Never considered scaling down my adventures. Always assumed I had to run everything at full bore and would get overwhelmed in the process. Also like your suggestion to just use the settings and tweaking to my own preferences. Liberating. Very helpful and informative. A lot of great ideas and advice! Really appreciate these vids.
Thanks for those kind words, and happy solo gaming. Yes, it is completely liberating. You can even change mechanics or approaches between adventures if you find something isn't working out. I've run Star Wars solo in at least two different systems and may even us it to try out a third one I'm thinking of (and I want to have a go at just two PC's, maybe an astrodroid or 3PO unit as NPC's). All the best!
Thanks for watching and the nice comment. I keep going back and forth between hit points and "hits" (like three strikes and your out). That may be my next simplification. Not sure yet.
I too am learning Star Trek Captain’s log. One thing I am doing is developing my own Quadrent and then have all my adventures that quadrant. I then keep my logs organized on my computer. I then read previous logs for fun but then look for which ones could have a follow up. I don’t use every character on every episode. I have an epic feel because characters have a history.
I'm doing Star Trek Captain's Log as well. I really enjoy it, as it is right up my alley. Though I do use just a bit from Star Trek Adventures, but not all of it.
@@philhatfield2282 Thanks for watching and all the best with your gaming. Solo Star Trek is great because it can be harder to find a regular Star Trek group. I am usually able to pull together one-shots mostly.
If you like D&D 5th Edition and own the Dungeon Master's Guide, that book has optional rules for playing using only ability scores without skills, or for simplifying the skills. It also has rules for different ways to handle "hero points" and "plot points" which can give more control to the players. I've always read those and thought, "Yeah, I can see how some groups might want to use them." After seeing this video, though, I now think they're extremely useful for a solo player.
Sounds like that reverts it to more of a 1st edition AD&D style. Ironically, the book “DM Yourself” (5e version) recommends 5th edition D&D specifically because it has skills to roll making things more objective.
@@drivers99 I'm not a "my way or the highway" tuber. If those extra skills help a person in their solo gaming, that's great. No matter what your system preference, solo gaming is time well spent. Thanks for watching.
@@drivers99 There's a lot to say about that, but it boils down to this. Original D&D was designed to handle exactly one situation: dungeon crawling. Everything that came after D&D wanted to do more, and they all had to deal with a compromise: how complicated are you willing to get to try to simulate all possibilities? What's worth adding in detail? On one end we have things like GURPS that try to give intensely detailed characters and second-by-second action. On the other we have things like Free Universal that collapse everything down to a scant few traits and let dice rolls cover anything from a moment to hours of work depending on context. I've wrestled with complexity versus efficiency for decades, and I've come to a realization: you could play an RPG by flipping a coin for every interesting decision that isn't obvious. That's all you need. The rest of it is how much of a simulation you want, and frankly, computer algorithms do simulation better than even Phoenix Command. If we want complex simulations, we can play things like Twilight 2000 or Millennium's End. If we want to play a more heroic setting, like Star Wars or an action movie kind of setting, then that complexity isn't needed. If we want to play a _good narrative story_ instead of a _situation,_ though, then the ability to interrupt the system and enforce the players' interests is more important than how many bullets a handgun holds. Which is a lot of words to express what was said in this very video: different people require different amounts of detail to make the game feel right to them. All I meant by my comment was to give a maybe-useful example of how one system has an option to adjust its complexity, that's all. For some that information will be useless. For somebody, though, it could be the reason to stick with the system they already own instead of wasting time scrounging for a perfect system when there simply isn't any such thing.
@@drivers99 TH-cam ate my first reply. The nice thing about the DMG's options is that it's possible to customize 5th Edition for a wide variety of play styles. Original D&D really only handled dungeon crawling, that's it; you had to add other games to it for other situations. For a high-detail game you want those skills; for a solo game of running four PCs by yourself through a dungeon, simpler is better. With 5th Edition you can risk a bit more and still survive, and also custom design the characters, and that's reason enough to play the newer rules in my personal opinion.
Thanks Elise. Hope we get to game together online soon. Enjoyed having you in my Star Trek game. Was ruminating on a Planet of the Apes night on my walk this morning.
Great suggestions with the ability checks, scaling down adventures, and simplifying however you please (it's solo after all!). I would also suggest using a yes/no oracle and open question oracle.
I looked in your previous videos for info about how you adapt and play prewritten adventures. Would you consider doing a video about that? Do you try to preserve any privileged information or mystery from yourself in any way? Or do you read the whole adventure before hand? Many thanks.
Thanks for the kind words and the video suggestion. I'll definitely give it some thoughts. I don't hide any info from myself. Usually even if I have a plan for the session, the dice rolls will at least throw some minor (or major) curves at me. So that's where the mystery or surprise come in for me. Even a fairly linear adventure can go off the rails frequently because of dice rolls. But I rarely run fantasy or dungeon crawls solo, so scifi and superhero games are a bit different beasts.
Thank you. Very informative. I really want to play Star Wars Edge of Empire or Age of Rebellion solo. But these use those FFG custom dice. Any suggestions on how to do it? is it doable at all?
I'm not familiar with the FFG Star Wars line. Like you, the custom dice put me off. I run Star Wars with my homebrew rules light (d20 roll under system). It's very close to the Black Hack, but not identical. So I'd pick just about any lighter system that you enjoy and have a great time. The good thing about solo is that you can always change systems or tweak rules anytime you like.
I have tried to play solo a few times, I have had some success with solo adventure books, though they do tend to confine me more than I would like, but once I start trying to create my own game it only lasts a session maybe 2. I get bogged down juggling everything, keeping track of combat, trying to roll for interesting encounters, then not liking what I rolled, then it becomes a chore and the fun is just not allowed to develop. I did try to run a published adventure last time to see if that would help. It called for a party of 4-6 so I tried handing 4, I think if I can scale it down and run 2 characters it might be better. One thing that makes it even more of a struggle is I know mostly D&D and rather enjoy magic users, which adds more elements of spell books and spell slots, and memorizing spells, I wonder if I could make it more low magic, or find an easy to learn system with less complexity. I'll also check out more of your videos and see if they help add new ideas on systems or streamlining. :)
As you said, scaling it down is the best idea. I recently tried a superhero game "as written" and it was too much. If you are interested in fantasy, try some of the old school systems (Basic Fantasy is free in PDF) and you can even strip them down a bit. All the best in your solo journey. The best part about solo, is that it can be whatever you like and there are no expectations.
I like playing OSE advanced. I have played some pre-made adventures and also some completely random table based games. Now i own a copy of The Halls of Arden Vul, a 1100 pages Multidungeon adventure and i want to start a new solo campaign based on OSE advanced and with making use of Mythic 2e as an oracle, the book of random tables and On Downtime and Demesnes for in between dungeon fun. I think i will use 4 characters but i am wondering if i should keep a log for all characters seperate or one log for the who group, since it is such a large campaign, even if broken down in smaller parts.
I just keep one log for an entire party. That's enough to keep me busy! 4 characters is plenty and sounds like you have a good plan moving forward. Enjoy the solo gaming and thanks for watching and commenting.
Very good suggestions! I play Traveller solo and have streamlined a lot of the repetitive tasks. I really struggled with this concept in the beginning and assumed I needed to follow the rulebook for everything to the letter. I hadn't considered using abilities for skill checks. That might be a bit farther than I want, but I think I will take a look at what skills I can condense down into a smaller pool (such as all Engineering into 1 skill.) Every time I play, I find something where I decide "I can do this better" and I'll adjust my house rules accordingly. I'm currently at 12 pages which covers my own personal touches and makes the game so much faster. I rarely need the core rulebook, which is made easier with Traveller's standard 8+ on 2D6 system for most rolls. I also don't factor in a lot of combat modifiers, which speeds up encounters. I streamline most NPC's to have standard stats without modifiers unless it's a boss which might get a +1 or +2 depending on how hard I want the fight to be. I have a sheet for my Travel Log and oracle, which is a condensed version of several solo GM systems. I couldn't find one that really worked well for me, and I'm still refining it as I go. I'm currently working on supplementing it with the Droyne Coyn system instead of word tables. Same concept, but a bit more "fun" to draw a set of coins. I also have a couple of pages for generating missions, map-as-you-go exploration, locations, ships and NPCs. It all fits in a 1 inch binder with dividers for easy reference, and has plenty of room for more adjustments as needed (hopefully smaller, not larger.)
Sounds like you are well on the way to streamlining. Everyone will land at a different place in terms of complexity, so glad it is working for you! Thanks for watching.
When I've had a GM PC, they tend to stay more in the background, though they can help out with combat and healing. Usually they are just along if the party is small and needs some beefing up. That way the players get to shine a bit more. Plus as the GM, I know too much about where things are going and I may bias the discussion. That's been my experience: GM player characters usually don't work too well beyond being a sidekick. YMMV, depending on your group.
I think if you are wanting to use d&d as system I’d use White Box, Basic Fantasy or B/X. You can fit characters stats on 3x5 notecard. White Box is good because it has a single saving throw value to work with. Plus the pdf is free and physical copy is cheap. The same for Basic Fantasy as well. A simple d6 oracle for yes/no questions is all you really need too.
Agreed, especially on Basic Fantasy (I've been a BFRPG DM for a long time). White Box is nice too, especially as you mentioned with the single save. In fact, they are both good for face to face as well. Thanks for watching and happy gaming.
@@sharpmountaingames9303 working on a more portable way to play solo. So that why I can sit in bed or take it on the go. I have a dotted line notebook that I plan on putting what I need in it. Plus I have my phone for a dice rolling app on it
If you want to add some randomness, have the PC's make a Charisma roll to see how it goes. You could also use a rumor table. Or just roll a die and decide that they get good info on a 1-4, and bad on a 5-6 (or whatever distribution you'd like).
@@sharpmountaingames9303 : B/X was almost a decentralized system. So if you replaced combat with a coin flip, it did not need a rework of -everything else-.
I have played many systems solo over the decades, this led me to create my would-be game, Interstellar Frontiers, which is based on solo play from the ground up. The hardest part with solo play in my opinion, is being engaged; to have the NPCs act 'independently' from what 'we' might want them to do. To achieve this I created a pile of charts to help with this. Try creating a chart using a d100. Assign variables like, "Advance, retreat, evade, hesitate, flee, etc." and using this to determine how an NPC will react in combat. We can create another chart for negotiations, intimidations, and searches. These charts allows us to assign both some chaos factor and some NPC independence. So, in combat, for example: I can roll to determine the foe, be it a single person, beast, or squad-sized unit, their attitude coming into the event; assign modifiers based up on the situation/circumstances (Is the OpFor (opposing force) supported; vested in the event; hired/mercenary, and so on).
@@sharpmountaingames9303 It's more than a philosophy, but part of the system I created called Interstellar Frontiers. A solo world builder (Think: Game of Thrones in Space). I had play testers pushing it pretty hard for a couple of years so I know it works, even if it's a bit chunky.
Interesting video- after buying many “solo games” I am finding solo games to be pages of lists - lists of names, items, monsters, terrain features- is a list now considered a game?
I guess they are supposed to help you randomize your experience. Though I never use them. Once I have an initial idea, I just run with it. Thanks for watching and commenting.
Yeah. I bought Star Trek Adventures Captain's Log and was rather disheartened for how it actually played. I play Traveller and have a few lists for ease of encounter creation, but the vast majority of my "house rules" and shortcuts to speed up the game, not slow it down in looking through lists.
Most people that have used to play with a GM they afraid to play solo because they may get stuck and don't know what to do next or what happens next and after a choice. That's why the books are having so many tables. It's for variety of choices outcomes and randomness. Honestly you need nothing more to be honest. Also, the majority of players forget that the main focus of the RPGs is the Role play and they focus in the rules and mechanisms of how to do everything....
@@hariszark7396 Even asking a question and then rolling a dice for a 50/50 "Yes or No" can add a bit of surprise and randomness to the game. Thanks for watching and commenting.
@@sharpmountaingames9303 Yes it does. But you have to fill the gaps and narrate what happens. That's what most people are afraid of. That's what the tables are helping with. They are not necessary but they are helpful. 😉👍
Never considered scaling down my adventures. Always assumed I had to run everything at full bore and would get overwhelmed in the process. Also like your suggestion to just use the settings and tweaking to my own preferences. Liberating.
Very helpful and informative. A lot of great ideas and advice! Really appreciate these vids.
Thanks for those kind words, and happy solo gaming. Yes, it is completely liberating. You can even change mechanics or approaches between adventures if you find something isn't working out. I've run Star Wars solo in at least two different systems and may even us it to try out a third one I'm thinking of (and I want to have a go at just two PC's, maybe an astrodroid or 3PO unit as NPC's).
All the best!
Thank you talking about a "Simple is Best" philosophy to solo gaming.
Thanks for watching and the nice comment. I keep going back and forth between hit points and "hits" (like three strikes and your out). That may be my next simplification. Not sure yet.
The title interested me and then you mentioned "Star Frontiers" which is my favorite game.
I saw you have a bunch of Star Frontiers stuff on your channel. Good stuff and thanks for watching!
I too am learning Star Trek Captain’s log. One thing I am doing is developing my own Quadrent and then have all my adventures that quadrant. I then keep my logs organized on my computer. I then read previous logs for fun but then look for which ones could have a follow up.
I don’t use every character on every episode. I have an epic feel because characters have a history.
I use old comic books as idea mines. Though I just take elements, not plots (since there is often only one main solution in the comics)
@@sharpmountaingames9303Oh, you might like Plotto… it's a pulp fiction plot generator data mine.
I'm doing Star Trek Captain's Log as well. I really enjoy it, as it is right up my alley. Though I do use just a bit from Star Trek Adventures, but not all of it.
@@philhatfield2282 Thanks for watching and all the best with your gaming. Solo Star Trek is great because it can be harder to find a regular Star Trek group. I am usually able to pull together one-shots mostly.
Really interesting, thanks for the idea on this video.
Thanks for the comment, and happy gaming, solo or group!
If you like D&D 5th Edition and own the Dungeon Master's Guide, that book has optional rules for playing using only ability scores without skills, or for simplifying the skills. It also has rules for different ways to handle "hero points" and "plot points" which can give more control to the players. I've always read those and thought, "Yeah, I can see how some groups might want to use them." After seeing this video, though, I now think they're extremely useful for a solo player.
Great points. If I were running 5E, I'd almost certainly use those simplifications. Thanks for the comment and take care!
Sounds like that reverts it to more of a 1st edition AD&D style. Ironically, the book “DM Yourself” (5e version) recommends 5th edition D&D specifically because it has skills to roll making things more objective.
@@drivers99 I'm not a "my way or the highway" tuber. If those extra skills help a person in their solo gaming, that's great. No matter what your system preference, solo gaming is time well spent. Thanks for watching.
@@drivers99 There's a lot to say about that, but it boils down to this. Original D&D was designed to handle exactly one situation: dungeon crawling. Everything that came after D&D wanted to do more, and they all had to deal with a compromise: how complicated are you willing to get to try to simulate all possibilities? What's worth adding in detail?
On one end we have things like GURPS that try to give intensely detailed characters and second-by-second action. On the other we have things like Free Universal that collapse everything down to a scant few traits and let dice rolls cover anything from a moment to hours of work depending on context.
I've wrestled with complexity versus efficiency for decades, and I've come to a realization: you could play an RPG by flipping a coin for every interesting decision that isn't obvious. That's all you need. The rest of it is how much of a simulation you want, and frankly, computer algorithms do simulation better than even Phoenix Command. If we want complex simulations, we can play things like Twilight 2000 or Millennium's End. If we want to play a more heroic setting, like Star Wars or an action movie kind of setting, then that complexity isn't needed. If we want to play a _good narrative story_ instead of a _situation,_ though, then the ability to interrupt the system and enforce the players' interests is more important than how many bullets a handgun holds.
Which is a lot of words to express what was said in this very video: different people require different amounts of detail to make the game feel right to them. All I meant by my comment was to give a maybe-useful example of how one system has an option to adjust its complexity, that's all. For some that information will be useless. For somebody, though, it could be the reason to stick with the system they already own instead of wasting time scrounging for a perfect system when there simply isn't any such thing.
@@drivers99 TH-cam ate my first reply. The nice thing about the DMG's options is that it's possible to customize 5th Edition for a wide variety of play styles. Original D&D really only handled dungeon crawling, that's it; you had to add other games to it for other situations. For a high-detail game you want those skills; for a solo game of running four PCs by yourself through a dungeon, simpler is better. With 5th Edition you can risk a bit more and still survive, and also custom design the characters, and that's reason enough to play the newer rules in my personal opinion.
I enjoyed your video on solo RPG.
I believe I got some good thing to use.
Thanks
Thanks so much. And let us know how it goes here if you'd like. Happy gaming!
Love this! Thank you!
Thanks Elise. Hope we get to game together online soon. Enjoyed having you in my Star Trek game. Was ruminating on a Planet of the Apes night on my walk this morning.
Great suggestions with the ability checks, scaling down adventures, and simplifying however you please (it's solo after all!). I would also suggest using a yes/no oracle and open question oracle.
I sometimes roll a d6 as an oracle: 1-3 is in the PC's favorm 4-6 isn't. Thanks for watching and all the best!
I looked in your previous videos for info about how you adapt and play prewritten adventures. Would you consider doing a video about that? Do you try to preserve any privileged information or mystery from yourself in any way? Or do you read the whole adventure before hand? Many thanks.
Thanks for the kind words and the video suggestion. I'll definitely give it some thoughts. I don't hide any info from myself. Usually even if I have a plan for the session, the dice rolls will at least throw some minor (or major) curves at me. So that's where the mystery or surprise come in for me. Even a fairly linear adventure can go off the rails frequently because of dice rolls.
But I rarely run fantasy or dungeon crawls solo, so scifi and superhero games are a bit different beasts.
Thank you. Very informative. I really want to play Star Wars Edge of Empire or Age of Rebellion solo. But these use those FFG custom dice. Any suggestions on how to do it? is it doable at all?
I'm not familiar with the FFG Star Wars line. Like you, the custom dice put me off. I run Star Wars with my homebrew rules light (d20 roll under system). It's very close to the Black Hack, but not identical. So I'd pick just about any lighter system that you enjoy and have a great time. The good thing about solo is that you can always change systems or tweak rules anytime you like.
I have tried to play solo a few times, I have had some success with solo adventure books, though they do tend to confine me more than I would like, but once I start trying to create my own game it only lasts a session maybe 2. I get bogged down juggling everything, keeping track of combat, trying to roll for interesting encounters, then not liking what I rolled, then it becomes a chore and the fun is just not allowed to develop.
I did try to run a published adventure last time to see if that would help. It called for a party of 4-6 so I tried handing 4, I think if I can scale it down and run 2 characters it might be better.
One thing that makes it even more of a struggle is I know mostly D&D and rather enjoy magic users, which adds more elements of spell books and spell slots, and memorizing spells, I wonder if I could make it more low magic, or find an easy to learn system with less complexity.
I'll also check out more of your videos and see if they help add new ideas on systems or streamlining. :)
As you said, scaling it down is the best idea. I recently tried a superhero game "as written" and it was too much. If you are interested in fantasy, try some of the old school systems (Basic Fantasy is free in PDF) and you can even strip them down a bit. All the best in your solo journey. The best part about solo, is that it can be whatever you like and there are no expectations.
Looking at this for World of darkness games. Changeling the dreaming mostly.
Great, happy playing! That's a great genre to solo play and journal in.
I like playing OSE advanced. I have played some pre-made adventures and also some completely random table based games. Now i own a copy of The Halls of Arden Vul, a 1100 pages Multidungeon adventure and i want to start a new solo campaign based on OSE advanced and with making use of Mythic 2e as an oracle, the book of random tables and On Downtime and Demesnes for in between dungeon fun. I think i will use 4 characters but i am wondering if i should keep a log for all characters seperate or one log for the who group, since it is such a large campaign, even if broken down in smaller parts.
I just keep one log for an entire party. That's enough to keep me busy! 4 characters is plenty and sounds like you have a good plan moving forward. Enjoy the solo gaming and thanks for watching and commenting.
Very good suggestions! I play Traveller solo and have streamlined a lot of the repetitive tasks. I really struggled with this concept in the beginning and assumed I needed to follow the rulebook for everything to the letter. I hadn't considered using abilities for skill checks. That might be a bit farther than I want, but I think I will take a look at what skills I can condense down into a smaller pool (such as all Engineering into 1 skill.) Every time I play, I find something where I decide "I can do this better" and I'll adjust my house rules accordingly. I'm currently at 12 pages which covers my own personal touches and makes the game so much faster. I rarely need the core rulebook, which is made easier with Traveller's standard 8+ on 2D6 system for most rolls. I also don't factor in a lot of combat modifiers, which speeds up encounters. I streamline most NPC's to have standard stats without modifiers unless it's a boss which might get a +1 or +2 depending on how hard I want the fight to be. I have a sheet for my Travel Log and oracle, which is a condensed version of several solo GM systems. I couldn't find one that really worked well for me, and I'm still refining it as I go. I'm currently working on supplementing it with the Droyne Coyn system instead of word tables. Same concept, but a bit more "fun" to draw a set of coins. I also have a couple of pages for generating missions, map-as-you-go exploration, locations, ships and NPCs. It all fits in a 1 inch binder with dividers for easy reference, and has plenty of room for more adjustments as needed (hopefully smaller, not larger.)
Sounds like you are well on the way to streamlining. Everyone will land at a different place in terms of complexity, so glad it is working for you! Thanks for watching.
Good points. What advice would you have for somebody who wants to GM a small group AND be one of the player characters?
When I've had a GM PC, they tend to stay more in the background, though they can help out with combat and healing. Usually they are just along if the party is small and needs some beefing up. That way the players get to shine a bit more. Plus as the GM, I know too much about where things are going and I may bias the discussion.
That's been my experience: GM player characters usually don't work too well beyond being a sidekick. YMMV, depending on your group.
@@sharpmountaingames9303
Understood. Thank you!
@@robholland412 All the best with your gaming, whether solo or face to face or both. Thanks for watching.
Every creature in the GM's setting is the GM's PC. Every monster. Every NPC. Every songbird. Every fish.
I think if you are wanting to use d&d as system I’d use White Box, Basic Fantasy or B/X. You can fit characters stats on 3x5 notecard. White Box is good because it has a single saving throw value to work with. Plus the pdf is free and physical copy is cheap. The same for Basic Fantasy as well. A simple d6 oracle for yes/no questions is all you really need too.
Agreed, especially on Basic Fantasy (I've been a BFRPG DM for a long time). White Box is nice too, especially as you mentioned with the single save. In fact, they are both good for face to face as well. Thanks for watching and happy gaming.
@@sharpmountaingames9303 working on a more portable way to play solo. So that why I can sit in bed or take it on the go. I have a dotted line notebook that I plan on putting what I need in it. Plus I have my phone for a dice rolling app on it
I will throw out a recommendation for Scarlett Heroes built to streamline & solo D&D. I used it to run one of my most memorable solo games.
I've heard of that one, thanks for the recommendation. All the best!
How do you deal with npcs and asking for information?
If you want to add some randomness, have the PC's make a Charisma roll to see how it goes. You could also use a rumor table. Or just roll a die and decide that they get good info on a 1-4, and bad on a 5-6 (or whatever distribution you'd like).
Why pay for 5e when you can B/X for free with "Basic Fantasy role playing game" !
And you can add skills to BFRPG is you absolutely must have skills (or feats or whatever).
@@sharpmountaingames9303 : B/X was almost a decentralized system. So if you replaced combat with a coin flip, it did not need a rework of -everything else-.
☮
Thanks so much and peace to you as well.
I have played many systems solo over the decades, this led me to create my would-be game, Interstellar Frontiers, which is based on solo play from the ground up. The hardest part with solo play in my opinion, is being engaged; to have the NPCs act 'independently' from what 'we' might want them to do. To achieve this I created a pile of charts to help with this. Try creating a chart using a d100. Assign variables like, "Advance, retreat, evade, hesitate, flee, etc." and using this to determine how an NPC will react in combat. We can create another chart for negotiations, intimidations, and searches. These charts allows us to assign both some chaos factor and some NPC independence. So, in combat, for example: I can roll to determine the foe, be it a single person, beast, or squad-sized unit, their attitude coming into the event; assign modifiers based up on the situation/circumstances (Is the OpFor (opposing force) supported; vested in the event; hired/mercenary, and so on).
Thanks for sharing part of your design philosophy. The NPC thing is a tricky thing to balance and Oracles/charts can help.
@@sharpmountaingames9303 It's more than a philosophy, but part of the system I created called Interstellar Frontiers. A solo world builder (Think: Game of Thrones in Space).
I had play testers pushing it pretty hard for a couple of years so I know it works, even if it's a bit chunky.
Interesting video- after buying many “solo games” I am finding solo games to be pages of lists - lists of names, items, monsters, terrain features- is a list now considered a game?
I guess they are supposed to help you randomize your experience. Though I never use them. Once I have an initial idea, I just run with it. Thanks for watching and commenting.
Yeah. I bought Star Trek Adventures Captain's Log and was rather disheartened for how it actually played. I play Traveller and have a few lists for ease of encounter creation, but the vast majority of my "house rules" and shortcuts to speed up the game, not slow it down in looking through lists.
Most people that have used to play with a GM they afraid to play solo because they may get stuck and don't know what to do next or what happens next and after a choice.
That's why the books are having so many tables.
It's for variety of choices outcomes and randomness.
Honestly you need nothing more to be honest.
Also, the majority of players forget that the main focus of the RPGs is the Role play and they focus in the rules and mechanisms of how to do everything....
@@hariszark7396 Even asking a question and then rolling a dice for a 50/50 "Yes or No" can add a bit of surprise and randomness to the game. Thanks for watching and commenting.
@@sharpmountaingames9303 Yes it does.
But you have to fill the gaps and narrate what happens.
That's what most people are afraid of.
That's what the tables are helping with.
They are not necessary but they are helpful. 😉👍
I found F.O.R.G.R. to be very inspirational for playing osr's solo.
Thanks for the recommendation and for watching. All the best.