Solo Players - All Alone

[The Edge]

I've been long time thinking about a special campaign for one friend, and been semi planning it while running my current game. Anyone DM'd for or played in a game with only one player? What do you need to think about when planning a campaign like this?

My idea is that NPCs would fill in time to time as a 'party' for certain events, maybe just for one adventure or perhaps as travelling buddies. All depending on how the player interacts with each of them of course.

I was also considering giving all skills as class skills, so to make the character a bit more versatile.

Character death could be a problem. I imagine death could come quite swiftly if not careful, especially when there’s the presence of hi damage firearms. Seeing there'd be only one PC and the game is quite exploration based, a sudden death could kinda stop the game. It would be like bond just dieing unspectacularly mid film. Just ending with a, "Oh, its over?". But I obviously wouldn't want the player feeling too protected. So, thats a slight problem im not sure about.

Anyone got any wisdom to share?

 

[Jack Morgan]

I just did this with a True20 game. Some advice, for what it's worth:
- keep things moving, when there is one player you as the GM have to have something going down all the time. there is no player to player interaction to fill the gaps.
- have one major npc (mine was a 14 year old kid the pc felt oblogated to protect, but was actually fairly competent, like Tin tin, or Terry from the 1930's "Terry and the Pirates" comic strip)
- Don't nudge too much, let the player screw up, but have some kind of safty net as well, once he goes black he can wake up being cared for by never before seen NPC's who stumbled on to the scene just afterward, or as a prisoner of the advesary kept alive for imformation. there are lots of ways to do this in a non obvious way. One good way is to have him wake up as a captive and require that he escape.
- use a system with conviction/hero points so the player has a mechanic that allows him to reroll important dice rolls without it seeming like a gimme. This made all the difference in my game.
- use the opportunity to make the character shine; with a solo game the PC CAN be Conan or Indiana Jones, or James Bond, and you don't have to worry about other players feeling over shadowed. this is one of the coolest things about solo games.
- one thing I did was stick the PC with the main advesary for a couple of sessions forcing him to work with together with his enemy so they could both survive- this set the stage for the inevitable betrayal.


that's all I've got. hope it helps.

 

[shadowbloodmoon]

I concur with Jack's ideas, but have a few as well:

- Character Death can and does happen, and as long as it works in the context of the story, there is no problem. You have numerous amounts of NPCs and their unstatted cohorts for the player to take over and use for the remainder of the game/ campaign. Of course, if your player has created a clone of himself, well, then there is no problem at all. *shameless plug for own solo Star Wars game*

- Make sure you have multiple plotlines. Single players tend to have as many ideas as a full party. Let them run with their ideas, again with the caveat that it fits within your story.

- As the game goes on, you will settle into a rapport with the player, this is fine, as long as you remember to stick with your plot and remember to eventually draw back to it.

- As a GM, not only in solo games but also in party games, I tend to play fast and loose with plots and stories. When the player feels as if they have some control over where the story goes, the game usually goes a lot better. Let them see the fruits of all their labors. You may have a general idea of what you want to happen, but let the player find their own way there. This takes some practice, but it works pretty well once you get the hang of it.

Anyway, that's all I have for now. I hope this helps.

 

[kroh]

Aw man! I love solo adventures. It gives everything that "Look at me! I'm a STAR!" feel. They are especially fun with comic book style adventures that allow the hero to really shine ( "I'm Flying-Rat Man!").

Good stuff...

Everyone is throwing out some good suggestions. Just play and have fun!
Regards,
Walt

 

[ragboy]

I was also considering giving all skills as class skills, so to make the character a bit more versatile.

If you forsee this being a problem, either build your characters the Grim Tales way (character picks the skills he wants -- SRD), provide them in an Occupation/Background, or (if you're using Action Points) let him emulate a rank in a skill to get something done by spending an action point.

 

[Goken100]

I've done some solo-play as well, and it indeed can be a lot of fun. Watch out for crowding out your one and only player with NPCs though. I'd advise controlling one NPC (that can help out in the adventure) at most. If you must have more people, you could consider giving your player 2 characters to run together or maybe just a side-kick or follower of some kind. I personally didn't have any trouble running just one character though. And there really wasn't any trouble as far as skills go. Sometimes one needs more creative solutions to problems, but that's plenty of fun there too. It just takes a DM not setting up a dungeon crawl with lots of traps... for a solo barbarian. Know your player, and all will be well.

 

[Quickleaf]

Good suggestions so far, though I'll stress that you cannot kill the protagonist (unless it's an intrinsic part of the storyline and your player has a heads up). If the protagonist is defeated at one point, have the enemy take him captive. It's OK for the protagonist to feel personally invulnerable during a solo game - he's the star of the show and knows his character is not going to die. However, the character's cause and loved ones have no such invulnerability - stress the importance of both of these in the game.

Knowing your player's style of play is essential, and pander to it at every opportunity. If the player is both a tactician and method actor give him plenty of combats in exotic locations and opportunities to role-play with strong personalities (allies and enemies alike).

I'll also say that solo games move fast and you may outpace your adventure notes. However, you have the advantage of knowing the player and his character, and you'll be better able to predict a likely course of events. I'd suggest writing adventures in outline format, but make them about 50-100% longer than your typical adventures. Always ask "Ok, what happens after this bad guy is defenestrated?"

 

[The Edge]

Thanks guys, very helpful stuff.

The game will be in my own future setting (which has existed in my head long before I thought of it for a RP game), and knowing the player I imagine he'll go for a wandering rogue like character, slightly Han-Solo style. If I know him he'll launch straight into bountyhunting, smugling and odd jobs. From those I could push him into something 'bigger'. I've got a few ideas on how he can get a ship, and for various adventures. The chalenge probably will be maintaing pace and keeping new stuff comeing. Good tips about handleing death and such. I'll be sure to think about the consquences of failing other than just death.

Cheers to all.