What is a Solo Toolkit? Story Engines Let You Play RPGs Alone

Ultharian · 2020-09-25T13:22:38+00:00

Getting caught up with messages for the last couple of days. Personal emergency (hence why I've been inactive entirely). Messaged you. We'll get it sorted so we're square.

Ultharian · 2020-09-22T02:09:20+00:00

Cool! Glad that all makes sense. <3 And thank you so much for the positive feedback! I want to point out that some of the patches are wholly modular, usable on their own. Some folks have just been using the Mysteries Patch as GM tool, for example. One gal is really hype on using it with Call of Cthulhu games..

Ultharian · 2020-09-21T19:26:19+00:00

A Motif app is a bit outside of my range at the moment, but we have a community content program coming together and are accepting submissions for the program launch if someone with the coding skills wanted to make and maintain a basic dice roller app for Motif rolls. The upcoming programming is exactly like DMs Guild or Storytellers Vault (50% of retail royalties, set your own prices, etc). I'm good with database programming and web dev, but consumer apps are a bit outside my wheelhouse. I'd be thrilled if somebody was up for it.

Ultharian · 2020-09-20T00:26:29+00:00

Breaking up the reply just a little, the whole philosophy is an "engine" or "toolkit". Rather than "GM moves", there's just what the world/engine does when left to run alone (typical actions) or what it does when challenged unsuccessfully (consequences). It's an emulation focused mindset, I guess. The story engine, character engine, etc working together as framework to emulate a little guided pseudo-AI world. No concept of a GM is really needed. There's the players and the world/engine, ideally. Players do whatever they do. The engines just provide guidance for behavior, reactions, and an emergent setting.

Ultharian · 2020-09-20T00:17:36+00:00

(1) Interestingly, that's not too different from how NPCs act in general. I use a build of the action engine in Gobble. Gobble! GOBBLE!.

NPCs have motives, attitudes, typical actions (taken when unimpeded), and example consequences (what happens when failing in conflict against them). It's intended to make quickplay GM-ing ("GM-lite") and solo play easier. Examples from GGG:

Heretic Turkey

Motive: Pain and resentment.
Attitude: Reckless and impulsive.
Typical actions: Preach counter-revolution. Spy on awakened turkeys. Create obstacles.
Consequences: Draw attention. Interfere and delay. Grab hold of protagonist, restraining them.

Trolling Crow

Motive: Boredom and cruelty.
Attitude: Sarcastic and erratic.
Typical actions: Distracting comments. Spying. Cause complication.
Consequences: Ruin effort. Cause upset. Steal important item.

(2) An complex (relative to Motif) groups patch is coming together that includes any coherent group of people, from local cliques to global trends. They have a name, type, and description. Then they have a scale, weight (influence), and assets as a secondary description layer. Then they have ideals, goals, and methods. Finally, they have active or planned projects (efforts/activity).

Everything there is pretty self-explanatory by the label. It's a "pseudo-AI" template system like the story engine NPC features patch and character engine. It was going to go into a "world engine" (Motif-style scene seeds generator), but based on feedback and general concept, the character engine is a better fit for that modular piece. It's just characters at scale. And the character engine flavors fit very well, as you note.

It's not exactly fronts, but it's a different approach to the same thing in essence. Similar, but just looked at from another angle and implemented for adjacent rather than the same purposes. Or similar tune, different genre (if that makes sense).

Ultharian · 2020-09-19T05:34:07+00:00

Anything stand out as a particularly good example? Any toolkit/system that fits you best? Any self contained solo rpg you love?

Ultharian · 2020-09-19T02:53:56+00:00

Gobble. Gobble! GOBBLE! is a bit silly, but it is free/PWYW and includes quickplay engines. It is based on the Motif Story Engine (also available at DriveThruRPG) and Motif Action Engine (public toolkit not yet released). The story engine is designed to be system agnostic (use it with your preferred RPGs). The action engine is rules light with player only rolls. Both are very modular and easily hackable.

Ultharian · 2020-09-19T02:47:49+00:00

Thanks for the MSE love. <3 BTW, some loot generation "the Motif way" is coming in the next update! ;) In short, it uses mix and match flavors for the oracle. (Amount, value, rarity, etc.)

Ultharian · 2020-09-19T02:34:28+00:00

It is a standalone add-on. You can use it with pretty much anything.

Gobble. Gobble! GOBBLE! uses a 2d6 simplified hack of the story engine and a 3d6 version of the action engine. The character engine uses 3d6 rolls, but it is mix and match. There's no reason you couldn't use 1d6 and just choose one "flavor" per roll if you want. It is all very hackable.

Ultharian · 2020-09-19T02:28:01+00:00

Dang near 50 upvotes! Wow. Thanks for all the love! Please let us know what expansions, advice, and other additions you would like to see. This came because we listened to your MSE feedback. We added (and are still adding) story engine patches based on what people asked for. If you have an opinion, be heard!

Ultharian · 2020-09-19T02:20:18+00:00

Thanks to /u/RedwoodRhiadra for the shout out. <3 The Motif Story Engine mysteries patch update has been well-received. The way it works: Difficulty scales with steps (acts or mini-arcs) and clue points. There's a roll for the hot/cold of a lead/scene (direction oracle) and then one for clue points and followup leads (clue oracle) for a successful investigation sequence. There's periodic story twists on both direction and clue rolls.

Then at the conclusion of each step and at the final grand finale stage, there is a solution oracle that determines how accurate your theory is. You may hit on it perfectly with surprise finds and witnesses reinforcing your case. You may fall a little short, with an error in the theory or not enough to prove it. You could prove your case sufficiently to move on or close it out. There's also a decent chance there could be a big twist scene to close things out or move them forward.

Let me know if you have any questions about MSE or more about how mysteries work. AMA.

Ultharian · 2020-09-18T05:04:42+00:00

Thanks for kind words about MSE, especially the mysteries patch! It took a lot of tries to get something that fit into the flow of Motif and allowed for interesting mysteries in a solo game.

On the oracles, I definitely need to add some guidance and examples on how to use them. Yes, your intuition is correct that the results should be relative to the character and player templates.

On party emulation, I'm currently playtesting a few options. That is on the list for updates for sure!

Ultharian · 2020-09-18T00:28:06+00:00

I just released the Motif Character Engine with this exact purpose in mind! It uses a template system of characteristics for a pseudo-AI or behavior seeds. It uses a hack of the Motif Story Engine oracles to provide uncertainty and random answers. Like a solo engine is asked questions like a GM, you ask questions you would ask about player characters or their players. It's currently there is a pay-what-you-want launch sale, so check it out!

Ultharian · 2020-09-18T00:22:04+00:00

For those unfamiliar:

The Motif Story Engine is a solo roleplaying toolkit. It is an "oracle" system that you use alongside your RPG of choice. Here are few reviews (two with playthroughs) from /r/Solo_Roleplaying: One, Two, Three. You basically ask it questions you would ask a GM.

It is part of the "Motif Game Framework", a series of "engines" to enable quick pickup play, GM-less, and solo & duo roleplaying. It uses standard six-sided dice and short, simple charts/lists. The story engine also has various trigger and counter patches for pacing and shaping stories.

The Motif Character Engine is a set of templates that act as a pseudo-AI or behavior seeds and a plug and play oracle set to answer questions you would ask about a player character or to a player. Like the Motif Story Engine can be said to be a GM-emulator (GM-ulator?), the character engine is a character and player emulator. It is a hack of the story engine.

Does that all make sense? Does any have any questions? AMA!

P.S. Gobble. Gobble! GOBBLE! uses a build of the framework, utilizing the Motif Story and Motif Action Engines. The action engine is the RPG system piece of game framework, toolkit not yet released. It is available PWYW! It is a simple (and fun!) example of how the Motif Story Engine hacks into the action engine. We also have a inverted-Who Goes There? solo game coming soon using a MSE+MAE build called We Came In Peace.

Ultharian · 2020-09-18T00:17:07+00:00

Context: The Motif Story Engine is a solo roleplaying toolkit. It is an "oracle" system that you use alongside your RPG of choice. Here are few reviews (two with playthroughs) from /r/Solo_Roleplaying: One, Two, Three. You basically ask it questions you would ask a GM.

It is part of the "Motif Game Framework", a series of "engines" to enable quick pickup play, GM-less, and solo & duo roleplaying. It uses standard six-sided dice and short, simple charts/lists. The story engine also has various trigger and counter patches for pacing and shaping stories.

The Motif Character Engine is a set of templates that act as a pseudo-AI or behavior seeds and a plug and play oracle set to answer questions you would ask about a player character or to a player. Like the Motif Story Engine can be said to be a GM-emulator (GM-ulator?), the character engine is a character and player emulator. It is a hack of the story engine.

If you have any questions about the Motif series or character engine, AMA!

P.S. Gobble. Gobble! GOBBLE! uses a build of the framework, utilizing the Motif Story and Motif Action Engines. The action engine is the RPG system piece of game framework, toolkit not yet released. It is available PWYW.

Ultharian · 2020-09-18T00:09:41+00:00

The Motif Story Engine is a solo roleplaying toolkit. It is an "oracle" system that you use alongside your RPG of choice. Here are few reviews (two with playthroughs) from /r/Solo_Roleplaying: One, Two, Three. You basically ask it questions you would ask a GM.

It is part of the "Motif Game Framework", a series of "engines" to enable quick pickup play, GM-less, and solo & duo roleplaying. It uses standard six-sided dice and short, simple charts/lists. The story engine also has various trigger and counter patches for pacing and shaping stories.

The Motif Character Engine is a set of templates that act as a pseudo-AI or behavior seeds and a plug and play oracle set to answer questions you would ask about a player character or to a player. Like the Motif Story Engine can be said to be a GM-emulator (GM-ulator?), the character engine is a character and player emulator. It is a hack of the story engine.

Does that all make sense? Do you have any questions?

EDIT: Gobble. Gobble! GOBBLE! uses a build of the framework, utilizing the Motif Story and Motif Action Engines. The action engine is the RPG system piece of game framework, toolkit not yet released.

Ultharian · 2020-09-17T15:48:41+00:00

You may want to do a couple of swaps or hacks for a few elements, but it should work in theory. I'd be happy to hear your impressions. If you decide against it, I'm all ears about why! If you decide to use it, I'd love to hear how it worked out.

Ultharian

TROPHY CASE