This "week" I look at the game Duel in the Dark.  This is a two player game with a solo variant build in.  It is set in WWII Europe.  British bombers are attacking your German cities and you need to defend them from the onslaught.  In this weird game, victory points are gained when other side moves into your space.

In this episode I very quickly look at using Rory's Story Cubes for solo RPG gaming.  I also spend some time talking with A.J. Porfirio about Hostage Negotiator which is just now on Kickstarter.

This episode is once again mostly about Print and Play games.  Specifically, I talk to Chris Hansen about the Solitaire PnP Design Contest going on right now as well as about his new endeavor with White Dog Games.  Finally, I l look at the solitaire RPG, Chronicles of Arax.

Episode 40 is here!  In this episode I talk a lot about print & play games.  I go into tools, supplies and even a bit about technique.  Then, I review a game which was originally a commercial game but is now available as PnP.

• Barbarian Prince on BGG

• The Game Crafter
• Print and Play Productions
• ArtsCow
• Printer Studio
• Meeple Source
• Mini Poker Chips from Discount Poker Shop

What follows is the session report I wrote as I played Mouse Guard solitaire using the Mythic RPG rules to play without a GM.  Text in parenthesis is game information such as dice roles.  Any parenthetical section that has MR refers to a Mythic Roll.  The rest are all pretty much about Mouse Guard rules.

Introduction

It is the late in the fall of 1152.  In the towers of Lockhaven, Sadie and Saxon report to Gwendolyn who has called for the two Guardmice in the early evening.  “I need you to patrol the trail between Rootwallow and Barkstone.  A grain peddler has gone missing.  Find him.”  No other instructions are necessary other than the formality of details.  However, Gwendolyn pulls Sadie aside and quietly, but within the hearing of Saxon, says “This grain peddler might be a spy selling secrets about Lockhaven.  I need you to determine if it’s true or not.”

• Sadie’s goal for this mission is to find the grain peddler and determine if he is a spy or not.
• Saxon’s goal is to protect Sadie from any physical harm.

GM’s turn

The grain peddler

Having determined that the peddler grain peddler started about 4 days ago and the trip to Barkstone is about 8 days Sadie and Saxon head for an area about halfway between the two points.  (Low challenge/Above Average skill roll to determine how good her guess is. MR =  54%) He is in the vicinity and the mice try to locate him (Scout 6).  Sadie tries to find evidence of the grain peddler, such as tracks or trails (using her Scout 2 skill).  Saxon looks for a path (using Pathfinder 5).  After a few hours of Fruitless searching, the mice are sure they have lost the grain peddler.  Sadie stops the team and decides they need a rest to recollect there thoughts.  While snacking on some breads, Saxon notices that the leaves running next to the trail are overturned.  They look like a wagon has passed through here.   (Sadie used a Fate point). The mice have there energy renewed and keep moving.  Shortly they catch up to the wagon a short distance from the trail.

Once they have reached the cart, the Mice Guard find the grain peddler resting on the far side of it hiding up against a tree.  He is sound asleep.  (High/Avg to determine if the mice think to look for anything in the grain cart.  MR = 60%).  Sadie decides to wake him, though Saxon cautions against that.  Thinking it may be easier to search him first.  Sadie decides that is not honorable enough and not the way a mouse of the Guard should behave.  Instead she wakes him with a mild kick on his thigh.  (Is the grain peddler startled and nervous when awoken?  Low/Average.  MR = 64%).  The grain peddler is startled when awoken and appears obviously nervous by the mice.  He backs up against the tree and demands, in a nervous voice, “Who are you?  I’ve done nothing wrong!  Please, don’t rob me!”.

Sadie tries to respond re-assuringly saying “We are not here to rob you.  We are Guard Mice and on patrol in these parts of the wood. We noticed tracks off the beaten path and thought to check on them.  We’d hate to see anything happen to a mouse in the wild.  Are you okay?”

The mouse responds that yes, he is okay, though a small amount of doubt can be sensed in his voice. (Low/Above Average MR = 24%).  At this point, Sadie decides to question the mouse as there conversation is getting her nowhere.  She hints at the possibility of a spy or traitor and says she is looking for information.  (A versus test).  The interrogation doesn’t go well for Sadie.  She does not like intimidating another mouse.  She finally manages to get the information from the grain peddler and he gives her the map.  However, in the process she becomes tired and lets him run home.  The grain peddler seems terrified at having been caught by such dangerous mice and agrees to never do harm again.  He admitted to doing this solely for the money it gave him to help feed his family.

Saving the grain

The two mice are now stuck with a valuable shipment of grain that needs to reach Barkstone before the first snowfalls.  It’s already late fall and the snows are late as it stands.  This grain shipment will be invaluable to the residents of Barkstone.  Then again, it’s also useful in Rootwallow.  However, if left here it will be lost.  (Are we closer to Barkstone than Rootwallow: Avg/Avg  MR = 84%).  The mice are closer to Rootwallow than Barkstone.  (Does Sadie want to go to Barkstone? Avg/Avg MR = 20%).  Sadie decides to go forward to Barkstone even though it’s about 3 days to Rootwallow.  The grain was purchased by the people of Barkstone and probably need this grain to survive the winter.  The journey to Barkstone will take 5 days.  Probably the two mice working together can reduce that to 4 days but it will still be a lot of hard work.

The season as been wet and cool but it hasn’t been cold yet.  However, the last two nights where colder than normal and clouds have been forming in the sky.  Sadie, having and understanding of storm patterns looks at the sky (Weather Watching skill).  Unfortunately, the weather is too much in a state of flux to decide what can happen Sadie is unsure of what the weather will bring.  The only thing is to buckle down and start moving.

(Now, we have a Conflict against the weather. This may be a bit tricky as the DM and players each choose their own actions privately.  I’ll need to modify it to make it work solo.  I’m figuring this out as I go along.  The starting player Disposition = 5.  Weather’s Disposition = 7.)

(I’m determining what actions the players want and what actions the GM might choose.  Then I’m using a MR to determine if that value sticks.)

(Player actions are Maneuver, Attack, Attack)

(GM actions are Feint (MR = 66%), Maneuver(MR = 20%), Attack(MR = 96%))

(-----------First action-----------)

(Player Maneuver)The mice decide to first prepare for the possibly hash weather.  They double check the tarp and all tie downs, prepare the wheels for driving in harsh weather and prepare themselves to have necessary equipment handy.  The weapons are put away safely in the grain.

(GM Feint Um, not sure what to do so I’ll just describe the weather)While the players start to get ready for the journey, a wind picks up making their task harder.  Even though they finish preparing quickly, they feel a sense of foreboding.

(-----------Second action-----------)

(Versus test Attack/Maneuver)While Sadie pulls the cart Saxon scouts ahead and finds a good trail through the forest.  A small drizzle begins to fall. (Players 6 successes! / GM 2 Successes.  The Current disposition is now 5/3.)   Saxon finds a good shortcut through a shallow stream where a few trees had fallen.  The bought the mice a good half-day of time.  In the meantime, the drizzle stops and there is even some sunlight during the afternoon.

(-----------Third action-----------)

(Oops, I forgot that doubles in a MR means a random event.  That tied in with the extreme failure of a 96% roll means something happened.  Let’s see what…. Event Focus 03 = Remote Event.  Action 20 = Truce.  Subject 68 = Rumor)

Well, surprisingly, the grain peddler had been headed home but decided that he should show his true intent to no longer help the rebellion brewing in Blackrock, he returns to help the mice with the grain cart.  He also realizes it’s his grain cart and, well, he’d like it back.  At that point, the three mice together manage to push the cart together to Blackrock just before the first snowfalls begin.

Player’s turn

At this point, the mice probably want to find out who was going to buy the map.  However, it’s bedtime.  I give up!

Happy New Year!  Episode 12 of the 1 Player podcast is finally available.  In this episode I briefly discuss playing RPGs solo and go into detail about the Mythic RPG ruleset which can be used with any other RPG system to play adventures without a GM or stand-alone to create a home brew adventure, in any genre you can imagine, just using the Mythic rules. Mythic RPG on RPGGeek.com Mythic's homepage

Finally another episode! In this show I talk about game books such as the Choose Your Own Adventure series and Fighting Fantasy Game books. I also give a pseudo-review of Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective. This game is about to be re-published in French and might be of interest to listeners. Audio quality issues still hound me. This episode is quieter than most, except for the really loud dice rolls. Sorry about those. Other than that, it does seem to be more consistent. Anyway, here are some links that might be interesting. Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective on BGG. Demian's Gamebooks website is the most comprehensive place to get info on gamebooks. The Solosaurus blog which is so far mostly about one person's experience with playing solitaire RPGs.