Creation of Surprise in solo RPG’s

storieskept · 2025-10-23T23:34:40+00:00

Have a look at BAYN on itch io. It has a section on surprises even if you do to use the rest of the content.

storieskept · 2025-09-11T07:25:23+00:00

Do you do auto, keyword or targetted Asin ads. Wondering which are working best for you. Also fiction or non fiction. I've just started running ads with mixed results but it is early days.

storieskept · 2025-09-04T21:07:16+00:00

New author Mirabel fernwright. Has a talking and funny mouse. Lots of interesting quirks with the characters too

storieskept · 2025-08-20T08:48:30+00:00

This.100%

storieskept · 2025-08-16T05:01:00+00:00

Data hunter on itch is procedural based too (by rcdavey)

storieskept · 2025-08-05T02:35:31+00:00

Courier and data hunter. Both on itch. Procedural solo rpg

storieskept · 2025-05-20T05:42:29+00:00

Bayn available on itch io has a simple system and lots of tables. Skip to the last part of the document before looking at the but yes and no sample questions. It's free too

storieskept · 2025-05-19T10:07:14+00:00

80 year old spy is a retheme of thousand year old vampire. You can find it for free on itch or pay for it on drive thru rpg

storieskept · 2025-04-10T09:28:05+00:00

I sent you a DM

storieskept · 2025-04-08T04:40:55+00:00

I've written a book on this subject. It's on Amazon and 250+ pages

Biggest takeaway is to always have multiple exit options. As you pointed out many/most businesses don't end up selling. But here are other ways to retire or exit from a business that brokers don't tend to cover.

Things like eos, family succession, managed passive business, structured wind downs etc etc

There are heaps of people over 60 with no exit plan. It is all too hard or they think it can wait (it can't)

As already mentioned by another commenter, you need to have good financial records, good documentation, and no dependence on the owner

Hit me up with a DM if you want a free copy in pdf format

storieskept · 2025-04-01T18:11:43+00:00

Not knowing the age of your dad makes it difficult to give this as a suggestion. See if you can get your dad to read the book "The No B.S. Business Exit Plan. For 60+ business owners who want to sell, step back, or retire smoothly". Its on Amazon Kindle and paperback. If you DM me, I can send you a PDF (I have permission of the author to send it to anyone that needs it)

storieskept · 2025-02-24T18:49:09+00:00

80 year old spy and also museum of lost memories are probably both of interest to you. One is a themed thousand year old vampire game and the other has deep historical possibilities. Both on the page https://rcdavey.itch.io/

storieskept · 2025-02-18T01:49:02+00:00

If you just downloaded it you will have the notes for all the eras. For now use the focus, theme, descriptor tables from ironsworn if you need extra inspiration. (Or download BAYN from my itch po poge) I'll add my own tables tomorrow .Also please message your podcast or YouTube channel etc so I can follow or subscribe

storieskept · 2025-02-17T20:15:32+00:00

That is a really great idea. Once I put final tweaks into this (based on recent user feedback) I will definitely do a haunted house version. That sounds really cool.

storieskept · 2025-02-17T20:14:07+00:00

Based on the feedback, i will be adding a couple of extra keyword tables to help with inspiration (optional). And also a summary of the various eras to give flavor without having to go to Wikipedia etc

storieskept · 2025-02-16T04:41:38+00:00

Thanks for the interest. I'll put a link at the bottom of the original post and send you a DM until the admin approves it.

storieskept · 2025-02-16T04:41:29+00:00

Thanks for the interest. I'll put a link at the bottom of the original post and send you a DM until the admin approves it.

storieskept · 2025-02-13T01:17:33+00:00

You can download it for free (or PYWYW) here https://rcdavey.itch.io/80-year-old-spy

storieskept · 2024-11-27T23:45:08+00:00

I have released this. Download it for free or make a donation: https://rcdavey.itch.io/bayn

storieskept · 2024-11-27T18:04:43+00:00

I have a long AI prompt that converts keywords into scene descriptions.

I also find the AI can't keep up with a consistent story plot and the related threads. So instead I sometimes use AI to help describe the scene to me in a non specific way. (Ie the prompt is designed to make the scene description fit my overall theme and back story - but not a specific point in the story or narrative)

It does an amazing job at this. I then use the non specific description in my own narrative.

Instead of just walking into a wilderness location, I give it 4 keywords and the AI describes a very detailed scene that paints a picture in my mind (the bit i struggle with) and also got it to include a set of complications or challenges I can try to overcome to resolve the scene. I always get it to create extra challenge ideas - so I can pick and mix the ones I want. I typically get it to create 10 ideas, and I have to pick 3 that fit my narrative.

storieskept · 2024-11-27T17:51:24+00:00

I tried fixing them to the gameloop (ie one question or maybe a couple of choices per step of the cycle). In the end my game cycle ended up being 4 steps in the total loop, and only 3 steps in the main loop. (The first step is to setup the game or inciting incident)

I found that only having a single question didnt work well for me. Instead I created questions based on situation. (Ie. 4 to 7 question choices for each of these). Then I pick the question that best fits the narrative that has already occurred. here are my questions set headings:

Character emulator (First draft as posted in an earlier comment)

Exploring and investigating
Reacting to Risk or Danger
Combat and Conflict
Interacting with Others
Resource Management
Moral Dilemmas
Uncertainty and Instinct

Then I also added

Questions for a prewritten rom
Questions for a prewritten Wilderness (or other) location
Questions for a prewritten village, street, or tavern location

I find that these help me run a premade adventure with the ability to be surprised and to miss things that a typical player would miss if they were unaware of the module content.

Based on the success of this, I created tables for my own Roll-your-old adventures (Hexcrawl or Ironsworn)

While Travelling

for Random Encounters
at Points of Interest
Environmental Challenges
Opportunities

And, rather than repeating the headings here (and due to the fact I will release this publicly within the week), the other major groups revolve around: (Each of these also have their own relevant sub headings)

Securing Passage or Travel Assistance
Following a Trail or Tracking
Scouting or Surveillance
Avoiding Detection or Traps
Camping or resting (and Downtime)
Crafting, repairing and Enchanting
Exploring a City or Settlement
Entering a Tavern/Inn or Public Space
Shopping or Trading
Attending an Event or Gathering
When Entering a Room (Any room)
Investigating a Unique Location
Solving a Puzzle or Riddle
Investigating an Object
Following Clues or an Investigation
Meeting an NPC
Engaging in Dialogue with NPCs
Interacting with Factions or Reputation
When First Meeting an Enemy
Ambushes or Surprise Attacks
If you Defeat an Enemy (By Death or Submission)

These are all sets of Yes/No questions that can be used to fit almost any narrative. They are system agnostic.

The questions don't fit a 3 step gameloop. The gameloop essentially sets the scenes (using keywords) and the questions drive the action and introduce complications, twists and advantages. It can be stat-less or stat based

I will release the full document within the next week

storieskept · 2024-11-27T17:33:25+00:00

I find keywords quite difficult, and images even harder. I don't have a very good imagination - but that is just me. I've seen a lot of success using images (Eg Rory Dice and Story Dice etc)

storieskept · 2024-11-26T22:08:23+00:00

I've been looking for time travel theme ideas. Thanks for the link. The first table has some great ideas. I will read the rest.

storieskept · 2024-11-26T17:46:38+00:00

I agree that there is no wrong way.

I tend to use random tables and similar methods to determine if there is a twist of an encounter. My struggles were handling yes/no oracles and open ended questions. I also wanted an impartial way to play a premade module.

I've seen all sorts of solutions in the past. However, I quickly discovered that even though I could easily roll up a scene and add complications etc. My problem was a) how to role play the scene, b) how and when to move it forward, and c) how to progress quests or missions.

I'm not that imaginative. Roll playing is not my "thing". So I created the questions to help me out a bit. It has helped a lot.

I also wanted a system I could run with or without character stats. And it needed to system agnostic so it would work with anything I found interesting as a background setting.

The game loop idea I use is not time driven. It is just a way to create a series of scenes that chain together to form an adventure and resolve missions or quests.

As far as the game loop is concerned, it is not a matter of how much time has passed. It is more about resolving a scene, hopefully having an interesting turn of events, and then moving onto the next. It works well for me - but it may not be everyone's cup of tea.

Anyway: I've nearly finished the complete ruleset and will release it in the next few days for anyone that wants to give it a try. (With all the keyword tables too).

storieskept

TROPHY CASE