: Solo Actual Play

Post by johndice »

Thanks a bunch, glad to provide the insight!
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tkdco2
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Re: Solo Actual Play

Post by tkdco2 »

I played a solo game yesterday. My electricity was knocked out all day, so I created 4 characters and started playing. I had drawn one of the dungeons from AA1, but I stocked it with my own monsters and traps instead.

The characters were all level 4: elf fighter/magic-user, halfling thief, human cleric, human fighter. They got scalded from boiling oil falling from the ceiling, got surprised by goblins, who put up a good fight, and put some orcs to sleep. Everyone survived, although they were all injured. I gave xp for monsters defeated (surrenders count) and gold.

I've played solo games before, especially when players were hard to come by. I've never used a GM Emulator, since I played my solo games long before the emulators came out. I have used a few die rolls to determine a couple of results, such as characters voting which passage to take.
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teaman
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Re: Solo Actual Play

Post by teaman »

Solo is also a great way to try out a new scenario. It helps me know if I've made things too tough or too easy.

Also, old school rulesets are MUCH easier to run solo. You can get through a lot of adventure since you aren't waiting on players to decide their next move. The flip side is that you don't have the social aspect. However, solo gaming is better than no gaming.
Teaman is the sole proprietor of Sharp Mountain Games at roll20 and DTRPG

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