(no subject)

[darchildre]

I keep doing this stupid thing where I get linked to what claims to be a module for D&D (or a similar game) that's designed for solo play and I get excited and decide to try it out and then discover that it's just another Choose Your Own Adventure style gamebook with dice.

And I get it - the idea is to create a module that has a level of detail comparable to a GM-ed game without spoiling the solo player for what's going to happen next. I can't easily think of a way to accomplish both of those goals without making something that's CYOA style. And clearly CYOA style play works for a lot of people, or people on the solo roleplaying subreddit wouldn't keep recommending Tunnels and Trolls' solo stuff. But it doesn't work for me at all and I always end up disappointed to find it's the only option out there for pre-written stuff.

Comments

[silveradept]

I'm having trouble visualizing what something other than CYOA style would look like for this. Gamebooks are fine and dandy for those that want them, but I'm interested in what you would prefer.

[darchildre]

Yeah, that's the problem - I can't figure out how to accomplish what I would want either. Which is, basically, a pre-written D&D module that would give the user the spine of a plotline but still allow for creativity and improvisation, the way GM-ed modules do, but would be written with the assumption that the user is both PC and GM. I have no idea how to do that - if I ever figure it out, I'll write one myself and make tens of dollars (the market for indie solo rpgs not being particularly huge).

[silveradept]

Sounds a little like the cozy game modules or the one page RPGs available on itch. Even though many of them need or want a facilitator, they're usually pretty open ended and have a skeleton of a plot or they do a dice roll to set up the possible scenarios.

Maybe a system of some sort that applies modifiers to the adventure based on your skill rolls and successes, laying out a basic thing that happens in their space, but then tells the player they have to apply Z numbers of the good and less good modifiers to that basic narrative to make it work for themselves, and the goal is to get the PCs through the adventure and use all the necessary GM modifiers associated with the adventure. (What modes you have available to use are based on how well you did with the previous parts of the adventure.)