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13:19, 28th March 2024 (GMT+0)

Wanting a solo adventure.

Posted by Norwood
Norwood
member, 331 posts
Fri 23 Dec 2022
at 16:39
  • msg #1

Wanting a solo adventure

I've been looking to get back into playing here on rpol again, and while I'm working on putting together 1 or 2 of my own games again, I'd love to get the chance to be a player again as well. Given my other obligations (and the sorts of stories I'm primarily interested in), I'd be most interested in a solo game, though a small group story with a lot of flexibility/independence could work as well. I've got a few ideas, some more specific than others.

  1. Cozy Fantasy (Honestly not at all sure on this one, so very open to suggestions) - Inspired by series like the Atelier games, but also movies like Kiki's delivery service, I want to play a game as a witch running a potions and spellcraft shop, selling tinctures, scrolls, and other baubles, perhaps hexing and breaking hexes for paying customers, all between some light adventuring and fantasy city/countryside drama. I could see running this in a big fantasy city like Waterdeep (of d&d) or in the countryside for a more folklore-ish feeling. While I don't want the game to be about combat, I'd like for that to be an option, especially when I'm out hunting for rare ingredients for my potions.

  2. A magic school game (maybe a PbtA system) - Much as I despise JKR personally (and am not overly fond of Harry Potter in general), I do love the genre of magical schools. Whether modern or medieval/fantasy, the setting of a magical boarding school is so charming. I've got a few ideas for this one, and if someone was willing to take on the challenge of running a fun, character (not plot) driven sandbox, then I might know another interested player or two . . .

  3. Chosen of Magic (Godbound probably, but open to other ideas) - I've been reading some novels and other material lately set during different periods of d&d lore, particularly referencing the time of troubles or the period after the spellplague when there was an increase of gods' chosen walking the plane. I want to play a game in a relatively generic d&d fantasy setting (potentially even the Forgotten Realms or one of the others) where a young mage finds herself blessed by the goddess of magic. Perhaps the divinity has died, or simply needs a mortal champion to protect magic itself from some impending darkness. I love the idea of the unlikely apprentice (one with talent but no exceptional abilities as of yet) rising to the ranks of an unparalleled archmage in her journey to defend the world.

  4. A Lich Returned (Again, probably Godbound, but same as before) - Adventurers love to go poking around where they shouldn't, prying open the doors to old crypts intent on solving the local undead problem and making some coin along the way by looting old coffins. When one such group discovers an older layer of catacombs buried beneath, their chilling discovery will spell their end, and perhaps that of the whole world, for sleeping that dark demesne was a lich long dormant. Once the undead has feasted on their souls, however, they discover that the world is very much not as they'd left it. Powerful though they might be in this fallen age where the mighty sorceries they wield have all but faded into myth and legend, they will need to move carefully, for other forces may yet move in the shadows to challenge them.

  5. Exalted (Godbound or Exalted: Essence) - Less a specific pitch for a character and more just a general desire. I've long loved Exalted's particular blend fantasy/mythic influences. I'd love to dive into creation again and feel the weight of my actions upon the world as it trembles as the time of troubles arrives. Fiction about heroic choices and consequences is always so much fun.

Anyway, I'm plenty busy with my own projects/life/job/school etc., so I'm in no hurry for any of these concepts. I'd rather wait for the right person who wants to bring one of these to life than try to cram myself into a mold that doesn't quite fit.
This message was last edited by the user at 19:09, Thu 02 Mar 2023.
Norwood
member, 335 posts
Thu 2 Mar 2023
at 19:09
  • msg #2

Wanting a solo adventure

Just bumping to keep looking around for these ideas (now with an updated list).
Tecumseh
member, 13 posts
Fri 3 Mar 2023
at 05:31
  • msg #3

Wanting a solo adventure

Hello there.

I am a longtime player, GM, and PbPer. I have never played (nor GMed) Godbound, but it is currently at the top of my wishlist. I have been playing (and Kickstarting) Mr. Crawford's systems for a few years now so I understand his philosophy and what he's trying to accomplish.

It seems a little intimidating to GM a whole party of godlings, but a solo experience might be a good introduction. A Lich Returned (#4 below) sounds interesting, although I am unclear on the role of the player. Would you be playing the Lich itself, or one of the powers that would oppose it?
Norwood
member, 336 posts
Fri 3 Mar 2023
at 15:24
  • msg #4

Wanting a solo adventure

In reply to Tecumseh (msg # 3):

The idea would be to play the dark lich themselves. Freshly risen from their own tomb, they return to a (traditional fantasy) world they do not recognize, and though the great powers that once opposed them are gone from the land, their own power is somewhat diminished and they must move carefully as they amass knowledge of this new world and rebuild their own power. See the series Overlord for some inspiration.

Idea #3 would be a far more straightforward Godbound storyline, with a novice mage inheriting the power of a god of magic in a generally fallen world and then trying to make it better as she grows in her power, attracting followers and battling dark creatures.
This message was last edited by the user at 15:25, Fri 03 Mar 2023.
Tecumseh
member, 14 posts
Fri 3 Mar 2023
at 17:27
  • msg #5

Wanting a solo adventure

I think it sounds like an interesting premise.

I'm going to confess that one of my weaknesses may be that I don't have the same background in terms of gaming culture. If we're not counting video games, I haven't played D&D in 30 years and know very little about the setting. My knowledge of Exalted is nil. I've never heard of Overlord. I can do traditional fantasy, but it wouldn't be grounded in any of the above.

My strength is in sandbox environments, "heroic choices and consequences" as you put it, with living worlds that react organically to the player's actions. To me what's interesting about Godbound is how it can almost feel like you're playing on fast-forward, with challenges that might occupy entire gaming sessions in other systems being resolved in a matter of minutes. I'm interested in that velocity, even though it may take some practice to become accustomed to it.
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