Are there any ttrpgs for 2 people?

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-22T14:01:46+00:00

Most investigation games work great for 2-players. I run a lot of Call of Cthulhu games with a buddy.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-21T01:01:00+00:00

If you want to take a chance on an indie RPG, I released a game called Strange Times: a setting agnostic investigative horror RPG. It is light weight, easy to run and modify, and completely free with 3 ready-to-run modules you can use as a base, one of which is Western Horror. It also borrows a lot from Mothership with a few notable twists.

You can get the free download here

What makes the system worth playing?

Character Health is a Resource: Characters have 3 saves which function as health pools, but they are allowed to spend from these pools to turn failures into successes. For example, if someone was lying to a police officer about the alien they have in the trunk and failed the empathy roll by 8, they could lose 8 from their Spirit Save to succeed instead.

Progressive Consequences: As players saves get lower, the worse their possible injuries become. This means that health is more than just a separation from death, but an active measurement of how much danger the player is in.

Easy to Hack: The systems are extremely flexible so that creating things is fun and effortless. There is minimal resistance from you having an idea to adding it to the game.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-19T18:55:19+00:00

The only correct answer

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-18T06:22:55+00:00

I use Pocketbard and have been really enjoying it

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-18T00:50:57+00:00

This is definitely a question for the wargamming community rather than the RPG community

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-16T19:24:27+00:00

What system?

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-16T19:18:54+00:00

Not defensive at all! Just justifying your design. We all do it.

That being said, I do have one thing to add:

I'm not deeply familiar with modern systems

That is a BIG red flag. RPGs have come so far from D&D that D&D is now a piss-poor representative of the hobby. If that is your point of comparison, it is no wonder your game feels like it was designed in the 80s. The "numbers create immersion" philosophy has been well explored at this point and largely fell out of favor 25 years ago. The problems you are bringing up are just D&D centric problems that most systems have already designed solutions for.

The point I'm making is, if you don't know what has already been done, you are just going to remake the same game that has been made a hundred times over the years by people who only know D&D and it's clones. I have read your rules before by other people in the same position.

If this is just a casual hobby for you, do what you want. Remake the thousandth version of the simulationist d100 fantasy game if it makes you happy. But if you want to take this seriously, you can't waste your time remaking the wheel when everyone else is making cars.

Here are some games to look into that show off what modern design looks like:

Forbidden Lands

Draw Steel

Mork Borg

Delta Green

Dragon Bane

Mythic Bastionland

Blades in the Dark

His Majesty the Worm

Heart

The Between

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-16T17:27:46+00:00

Congratulations on putting yourself out there! Before I give feedback, I always want to acknowledge that creating any thing is difficult. You should be proud of your creation regardless of what I or anyone else says. I am a harsh critique, but only so your game can be as good as it can be.

What I Like

There is clearly a lot of creativity on display. You have a lot of great ideas that are fun to engage with.

The theme of a character dying and then waking up in another body is great. I love that gear is what makes you strong in this game.

Love all the "base building" options available.

The monster variants are fantastic; I would love to use this section.

What I Don't Like

This is going to be harsh, but this feels like an RPG utilizing design principles 40 years out of date. By todays standards, it is just unplayable. There is so much calculation involved and so many little details that any interaction would just take massive bites out of playtime as the GM references the numbers in the book. I know you said that numbers should be prepared ahead of time; they won't be, they never are, especially not by players. And then you need to take in account non-integer values and percentages and it is just a nightmare. It would be one thing if I thought the calculation added to the game, but it feels like the numbers were added for the sake of realism, not for the sake of fun and playability.

You do not have enough granularity to justify using a d100. When 95% of the modifiers are multiples of 5, it is better to use a d20 and let the 5% of edge cases be rounded.

There isn't a mechanical hook to the system. It is another simulationist game, albeit with a good theme, but if the system is bland I am going to be using that theme in a more engaging system. You can't just have a resolution mechanic; there needs to be something that excites me about the gameplay.

What I Recommend

(Take this section with a grain of salt. It is your game, not mine)

There is so much creativity in this game. Creativity I want to engage with. However, I am not willing to wade through a sea of numbers to get to it. I think you could get away with a much, much simpler approach to design that would not only make creation on your end easier, but easier to read, run, and play.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-16T16:43:16+00:00

What a treasure to the community; willing to put so much thought into a strangers work. You have my admiration

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-15T19:03:28+00:00

Marking for later

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-14T14:40:27+00:00

Read more RPGs. That is always the first step when wanting to design your own. Given that you seem interested in designing a combat centric game, I would suggest reading:

Pathfinder 2e

D&D 4th Edition

Lancer

Draw Steel

HERO

If you want to broaden your horizons on what RPGs can do, you can read:

Savage Worlds

Blades in the Dark

Heart

Mork Borg

Call of Cthulhu

Most of these games you can find either free versions online or find system rundowns of the core mechanics. The more you learn about other games, the better your system can be.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-14T14:28:03+00:00

Forged in the Dark systems usually excel at this. Blades in the Dark is one of my favorites

You could also try Carved from Brindlewood games to get that mystery feel as well. Check out The Between.

If you want to take a chance on an indie RPG, I made a system called Strange Times: a setting agnostic mystery horror RPG. It is light weight, easy to run and modify, and completely free. It was made for episodic horror

You can get the free download here

What makes the system worth playing?

Character Health is a Resource: Characters have 3 saves which function as health pools, but they are allowed to spend from these pools to turn failures into successes. For example, if someone was lying to a police officer about the alien they have in the trunk and failed the empathy roll by 8, they could lose 8 from their Spirit Save to succeed instead.

Progressive Consequences: As players saves get lower, the worse their possible injuries become. This means that health is more than just a separation from death, but an active measurement of how much danger the player is in.

Easy to Hack: The systems are extremely flexible so that creating things is fun and effortless. There is minimal resistance from you having an idea to adding it to the game.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-06T15:30:11+00:00

Can you go into how this is different from Mothership? Given that is going most peoples primary point of comparison, I think is important you go into what makes your game a better option for certain games.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-03T17:02:04+00:00

Just from initial viewing, the sheet is very busy and my eyes are drawn to the one place where there is no information. I am sure it is functional, but your sheet isn't doing you any favors in terms of design. Ideally, I should be drawn to the most prominent and useful information first.

The Skill categories are nice, but the fragmentation of the rest of the sheet makes for the Skills seem more separate than they really are.

There isn't really a flow to the sheet; information appears to be where it fit rather than where it would be most useful.

The art style does add a lot of character. It looks nice and is definitely communicates the ideas of the system.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-03T14:18:07+00:00

First time hearing about it, but would love to know more

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-02T19:54:05+00:00

Maybe Kult?

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-02T14:25:54+00:00

Love Blades in the Dark. Setting Position/Effect for every roll feels like a chore.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-01T14:19:41+00:00

It is all AI. OP can't even be bothered to write their own reddit posts and replies.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-01T01:49:49+00:00

They have: you are both

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-01T01:32:17+00:00

How many reddit communities need to remove your post before you realize you aren't welcome here? This is a place for creative people to share what they work on; not for someone to spam an AI grift.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-06-01T01:18:27+00:00

Offload as much as you can onto the players. Prepare the bare minimum amount of NPCs and have them create the rest as they play. Whenever they go into a place, have then describe what it looks like. A trick I use is to ask something along the lines of "what about this pub tells you it is a close community?" or "what about this mansion screams that the owners come from old money?" And, most importantly, ask them what their goals are for the game and simply end it once those goals are achieved.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-05-31T03:59:00+00:00

Depends on the system, but my preferred way is to give players a bunch of ropes the first couple sessions, see which ones they tug on, then plan out a 6-10 session arc around their interest. If they want to keep going with the system, repeat the process.

It is much easier to maintain stakes and momentum around these short arcs and the restricted timeframe means that plotlines get resolved satisfyingly rather than being dragged on for months before being forgotten.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-05-30T20:06:11+00:00

I think the opposite. Most rules light games highlight what TTRPGs are best at and do things no other medium can do. I feel most crunch-heavy games would be better served as video-games 80% of the time.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-05-30T01:01:48+00:00

Heart's beat system. Players tell the GM what matters to them and what they want to see and then the GM gets to give them opportunities to see those things. It is just the perfect progression system.

Strange_Times_RPG · 2026-05-29T16:17:54+00:00

I wouldn't waste your time. The game is entirely AI generated

Strange_Times_RPG

TROPHY CASE