Solo Gaming Experiment

Kal-Arath as a Solo RPG Experiment

I have realized what the difficulty is with Druid Quest. I need more experience with Solo Gaming to get the mechanics and procedures in line with what I’m trying to accomplish with this game.

This post outlines my plan to start a Solo Gaming Campaign and learn some new things! There are quite a few links in this post, mostly to the various resources I’ll be using for the solo play.

I am not going to make a “how to solo roleplay” video or blog, there are plenty of those already. This series will be How I Solo Game, because it will include individual-, party-, faction-, and army-scaled play sessions.

There is an excellent resource called Kal-Arath, by the astounding

Castle Grief

which I’ll be using as the playtest vehicle.

Description

Kal -Arath is a completely self-contained 56 page booklet of rules, setting, and tables designed for solo, co-op, and group play.

Or, you can just as easily lean into the setting, procedural gameplay and many included tables using your own favorite fantasy ttrpg rules.

The game includes procedural rules that are a breeze for the solo player or the zero-prep group or co-op session: overland travel/hex crawling is broken down into different phases that create a satisfying gameplay loop and keep the action going.

Oracles, Starting Adventure Seeds, Points of Interest, Encounters, Settlements, NPCs, Dungeons, Items - all of these have their own tables for generation, and combined together create a setting flavorful setting that emerges from the tables themselves - and over 25 pieces of original, hand drawn art.

The included ruleset is a 2d6 system that blends my favorite aspects of Barbaric!, Mörk Borg, Black Sword Hack and OD&D.

The booklet is available on Drivethru and I give it five stars! Kal-Arath on Drivethru

We will start using the KA combat rules, but when The Killing Fields edits are done (later this week, good Lord willing & the creek don’t rise) we’ll switch over to that.

Logbook

I’ll be keeping notes on play and on the mechanics involved in a notebook, pen & paper style, because it stimulates creative thinking and enhances comprehension and information retention.

The Map

To begin I created a large-scale regional map, using a 18” x 24” hexmap sheet.

(The new yootoob playlist has a video of this procedure. Kal-Arath Solo Gaming)

These hexes are 25 miles across, and only navigable waterways are shown on this scale. I have to admit I have a hankering to set this up as a campaign play resource in the itchio page… (what do you think?)

For actual play, hexcrawls and such, I’ll be using a smaller map, with 5 mile hexes.

The large, superimposed hexes are 25 miles, with a symbol of the terrain type in the center of each hex. I made a custom chart for determining what kind of terrain is in each of the 5-mile sub-hexes.

During play the smaller-scale map will be filled in, with terrain types, placenames, small settlements and so on.

Tools

We’ll be using several tools to facilitate this solo gaming, primarily the KA booklet with some help from the Mythic Game Master Emulator when there is a hole or question KA doesn’t have an answer for. We’ll also be pulling out different concepts with which to experiment in the gameplay loop.

If we need to look further out for help, like with monsters or encounters, etc, we will go to OD&D and the draft Druid Quest rules. As the campaign progresses & we get more comfortable with the gameplay loop, we’ll add more and more of the Druid Quest ideas and mechanics. The Event Deck will likely be the first addition.

If we need to run a dungeon I have the Four Against Darkness book, and Axebane’s Deck of Many Dungeons.

I have also borrowed an idea from Tales of Argosa, the “Bones” oracle. Daniel of Bandit’s Keep yootoob channel has used these dice to great effect in his own Solo Gaming.

These are DIY - Sharpie marker (or white acrylic paint, on the blue die) on blank dice.

Practice Session Video Posts

I have run a practice session using the hexcrawl procedures and a short video describing the process is being edited. I’ll share it in another full-length post, with the session notes & narrative writing.

The next practice session will be of a dungeon delve, using the Four Against Darkness. Once I have worked out the basic process I’ll start making videos in the “Let’s Play” style, rather than recaps.

I want you all to be able to see the sausage get made!

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