Demonic Solo Rules

For shadow of the Demon Lord

Requires Shadow of the Demon Lord from Schwalb Entertainment.

1 Distributed through the Disciples of the Demon Lord Creative Community at DriveThruRPG
 Demonic Solo Rules
Custom Rules for
~Credits~
Solo Play WRITING, Design, and Art Direction:
Peter Rudin-Burgess

12 Pages of Rules, tips, advice and tables to run

a sandbox campaign for Shadow of the Demon Title is ©2018 Schwalb Entertainment, LLC.
Lord. All rights reserved.
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Schwalb Entertainment, and their associated logos
are trademarks of Schwalb Entertainment, LLC.
Schwalb Entertainment, LLC

PO Box #12548, Murfreesboro, TN 37129

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 full night of great role playing. The adventures will
Introduction be different, but they will be perfect for you and your
character as you have no one to satisfy but yourself.
If your first thought is “Solo Play? This is a role The second part is some useful record sheets for
playing game!” then I can answer that for you. keeping track of your solo adventures. As these
Sometimes you may want to try out an idea but it isn’t adventures will grow organically as you play, you
ready yet for your players to play through. Maybe need some organized way of keeping track of NPCs,
your players cannot make it tonight. locations and plot threads as they evolve.
Sometimes we find that the gaps between when you The third part of this booklet is a collection of
all do get to play gets longer than we wish. Solo play is helpful tips on how to run a solo adventure. You will
a way of getting to be a player when there is no one to probably find it hard the first time, I know I did, but
GM for you. the more I did it the more natural it feels.
What you will find in these pages is three things. The Tips and Advice section in part 3 is not all my
The first is a practical technique for running own work. These were compiled with the help of the
Shadow of the Demon Lord without a Game Master. SotDL community and in particular Disapproval Kuo-
How to have an adventure where you don’t know Toa, BrianDM and Breaker of Games. Their assistance
what will happen next. How to play wherever and is greatly appreciated.
whenever you want. Solo play is not a replacement
for getting together with your regular players for a

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 Part One
These solo rules are a toolbox full of tools or
mechanics for you to use. Each tool is discrete, and
they are used individually as the need arises.
Each tool will explain what it is for and when to use
it.
Scene Selection
Tool
Roleplaying games are not normally thought of as
playing scenes. Adventures are normally described
location by location. In solo play, games tend to be
more in the sandbox style where you can go anywhere
and do anything and adventure will find you. In
this style of play there is more of a tendency to use
scenes. Every time you could imagine a movie director
shouting “Cut!” then you have reached the end of a
scene. When you make an explicit change of location
that is going to be a change of scene. In solo play it
is often not necessary to play every minute of every
day. In a regular game with friends you would quite
possibly hand wave away weeks of a sea journey if
nothing happens. So it is with solo play but when you
jump forward in time that is most likely a cut and end
of scene.
With each scene you roll a d20 and check the nature
of the scene. What this tells you is something that
will feature or become an opportunity in the coming
scene. If the result of the scene roll was ‘rest’ it doesn’t
mean you have to set up camp there and then. If
you were pursuing a gang of thieves across the roof
tops, then maybe you catch up with them when they
stop to rest. If you have played out the entire scene
and the scene roll had said ‘conflict’ but there wasn’t
any then let that roll over to the next scene. Conflict
could mean anything where there is a clash of wills,
it doesn’t need to mean combat. If you have a carried
over scene objective then add it to the next roll.
If the first scene had an objective of ‘rest’ but had
turned into a roof top chase but you had lost sight of
the thieves. You decide to circle back to the market
where they were operating from. You decide that
that is a cut scene and arriving at the market is the
start for a new scene. You roll a new objective and
get ‘conflict’. You have the unused ‘rest’ still so the
new scene objective is ‘rest+conflict’. As you play out
this scene you come across one of the thieves in a
tavern. He is recovering from your chase. You walk
up and sit across from him saying “you can run but
you cannot hide from me.” That ticks both boxes,
even if the dialogue is corny. He was resting and your
confrontation ticks the second criteria.
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Altered Scenes
Sometimes what you thought was going to happen
next doesn’t. Altered scenes can prevent the solo game
becoming a simple procession of what you expected
happening again and again. In the above illustration
the character doubled back to the market. We also
know that the new scene objective was Conflict. If the
scene roll had been a 4 (on the d20) then the result
would have been Conflict + altered scene. Following
up with a d6 you get a modification. If the d6 came
up 5 then the result would have been “Conflict + An
important event is already happening here.”
That would suggest that something is already
happening in the market place. The idea of simply
sitting down next to the thief and trying to intimidate
him may not even be viable now. Thinking of the
game we are playing, the setting, the NPCS and what
has gone before , taking all that into account I decide
that the market has been hurriedly cleared to make
way for an impromptu execution. There is a block
in the center of a ring of people and a black hooded
executioner with an axe. With them is a magistrate
and a blindfolded elf in open fronted shirt and black
leggings.
As with everything in solo play you must choose
the most common sense or logical interpretation of
the dice rolls that fit your game, the character and
the setting. It means that two players with identical
characters, in the same town facing the same
challenges will have entirely different adventures,
because of these moments of what came to you at that
point.
Roll Objective
1-3
4
Conflict
Conflict + altered scene
5-7 Exploration
8 Exploration + altered scene
9-11 Social
12 Social + altered scene
13-15 Travel
16 Travel + altered scene
17-19
20
Rest
Rest + altered scene
Roll Scene Alteration
1 An unexpected event interrupts you.
2 The location is different or changed.
3 The NPCs are new or unexpected.
4 Roll a different Scene Objective.
5 An important event is already happening here.
6 This situation is easier or harder than expected.
 The Oracle
The Oracle is a question and answer tool. The
fundamental core of solo play is the Oracle. In the
same way that you would normally ask your GM, in
solo play you ask either the Oracle or the Augur. The
Oracle is used far more frequently.
There are three parts to an Oracle question and
answer.
First is the question. You need to phrase your
question so that it is a yes/no question. Are there any
guards? Can I see an inn? Is the jailor asleep?
The second part is the likelihood of a yes answer.
Questions that are almost certain are made at +6,
questions that are very likely are +4, likely +2. Unlikely
events follow the opposite of -2 for unlikely to -6 for
the almost impossible. Imagine you have stealthily
made your way to the local Lord’s private chambers.
You peer around the corner and wonder if there are
any guards. Evil Lords will almost certainly have
guards outside their private quarters so the Oracle
roll is made at +6. The Oracle roll is not the same as a
perception test. Just because something is there does
not mean that your character is aware or it.
The third element is Fortune. If you character
currently has fortune then the Oracle roll may be
shifted plus or minus one in the direction that most
favours the character.
The Oracle is a single d20 roll.
ROLL ANSWER
20 or more Yes and…
14-19 Yes
11-13 Yes but…
8-10 No but…
2-7 No
1 or less No and…
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Interpreting results
There are six possible results made up of
combinations of and, but, yes and no.
Result Meaning
Whatever you were asking about is true
but not only that it is even more than you
expected. Are there any guards? “Yes and…
it looks like they are about to doze off in this
heat”
Yes and…
Is there a horse I can steal? “Yes and… it
is a fine-looking beast. Its owner has just
dismounted and strode towards the saloon.
He hands you the reins and tells you to stable
his horse, giving you a silver shilling.”
The answer is a simple yes.
Are there any guards? “Yes. There are a pair
Yes of sentries, one either side of the door.”
Is there a horse I can steal? “Yes. A knight
has just dismounted and given his horse to a
stable lad.”
While the answer is a yes, the result is not as
good as you had hoped.
Are there any guards? “Yes but… an officer
is screaming at them for being useless and
if they make one more mistake they will be
Yes but… hung from the battlements.”
Is there a horse I can steal? “Yes but.. the best
looking animal belongs to a knight that is in
the saloon, at a table overlooking the entrance
to the stables.”
The answer is a no but there is something
relating to it.
No but… Are there any guards? “No but… you can hear
the tramp of boots approaching.”
Is there a horse I can steal? “No but.. there is a
livery stable further down the street.”
This is a simple no.
Are there any guards? “No, there is no sign of
any guards.”
No
Is there a horse I can steal? “No, you probably
cannot see any horses at all or if there are
there are plenty of people around that would
notice.”
This is the most extreme form of No.
Are there any guards? “No and … you think
you can hear the guards jogging off to
No and... investigate something else.”
Is there a horse I can steal? “No and... a guard
appears. He is nailing up a poster saying
Beware of Horse Thieves!”
The important point to remember with the Oracle
is not to ask too many questions. Imagine the scene,
imagine what you want your character to do and
then if there is an important fact that will make or
break the situation, then ask that question. Too many
questions will slow the game down as you drill down
into ever more finer details.
Do not ask game breaking questions. Don’t ask if
you find 1,000 gold crowns under your pillow in the
morning. Chances are that you will get a Yes but…
[… the courier that was carrying them is in a bloody
heap at the end of your bed and you can hear the city
guard kicking in the door downstairs] or worse, such
 as No and…[what money you did have seems to have
disappeared as well.]

The Augur
The Augur is designed to answer complex
questions. If you want to know what people are
talking about or the contents of a book or you
interrogate someone and you want to know what they
can tell you.
The Augur uses a two-word pair such as Messages
+ Punishing. Going back to our original scenario,
having lost the thieves on the rooftops you doubled
back to the market place, only to find an execution
about to take place. The magistrate starts to read
out the crimes the elf was accused off and taking the
result Messages + Punishing the first thing that comes
to mind is that the execution is intended to send a
message to the other terrorists of the punishment
that awaits them. That fits the sort of thing that would
happen in these sort of show trials.

To use the Augur Roll a d20 twice.

The first roll uses this table.

First Roll
01. Allies
02. Enemies
03. Emotions
04. Opposition
05. War
06. Peace
07. Love
08. Messages
09. Tension
10. Friendship
11. The physical
12. A project
13. Pleasures
14. Pain
15. Possessions
16. Plans
17. Lies
18. Expectations
19. A path
20. News

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 Second Roll
I have provided 5 alternative tables for the second
roll. The reason for this is that you may find that with
only twenty options on both sides of the Augur phrase
similar phrases can repeat quite frequently. As soon
as you get your first repetition swap to using the next
table. Every time you get a repetition move on to a
new table.

Table 1 Table 2 Table 3 Table 4 Table 5

01. Procrastinating 01. Overindulging 01. Mistrusting 01. Attaining 01. Developing
02. Praising 02. Adjourning 02. Deceiving 02. Starting 02. Travelling
03. Separating 03. Adversity 03. Cruelty 03. Neglecting 03. Blocking
04. Taking 04. Killing 04. Intolerant 04. Fighting 04. Harming
05. Breaking 05. Disrupting 05. Trusting 05. Recruiting 05. Debasing
06. Healing 06. Usurping 06. Exciting 06. Triumphant 06. Tricking
07. Delaying 07. Creating 07. Actively 07. Violating 07. Arriving
08. Stopping 08. Betraying 08. Assisting 08. Opposing 08. Proposing
09. Lying 09. Agreeing 09. Caring 09. Maliciously 09. Dividing
10. Returning 10. Abusing 10. Negligently 10. Communicating 10. Refusing
11. Imitating 11. Oppressing 11. Passionately 11. Persecuting 11. Guiding
12. Struggling 12. Inspecting 12. Hard Working 12. Increasing 12. Transforming
13. Informing 13. Ambushing 13. Controlling 13. Decreasing 13. Overthrowing
14. Bestowing 14. Spying 14. Attracting 14. Abandoning 14. Oppressing
15. Postponing 15. Attaching 15. Failing 15. Gratifying 15. Changing
16. Exposing 16. Carrying 16. Pursuing 16. Inquiring 16. Releasing
17. Haggling 17. Opening 17. Vengefully 17. Antagonising 17. Befriending
18. Imprisoning 18. Carelessness 18. Proceeding 18. Moving 18. Judging
19. Releasing 19. Ruining 19. Disputing 19. Wasting 19. Deserting
20. Celebrating 20. Extravagantly 20. Punishing 20. Truce 20. Dominating

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 NPC Reactions
Not every NPC is going to be your friend. Not
everyone is going to launch into an attack either. The
story is going to be your first guiding light. Your best
friend is not likely to turn on you for no reason. For
the more neutral NPCs a roll will set their general
disposition.
You should have an idea of the general situation.
Using that general situation you can set a modifier.

MODIFIER DISPOSITION
+6 Hostile to Character
+4 Opposed to Character
+2 Slightly Opposed to Character
0 Neutral
-2 Slightly Well Disposed to Character
-4 Well Disposed to Character
-6 Friendly Disposition

ROLL REACTION
2 or less Talkative or gossipy
3 Wants to trade
4 Offers help or advice
5 Needs a favor or has a job
6 Has a lead or a clue
7 Offers direct assistance
8 Not interested in talking
9 Wants to trade
10 Requests tribute or payment
11 Needs a favor or has a job
12 Tries to trick or deceive
13 Pursuing unrelated objective
14 Pursuing counter objective
15 Tries to trick or deceive
16 Denies access
17 Demands tribute or payment
18 Threatens or harasses
19 or more Attacks without warning

Important
Fortune also applies to this roll. A character with
Fortune may choose to shift the roll one point in the
direction that the player wishes.
Having caught up with your thief at the execution
he turns to face you. You think he should be slightly
hostile. Rolling a seven plus two for slightly hostile
the result is “Wants to trade”. That sounds like a good
opening to get talking.

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 Part Two
Recording Your
Games
The following section contains some basic record
sheets for recording your solo games. The core record
sheet is a journal. This can be as detailed or as concise
as you prefer. Some solo players like to visualise the
entire scene, make a few rolls to clarify a few points
and then write up the entire scene like the chapter of
a book. My solo journals are little more than bullet
points that would make no sense to anyone. It details
just words that act as memory joggers, the questions,
results of the solo rules and NPCs. All the action, the
detail and dialogue is all in my imagination.
To keep the game going from solo session to solo
session and build a campaign you will need some
records. The three record sheets presented here are
the NPC, Scene and Plot lists.

NPC List
The NPC list details helps you to keep the people
you meet in the places you expect them to be. A tip
for solo play is to reuse NPCs as often as you can.
Over time you will build up a ever more detailed
knowledge of each NPC. You can keep these bits of
information on these record sheets.

Scene List
The scene list records your adventure scenes in
order. You can add the objective as soon as it is rolled
and the outcomes and NPCs as the scene unfolds. The
scene list serves as a recap of the entire campaign if
you read it top to bottom.

Plot List
Potential plots will inevitably present themselves.
When I decided to play this game I decided a basic
plot to kick off my solo game. That was that this Lord
is oppressing elves and the reaction to that has been
a emergence of an elven rights terrorist group. That
is plot number 1. In this short introduction we have
a thief that wants to trade and the first thing that
popped into my head is that he wants out of the town
and he will trade his help in exchange for my help in
getting out of town. I can either make him part of the
elves resistance or maybe he has his own problems.
That could easily become plot number 2. Any time
you create someone or something working for their
own purpose it is quite possibly a new plot.

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 NPC List
Who Where Race & Profession Notes
Eg.
1. Thief Market Place Elven thief Wants to trade safe passage out of
town in exchange for his help.

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 Scene List
Scene Objective Setting & NPCs Notes
Eg.
1. Rooftop chase Rest Rooftops NPCs (1) Caught up with thief in the market
after public execution

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 Plot List
Plot Who Where Notes
Eg.
1. Oppression of the (1) Small town within Elven terrorist group rebelling aginst
elves Empire of Caecras the local power?

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 benefits as they go up in level. In place of a
Part Three starting party of 5 player characters you could play
a solo 5th level character.
• Retreat or flee? If you are in a desperate situation
Tips and Advice try asking the Oracle if there is a possible way out
or escape route? You will still need to survive the
• Do not ask too many questions. Settle the key escape attempt but this way your defeat in combat
facts and then let your imagination fill in the rest will move the story forward and keep you alive.
• The oracle does not replace skill rolls. Just • Insanity. Don’t roll 1d20 for insanity, use 3d6+2.
because guards exist does not mean that you see This stops you rolling a 1 and dying of a heart
them. Do not ask questions like “Can I pick the attack which is not very heroic. Likewise going
lock?” that is what character professions and skills catatonic or tearing your own eyes out will most
are for. likely end your adventure.
• Do not create more NPCs than you need. Meeting • Give yourself the Epic Adversary talent. This will
the same people again and again will increase the give you 1d3+1 actions and you can move before
sense of continuity in your games. your enemies.
• If you have more than four unresolved plots see if • If you don’t have Fortune during a scene but you
you can resolve one or more of them or if they can roll a Yes and... on the Oracle, give yourself a
be interlinked into something more complex or Fortune point.
sophisticated.
• If you roll something and it makes no sense then
ignore it. The tables are there to help not hinder
your game.
• If you are playing a prepared module then let the
module override rolls like the scene objective.
• In prepared modules or adventures make sure you
are familiar with the content beforehand.
• Try and start your solo games in a moment of high
action or intensity. You do not need to meet other
PCs in the tavern and get to know each other. A
first scene of a roof top chase immediately throws
up opportunities.
• You do not need to play every day or every scene.
If you want to skip forward to the next adventure
because you have exhausted this one then you can
do that.
• You can play scenes in any order. If you want
to go back and insert a new scene before or
between existing scenes then you have just
created a flashback. As long as you have a note of
when important things have happened such as
when you gain important items or were terribly
wounded you can roll back the changes and play
adventures out of order.

Surviving Solo
Playing solo is hard. The game was written with an
entire party in mind. To that end the following tips
will help make your character a bit more robust.
You should pick and choose which ones you want to
employ. I do not recommend that you use all of them
as you could find the game becomes a little one sided.
• Starting with higher stats. Try giving your
character two additional +1s to their stating stats.
• Start at a higher level. Each profession gains

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