Why are you playing #solorpg systems? #ttrpgs are living off their social interaction and emergent storytelling, which is not-existent or strongly diminished when playing solo. Which system do you play and what makes them work for you? #rpg#pnpde#pnp
@samurro You've started with an invalid assumption, thus invalidating the whole point of the question.
You assert, without proof, that TTRPGs live off of their social interaction and emergent storytelling, as if solo gaming eliminates all of the above.
When you state something which is patently untrue and a little insulting to the very people you want to give you feedback, it doesn't end well. In this case you just managed to get largely ignored. Congratulations, you got off easy.
Emergent storytelling comes from the telling of story, the retelling of events – and it doesn't matter what seeds those events, whether it be other people or the effect of randomness or the operation of your own mind. The story exists, regardless. And it emerges from a confluence of multiple things, even in solo role-playing. Even in solo journaling games which are even more explicitly constrained in terms of presentation.
But this would have been obvious if you had actually looked at one, maybe even tried to play with. Crazy talk, I know, this idea of going to seek the answer to a question rather than simply asserting something incoherent. Madness, really.
@samurro#Ironsworn probably is the root of the best game designs that I have seen in the last several years, and I have seen a lot. The course of play is complex enough for sufficient events to come to pass so that there can be a story – but it's never a story you can fully predict the outcome of. You have to react in the moment with an eye to what your motivations are. #Starforged is the more refined mechanical expression and a base setting which speaks to me somewhat more being science fiction.
It's a different mode of play to play solo, absolutely. But it doesn't make it a lesser mode than traditional #TTRPG fare; there are certain freedoms that come along with not having to deal with other players at the table when you want to have your own experience. And most solo RPGs these days have the ability to be played co-op so that you can cycle other people into your experience if that's what you want. But you don't have to.
I'm not particularly fond of retrofitting games which weren't designed for #solo because inevitably the mechanics start getting over complicated when you're dealing with multiple characters and the pacing of events when involved in using the mechanics often feels stilted. It's a thing you can do, but probably a thing you shouldn't do.
@lextenebris The last paragraph depicts my thoughts about it.
In my book #solorpg are a vastly different experience to "ordiniary" #ttrpgs with multiple players.
@samurro@lextenebris What is "ordinary ttrpg"? 😂 I haven't played with two groups who were playing the exact same way. Some prefer combat, some prefer exploration, some prefer epic stories, some prefer sandboxes. And then, there is the GM style. Some build a whole world in advance. Some follow written adventures to the letter. Some figure what's next just based on players suggestions, or rolling dice. And then, some groups are the same 4 or 5 players every week. Some are players coming in and out and never having the same table.
#ttrpg is modular by nature. #solorpg is just one other way to play it. If your point is that "there are aspects of playing in group that you don't have when playing solo", well, yes? :D The reverse is true too. And there are aspects of playing in group one way that you don't get when playing in group an other way.
The good news is that you won't be struck by lightning if you play both solo and in group. Nobody asked you to choose either one or the other.
@kik@lextenebris So much text. And yet I fail to see what new bring to the table. My intention was never to shame #solorpg players. I was just genuinely interested in motivation/experiences...even quotations marks are ignored...sigh
@samurro@lextenebris As you say, so much text. If you're still failing to see the interest of solorpg, maybe it's time to consider you may have preconceptions and are attached to them, to the point of refusing the answers to your very questions. And yes, you get heat because your contempt is showing.
@samurro for what it's worth, I've only ever tried out one system and abandoned it after a few rounds. But, I think that solo RPGs are a great starting point for creative writing and many systems encourage that as part of the play.
IMO, creative writing is very much emergent storytelling. Once you sit down and start writing, you'll notice that the story develops a life of it's own. Details you come up with on the spot to describe a situation, start intruding and modify what happens.
@samurro Before I started writing myself, I often thought that authors had everything figured out, before putting their pen to paper.
Characters and plot fully fleshed out, at least rough sketches of all the locations...
But in reality, I think many authors just pick up a great idea and start to flesh it out. What happened before? What implications does this have?
These are the same questions that pop up in a roleplaying group. 🙂
@samurro I feel like once you start looking, every single book, movie or tv show feels like it could be an RPG campaign.
It'd be interesting to know if there are actually cases where media emerged from playing an RPG.
@samurro if you want my opinion, you could have rephrased your question a bit.
The first two sentences feel like you're stating your opinion and not genuinely asking a question. 🙂
"I'd be interested to know why you are playing..." and
"ttrpgs are [...], which I feel like is non-existent or strongly..."
would lessen that a bit.
@mforester Thank you for taking the time to explain why my initial post might lack responses! Sometimes I am oblivious to it esp. with English not being my first language.
@samurro Sorry, we're not that many following those hashtags :)
Personally, I play the same systems I play in group : dnd, Shadowrun and Traveller, with Mythic GME on top.
There are many reasons to love #solorpg, like the love of writing (tried to have my friends play PbP, this didn't pan out 😅), the desire to finally be a player when you're a forever DM, the desire to finally see a campaign reach conclusion, etc. In about 10 years of roleplaying, I haven't see a campaign with other players reach conclusion, as a player or as a DM. Not once. Supposedly "life" gets in the way, systematically. Maybe I'm unlucky. And it's even more annoying when you've been doing worldbuilding specifically crafted for the characters of your players.
With solorpg, I can build as much as I want, nobody can take it from me. The emergent storytelling is there thanks to Mythic or other oracle systems - actually way better than when DMing. And the social aspect is there too, just have characters discussing.🤷
@samurro Oh btw, I forgot a very obvious reason to love #solorpg : you can play when you want. You can play every night of a week if you want, then pause for two months, then start again, then play in a waiting room when you have a bit of time or something.
I play every night of the week (playing three different games), spending my evening writing instead of playing videogames or watching series (I still play videogames on week-ends to change a bit). I replaced consumerism in my life with creativity, that's awesome.
It goes beyond writing by the way, as there are a lot of close arts that work well combined with solorpgs : some nights, I'll just draw a cool scene from one of my games, or make a portrait for one of my characters. Other nights, I'm sculpting/3d printing/painting minis for my dnd combats. And when writing, exploring with Mythic the vastness of the worlds beyond me ridicules even the most big budget videogame. And I can have an other of those world every night if I want.
Add comment