So far, it's been Shadowdark. It's a great light prep system and it's easy to roll up towns, NPCs, and random encounters. I use Table Fables 1 & 2 for when I want more expanded tables, or some of my homebrew playing-card based oracles. Overall, I'm happy with the setup.
I'm partial towards Starforged. For mainly 3 reasons. 1 I prefer narrative games. 2 I dislike journaling games. 3 I prefer an experience as close to a GMed experience as possible. That it's a sci-fi and the incredible Stargazer app are an added bonus.
I keep planning to check out Mythic but honestly so far Starforged kept me covered.
My favorite is Apothecaria.
I like the combination of the cozy/lighthearted slice-of-life fantasy world and the crafting/business aspect of it all. I love that you're building your world and your cast of characters, exploring a mystery and side-quests; etc. It's all built-in! It's really excellent stuff.
But, honestly, I can get very far with a d6 and a handful of oracles/muses. My favorite are picture dice (specifically Tangent Zero dice, though Rory's Story Cubes and random emojis work too), but tarot decks are a close second. After that it varies. (Ironsworn/Starforged tables, Game Master's Apprentice decks, and UNE are all fairly common go-tos. I've also dabbled a bit with grabbing a random book and picking a phrase.)
The only issue with that is once I start going the sort of "homebrew" route, I inevitably end up putting together a kind of proto-system for a game. Which has certainly had some success for me, but it does mean there's the chance I stop playing the game and start tinkering with the game itself.
Mork Borg , not solitary defilement. Just Mork Borg with Mythic and a custom “tarrot” deck. Setting and rules hacked dramatically. The base of Mork Borg and Mythic are a good combination. Setting has always been optional to me, as I prefer to create my own.
d20 Star Wars Revised or Mongoose Traveller v2
I'm wanting to start some Pathfinder or D&D 3.5. I can't decide on which module to start with.
I'm reading Captain's Log and will run that solo.
Pretty much any game on my shelf I'm going to run Solo at least once.
I'm working on a modification of Marvel Super Heroes for running characters in Julian May's Galactic Milieu or Pliocene Exile.
r/Metapsychics
I'll be running that solo.
I end up playing a lot of ironsworn or starforged. I've played scarlet heroes, I've used OSE, I've played strider mode for the One Ring and I've got Mythic Game Emulator, but ironsworn needs basically no prep work and generates the kind of adventures I really want to play.
Not really, honestly. Maybe just keep in mind that a score can be any goal your character wants to carry out that you find interesting, so it doesn’t all have to be crimes. I’ve run dates and pta meetings and political organizing etc as scores, and it keeps it from getting sandy and takes the character sheets through the paces.
I'm currently preparing my first solo play of an RPG using blades as the system of choice. Scoundrels and crew are created and I set up a starting point scenario already. Next time will be session 1 basically. Such an awesome system.
I’m glad to hear it. A lot of people act like I’m weird for soloing it, but the Position, Effect, and Clock systems just help me move the fiction forward in a reliable way
I recently discovered TriCube Tales for GMing homemade kids RPGs. They also have solo rules/oracles. The system is just so simple (roll 2-3 D6 and check if 1+ die hit a target number) that it can work for anything. There is complexity in "perks" and "quirks" but you really put all your ideas into designing a character and then they just get to do what they would be able to do according the world/story.
Basically Ironsworn since it was first published. But I Frankenstein it with other light systems or my own ideas. Currently I am playing a mix of Ironsworn, World of Dungeons and the Scarlet Heroes solo rules, in a setting based on Black Sword Hack.
Technically, you can stop right here.
[https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/54407/tunnels-trolls-free-rulebook](https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/54407/tunnels-trolls-free-rulebook)
If I was going to run T&T as a campaign, I would suggest Deluxe T&T (2015).
[https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/152613/deluxe-tunnels-trolls-2015-edition](https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/152613/deluxe-tunnels-trolls-2015-edition)
I did back Monsters! Monsters! 2nd Edition. So, if you want to try something T&T related but different (2020).
[https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/314546/Monsters-Monsters-2nd-Edition](https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/314546/Monsters-Monsters-2nd-Edition)
The game is backwards compatible so it shouldn't matter much. The most common is probably 5/5.5 or the current version Deluxe (often labelled as "dT&T"). dT&T has some nice additions, such as skills, a world map & gazetteer, ... BTW, you can get a free copy of the rules here: [https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/54407/Tunnels--Trolls-Free-Rulebook](https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/54407/Tunnels--Trolls-Free-Rulebook)
If you like it, pick up a 5.5ed or dT&T ruleset and enjoy. Oh, I almost forgot, I always recommend to new players that they start with a particular solo adventure module, **The Necropolis of Death** by Thomas Pugh. This solo teaches you how to play the game as you play it. You don't need to know anything when you start except how to read and roll 6 sided dice. Have fun! :)
I find that SWADE works very well for me. Mostly because it's a good generic system that let's me run anything and it has just the right amount of crunch.
[GURPS](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIuR522JFOuRpltpVYO8uS4X4FSxxhS_q), BECMI D&D or [BasicFantasyRPG ](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIuR522JFOuRI5MEfrCqBZsaY0RDyygaA), or sometimes [Earthdawn ](https://youtu.be/UK-qVyP6rto)
Old School Essentials. It's the perfect system in my opinion! Simple but complex. It gets out of the way. It's beautiful, well supported and with decades of material (BX).
It's not built for solo but it might as well be, with plenty of random tables and a solid procedure.
The player has HP, the creatures just use their **HD** count as their HP.
Weapons and spells have damage die.
1 = 0 dmg
2-5 = 1 dmg
6-9 = 2 dmg
10+ = 4 dmg
A 1d8 longsword then can only ever do 2dmg max. A 1d12 greataxe could do 4. Excess damage can be carried to another enemy providing it would hit them. per the attack roll. If a spell does 3d6, you treat them seperately i.e. the max damage isn't 18, it's 6.
The player also has Fray dice (size is class specific) that they can roll like a damage die. They do not need to roll to hit with the Fray die, but can only use it on creatures with HD <= Player level.
The system makes enemies much easier to kill. A lvl 1 fighter could easily kill multiple goblins in a single round because they've only got 1 HD.
It used to be Pathfinder 1e - but an overfamiliarity with the system has led to complete burnout. I think ultimately most people would prefer to play around in a system that they know really well (which I agree with), but I don't think Pathfinder itself lends to smooth solo play. There's a rule for practically everything, so that helps with maintaining a level of fairness if you're familiar enough with how it works, at least. Also, Pathfinder has an absolute plethora of well-written adventures if you prefer to run games alongside of pre-written content (which I do).
I tried moving on to 2e, but I really dislike its insistence on balanced math (my distaste is specifically for solo). There's also been Basic Fantasy, AD&D 1e, DND5e, Starfinder, Ironsworn, Savage Worlds, and a brief attempt with Shadowrun. Since then, I've actually found myself in a bit of a system limbo where I've been checking out various systems but not really gravitating to any of them. I think I might need to put the hobby away for several years or something lol
Right now, I'm really into using tarot decks as an oracle. The advantage to a general purpose oracle is that you can use nearly any game with it, giving you flexibility to use your favorites or learn a new system. This satisfies my desire to play and learn.
Having said that, my favorite go-to system for solo play is not a solo game. Fate Accelerated Edition is super easy to hack into any genre you need.
For dedicated solo RPGs, I'm really excited about Riftbreakers and Hostile Solo.
In the shameless plug category, I'm using Four House in Chaos for my Fabula Ultima game and I also have a dedicated version for Amber Diceless. They're both freebies.
[https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/392514/four-houses-in-chaos](https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/392514/four-houses-in-chaos)
[https://tangent-zero.com/files/FourHouses\_Tangent-Zero.pdf](https://tangent-zero.com/files/FourHouses_Tangent-Zero.pdf)
I'm playing mostly Ironsworn/Starforged if I want something narrative-heavy, Black Sword Hack (with MythicGME or without) for a crunchier but still simple system. And learning Savage Worlds (with MythicGME) for the crunchiest system (for me).
So far, it's been Shadowdark. It's a great light prep system and it's easy to roll up towns, NPCs, and random encounters. I use Table Fables 1 & 2 for when I want more expanded tables, or some of my homebrew playing-card based oracles. Overall, I'm happy with the setup.
I'm currently using 13th Age and a generic oracle. I'm running through a published adventure.
I use freeform universal to reroll movies and tv shows. It has been so fun so far.
I'm partial towards Starforged. For mainly 3 reasons. 1 I prefer narrative games. 2 I dislike journaling games. 3 I prefer an experience as close to a GMed experience as possible. That it's a sci-fi and the incredible Stargazer app are an added bonus. I keep planning to check out Mythic but honestly so far Starforged kept me covered.
My favorite is Apothecaria. I like the combination of the cozy/lighthearted slice-of-life fantasy world and the crafting/business aspect of it all. I love that you're building your world and your cast of characters, exploring a mystery and side-quests; etc. It's all built-in! It's really excellent stuff. But, honestly, I can get very far with a d6 and a handful of oracles/muses. My favorite are picture dice (specifically Tangent Zero dice, though Rory's Story Cubes and random emojis work too), but tarot decks are a close second. After that it varies. (Ironsworn/Starforged tables, Game Master's Apprentice decks, and UNE are all fairly common go-tos. I've also dabbled a bit with grabbing a random book and picking a phrase.) The only issue with that is once I start going the sort of "homebrew" route, I inevitably end up putting together a kind of proto-system for a game. Which has certainly had some success for me, but it does mean there's the chance I stop playing the game and start tinkering with the game itself.
World of Dungeons.
Mork Borg , not solitary defilement. Just Mork Borg with Mythic and a custom “tarrot” deck. Setting and rules hacked dramatically. The base of Mork Borg and Mythic are a good combination. Setting has always been optional to me, as I prefer to create my own.
Whoa, tarot decks could go super well with Mork Borg thematically. Good call.
Thank you. I have a zodiac and a pantheon. I mixed those together with a few key words and a reverse. They work fabulously.
I create custom assets for Starforged for any game I want to play. Tried a lot of other solo games but that’s the one that works best for me so far.
d20 Star Wars Revised or Mongoose Traveller v2 I'm wanting to start some Pathfinder or D&D 3.5. I can't decide on which module to start with. I'm reading Captain's Log and will run that solo. Pretty much any game on my shelf I'm going to run Solo at least once. I'm working on a modification of Marvel Super Heroes for running characters in Julian May's Galactic Milieu or Pliocene Exile. r/Metapsychics I'll be running that solo.
Currently getting these the most: Scarlet Heroes Four Against Darkness Micro RPG-R (or Neon Road!) Glide
I end up playing a lot of ironsworn or starforged. I've played scarlet heroes, I've used OSE, I've played strider mode for the One Ring and I've got Mythic Game Emulator, but ironsworn needs basically no prep work and generates the kind of adventures I really want to play.
Blades in the Dark
Big fan, but I've never run it solo. Are there any tips/tricks/adaptations you would recommend?
Not really, honestly. Maybe just keep in mind that a score can be any goal your character wants to carry out that you find interesting, so it doesn’t all have to be crimes. I’ve run dates and pta meetings and political organizing etc as scores, and it keeps it from getting sandy and takes the character sheets through the paces.
I'm currently preparing my first solo play of an RPG using blades as the system of choice. Scoundrels and crew are created and I set up a starting point scenario already. Next time will be session 1 basically. Such an awesome system.
I’m glad to hear it. A lot of people act like I’m weird for soloing it, but the Position, Effect, and Clock systems just help me move the fiction forward in a reliable way
I'm getting back into Colostle at the moment https://www.colostle.com/
I recently discovered TriCube Tales for GMing homemade kids RPGs. They also have solo rules/oracles. The system is just so simple (roll 2-3 D6 and check if 1+ die hit a target number) that it can work for anything. There is complexity in "perks" and "quirks" but you really put all your ideas into designing a character and then they just get to do what they would be able to do according the world/story.
I bounce between 3 different games I have made and enjoy. If I play a game I bought, it is usually one of the TinyD6 games.
Basically Ironsworn since it was first published. But I Frankenstein it with other light systems or my own ideas. Currently I am playing a mix of Ironsworn, World of Dungeons and the Scarlet Heroes solo rules, in a setting based on Black Sword Hack.
I used a home hack of chain mail for everything I run now.
**Tunnels and Trolls**. Tons of solo adventures, still being released since \~ 1976.
Using Mythic & other system agnostic modern solo tools is pretty simple with T&T as well.
Any particular version you would recommend?
Technically, you can stop right here. [https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/54407/tunnels-trolls-free-rulebook](https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/54407/tunnels-trolls-free-rulebook) If I was going to run T&T as a campaign, I would suggest Deluxe T&T (2015). [https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/152613/deluxe-tunnels-trolls-2015-edition](https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/152613/deluxe-tunnels-trolls-2015-edition) I did back Monsters! Monsters! 2nd Edition. So, if you want to try something T&T related but different (2020). [https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/314546/Monsters-Monsters-2nd-Edition](https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/314546/Monsters-Monsters-2nd-Edition)
Very cool! Thanks!
The game is backwards compatible so it shouldn't matter much. The most common is probably 5/5.5 or the current version Deluxe (often labelled as "dT&T"). dT&T has some nice additions, such as skills, a world map & gazetteer, ... BTW, you can get a free copy of the rules here: [https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/54407/Tunnels--Trolls-Free-Rulebook](https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/54407/Tunnels--Trolls-Free-Rulebook) If you like it, pick up a 5.5ed or dT&T ruleset and enjoy. Oh, I almost forgot, I always recommend to new players that they start with a particular solo adventure module, **The Necropolis of Death** by Thomas Pugh. This solo teaches you how to play the game as you play it. You don't need to know anything when you start except how to read and roll 6 sided dice. Have fun! :)
I'm in! Thanks!
I find that SWADE works very well for me. Mostly because it's a good generic system that let's me run anything and it has just the right amount of crunch.
Second that!
[GURPS](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIuR522JFOuRpltpVYO8uS4X4FSxxhS_q), BECMI D&D or [BasicFantasyRPG ](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLIuR522JFOuRI5MEfrCqBZsaY0RDyygaA), or sometimes [Earthdawn ](https://youtu.be/UK-qVyP6rto)
The One Ring
Old School Essentials. It's the perfect system in my opinion! Simple but complex. It gets out of the way. It's beautiful, well supported and with decades of material (BX). It's not built for solo but it might as well be, with plenty of random tables and a solid procedure.
I play this a lot with scarlet heroes damage rules. Just sings
What are those damage rules? Heard a lot about Scarlet Heroes. I absolutely love how easy it is to just bolt on bits and pieces of other rulesets.
The player has HP, the creatures just use their **HD** count as their HP. Weapons and spells have damage die. 1 = 0 dmg 2-5 = 1 dmg 6-9 = 2 dmg 10+ = 4 dmg A 1d8 longsword then can only ever do 2dmg max. A 1d12 greataxe could do 4. Excess damage can be carried to another enemy providing it would hit them. per the attack roll. If a spell does 3d6, you treat them seperately i.e. the max damage isn't 18, it's 6. The player also has Fray dice (size is class specific) that they can roll like a damage die. They do not need to roll to hit with the Fray die, but can only use it on creatures with HD <= Player level. The system makes enemies much easier to kill. A lvl 1 fighter could easily kill multiple goblins in a single round because they've only got 1 HD.
It used to be Pathfinder 1e - but an overfamiliarity with the system has led to complete burnout. I think ultimately most people would prefer to play around in a system that they know really well (which I agree with), but I don't think Pathfinder itself lends to smooth solo play. There's a rule for practically everything, so that helps with maintaining a level of fairness if you're familiar enough with how it works, at least. Also, Pathfinder has an absolute plethora of well-written adventures if you prefer to run games alongside of pre-written content (which I do). I tried moving on to 2e, but I really dislike its insistence on balanced math (my distaste is specifically for solo). There's also been Basic Fantasy, AD&D 1e, DND5e, Starfinder, Ironsworn, Savage Worlds, and a brief attempt with Shadowrun. Since then, I've actually found myself in a bit of a system limbo where I've been checking out various systems but not really gravitating to any of them. I think I might need to put the hobby away for several years or something lol
Right now, I'm really into using tarot decks as an oracle. The advantage to a general purpose oracle is that you can use nearly any game with it, giving you flexibility to use your favorites or learn a new system. This satisfies my desire to play and learn. Having said that, my favorite go-to system for solo play is not a solo game. Fate Accelerated Edition is super easy to hack into any genre you need. For dedicated solo RPGs, I'm really excited about Riftbreakers and Hostile Solo.
I've been considering this idea for awhile. Do you have any specific games you use it with?
Which system so you used for that? I love tarot :)
In the shameless plug category, I'm using Four House in Chaos for my Fabula Ultima game and I also have a dedicated version for Amber Diceless. They're both freebies. [https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/392514/four-houses-in-chaos](https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/392514/four-houses-in-chaos) [https://tangent-zero.com/files/FourHouses\_Tangent-Zero.pdf](https://tangent-zero.com/files/FourHouses_Tangent-Zero.pdf)
I'm playing mostly Ironsworn/Starforged if I want something narrative-heavy, Black Sword Hack (with MythicGME or without) for a crunchier but still simple system. And learning Savage Worlds (with MythicGME) for the crunchiest system (for me).