Building a solo practice: Foundations
Nov. 10th, 2025 10:31 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
solo_knightThis is going to be a series of posts, not in the least because I do not actually have ‘the answer’ to ‘how do I get started’.
The answer to that will be different for different people and different types of games, and depend on your mental state, time budget, and personal preferences, so expect this more like a which Discworld book should I read first chaotic flowchart than a simple ‘a, b, c’. .
The short, trial-and-error, might-be-fun-and-might-not answer is 'pick something that appeals to you, throw yourself into it, and keep tweaking it until you have fun (or until you're thoroughly bored with even the idea of solo play and give it up forever).
It's not wrong. Many people come to love solo RPGs by this route, but I would recommend that even if you're keen to delve in right now, you spend at least 10% of the time and spoons you have available researching other systems, and exploring what else you could play and how else you could play it.
( Sparking Joy )
There's more than one axis here, so many games can be very simple along one axis and create a high mental load along another. If something feels too much, it's ok to walk away, sometimes for now, sometimes completely. I'm learning that lesson and will probably have to learn it again.
( Length and Prep )
DnD rests on three pillars: Social, Exploration, and Combat. Solo play touches on all of these, but coming from a slightly different angle.
( Preliminary musings )
I *think* I'm tending more towards exploration than combat, especially as some of the fun parts of combat in TTRPGs – outwitting the DM by using special abilities and collaborating with other players – just don't work anywhere near as well in solo play.
If you're lucky, prep is play. Otherwise, at least make it fun.
( When you can't avoid prep )
I don't feel I'm familiar enough with SoloRPG-the-Hobby to say much of substance on this topic yet.
This is a problem because this is how I will find the answer to 'what do I enjoy' and 'which game should I pick right now' if I don't know what's possible?
I mean, I've been studying soloRPGs for a few months, I've acquired a huge stack of games (some cheap, some free, some in bundles); I'm reading RPGs, solo and group games regularly; I'm rolling dice to try out mechanics, I'm (finally) playing games, I'm watching playthroughs… All the time I am finding ways of playing that I like and learning what is too complicated, too boring, or just too much of a mental load, all by poking at different systems.
From that point of view, I don't regret playing things that don't work for me; I'm learning from those games, too.
A lot of people who play solo seem to have a toolbox containing multiple approaches, so they can simplify conflict resolution, bring in additional subsystems, and just doing everything to keep the story flowing, and I definitely want to develop those skills.
TL;DR:
I don't think there is a straightforward answer to 'how do I start to play' beyond 'pick up some cheap/free games and mess around and see what you like while learning as much about the hobby as you can'.
To come back to the place where I'm stuck, because I think it's a good way of illustrating how solo RPG does or doesn't work:
I am currently attempting to start a short campaign using the Tiny Dungeon rule set. It's a game that is fairly pared down, originally a group game, but frequently soloed. I have used the Colorful Characters process to roll up three characters, who promptly came alive, and purchased a set of random dungeon cards that is highly praised, to see whether a randomly-created dungeon works for me.
So the main character (two are just along for the ride; this one has a goal and motivation, which was NOT my intention) comes to the city and is looking to pick up her first proper adventuring job (She'll just happen to team up with the other two characters I rolled).
I have a fair idea of what will happen to get her to the starter quest. If I was writing a book, I'd be skimming the surface of those scenes until we get to the real action, the dungeon is entered, and the first enemy awaits.
But I have been paying attention to how RPGs work, and – see the three pillars above – I don't want to play a game where all I do is fight enemies, even though this is the mechanic I want to try out.
If I was DMing this for others, I'd describe the marketplace a little and then ask 'what do you want to do'.
And I want to bring some of that energy – the 'play' aspect – into my own game, but I am not sure how yet. Which is frustrating.
So I will take this situation away, and think about it some more, and write out what I could do and how I could address it with the tools I *am* familiar with, and decide later. In the meantime, I'll check out more games and log some more resources and fill my toolbox, but I'm just somewhat frustrated and a little bit annoyed that I just… have no idea how to proceed from here.
I have a number of books _about_ solo play, and half a million rulesets; one of them will provide the answer, but I have no patience, I want to proceed NOW.
(How would you approach this in your own game? I don't want to create a complication; I don't want a fight in the marketplace, and I know exactly what the noticeboard looks like once my character finds it, but I want her to look around, maybe notice some NPCs or future quest hooks or potential allies. It may be relevant that Futto is a 4ft goblin in a marketplace of mixed clientele; she would NOT simply turn up and get an overview and head straight for the noticeboard.)
The answer to that will be different for different people and different types of games, and depend on your mental state, time budget, and personal preferences, so expect this more like a which Discworld book should I read first chaotic flowchart than a simple ‘a, b, c’. .
The short, trial-and-error, might-be-fun-and-might-not answer is 'pick something that appeals to you, throw yourself into it, and keep tweaking it until you have fun (or until you're thoroughly bored with even the idea of solo play and give it up forever).
It's not wrong. Many people come to love solo RPGs by this route, but I would recommend that even if you're keen to delve in right now, you spend at least 10% of the time and spoons you have available researching other systems, and exploring what else you could play and how else you could play it.
( Sparking Joy )
Domain 1: Complexity
There's more than one axis here, so many games can be very simple along one axis and create a high mental load along another. If something feels too much, it's ok to walk away, sometimes for now, sometimes completely. I'm learning that lesson and will probably have to learn it again.
( Length and Prep )
Domain 2: Style of Gameplay
DnD rests on three pillars: Social, Exploration, and Combat. Solo play touches on all of these, but coming from a slightly different angle.
( Preliminary musings )
I *think* I'm tending more towards exploration than combat, especially as some of the fun parts of combat in TTRPGs – outwitting the DM by using special abilities and collaborating with other players – just don't work anywhere near as well in solo play.
Domain 3: Preparation
If you're lucky, prep is play. Otherwise, at least make it fun.
( When you can't avoid prep )
Domain 4: Gameplay Loop
I don't feel I'm familiar enough with SoloRPG-the-Hobby to say much of substance on this topic yet.
This is a problem because this is how I will find the answer to 'what do I enjoy' and 'which game should I pick right now' if I don't know what's possible?
I mean, I've been studying soloRPGs for a few months, I've acquired a huge stack of games (some cheap, some free, some in bundles); I'm reading RPGs, solo and group games regularly; I'm rolling dice to try out mechanics, I'm (finally) playing games, I'm watching playthroughs… All the time I am finding ways of playing that I like and learning what is too complicated, too boring, or just too much of a mental load, all by poking at different systems.
From that point of view, I don't regret playing things that don't work for me; I'm learning from those games, too.
A lot of people who play solo seem to have a toolbox containing multiple approaches, so they can simplify conflict resolution, bring in additional subsystems, and just doing everything to keep the story flowing, and I definitely want to develop those skills.
TL;DR:
I don't think there is a straightforward answer to 'how do I start to play' beyond 'pick up some cheap/free games and mess around and see what you like while learning as much about the hobby as you can'.
To come back to the place where I'm stuck, because I think it's a good way of illustrating how solo RPG does or doesn't work:
I am currently attempting to start a short campaign using the Tiny Dungeon rule set. It's a game that is fairly pared down, originally a group game, but frequently soloed. I have used the Colorful Characters process to roll up three characters, who promptly came alive, and purchased a set of random dungeon cards that is highly praised, to see whether a randomly-created dungeon works for me.
So the main character (two are just along for the ride; this one has a goal and motivation, which was NOT my intention) comes to the city and is looking to pick up her first proper adventuring job (She'll just happen to team up with the other two characters I rolled).
I have a fair idea of what will happen to get her to the starter quest. If I was writing a book, I'd be skimming the surface of those scenes until we get to the real action, the dungeon is entered, and the first enemy awaits.
But I have been paying attention to how RPGs work, and – see the three pillars above – I don't want to play a game where all I do is fight enemies, even though this is the mechanic I want to try out.
If I was DMing this for others, I'd describe the marketplace a little and then ask 'what do you want to do'.
And I want to bring some of that energy – the 'play' aspect – into my own game, but I am not sure how yet. Which is frustrating.
So I will take this situation away, and think about it some more, and write out what I could do and how I could address it with the tools I *am* familiar with, and decide later. In the meantime, I'll check out more games and log some more resources and fill my toolbox, but I'm just somewhat frustrated and a little bit annoyed that I just… have no idea how to proceed from here.
I have a number of books _about_ solo play, and half a million rulesets; one of them will provide the answer, but I have no patience, I want to proceed NOW.
(How would you approach this in your own game? I don't want to create a complication; I don't want a fight in the marketplace, and I know exactly what the noticeboard looks like once my character finds it, but I want her to look around, maybe notice some NPCs or future quest hooks or potential allies. It may be relevant that Futto is a 4ft goblin in a marketplace of mixed clientele; she would NOT simply turn up and get an overview and head straight for the noticeboard.)
