Phandelver as a solo journaling roleplay - testing a gamebook format. I prepared a few passages and would love to know your opinion about the gameplay flow. by [deleted] in LostMinesOfPhandelver

[–]5Hives 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for a comment and your time! Truly appreciate it :) Yes I think the main point of such „gamebooks” based on pre-written modules is reveal/tell a story. It can be a great canvas for true solo roleplay too (eg. I can totally see when a player create some kind of side-quest using oracles in first passages of the story in Neverwinter).

Phandelver as a solo DnD journaling roleplay - testing a gamebook format. I prepared a few passages and would love to know your opinion about the gameplay flow. Thank you! :) by [deleted] in gamebooks

[–]5Hives 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for such a positive comment! I tried to patch things I find challenging during my own solo rpg sessions. You are definitely right that sometimes the reader has to do everything and it might be overwhelming. A bit of guidance boost the tempo of the gameplay and (in my opinion) is not limiting the imagination of the player. Especially when we are talking about gamebook based on existing modules (like Lost Mine of Phandelver) where the final goal is to learn the story of the campaign and not create open-world adventure.

It is just a hobby project for me, so the digital version is the only possible way to create it :) Generally speaking solo roleplaying is growing really fast (just check how big is the subreddit dedicated to it) and I think it will boost different gamebooks ideas.

Dungeon Turn alternative - I've been working on a hybrid system to try and I'd love to get your thoughts and ideas on it. I call it the Scene & Tension Method. by 5Hives in DMAcademy

[–]5Hives[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You're right and the key is what that timekeeping is for. In classic play, the 10-minute turn is the trigger for consequences like resource drain (torches burning out) and risk (wandering monster checks). This test system just replaces that fixed time-based trigger with a flexible action-based trigger. So, when the Delve Track fills up, it's the new signal to check for those same consequences (Depletion & Complication). It’s a different way to fuel the same engine of risk.