It’s always raining downtown. The streetlights flicker,
What leads
cutting the world into swathes of light and shadow.
People scurry down streets and around corners, collars
up, hats down, and always looking over their shoulder.
The Game
Hard Case is a solo role-playing game, sometimes
known as a journaling game. To play, you will need
something to record your journals such as paper and pen
as well as a d20 and a d6.
The game is divided into a series of turns known as
moments, representing the important elements of your
case. At the start of each turn, you will roll the d20 and
consult the chart to determine what event or reflection
your character will undergo.
If you roll the same prompt an additional time, reflect
on your previous entry for that prompt and reveal
something new about it, which your character had
previously not noticed or not revealed such as a new
clue or a character that lied. Next, add 1 to your Danger
tracker (tokens or tally marks on your paper). Then, roll
the d6. If you roll at or above your current Danger, you
escape a threat. If you roll below, the forces working
against you triumph and you perish. You begin at 0
Danger.
Certain prompts will add or subtract Proof. If you reach
6 Proof, you solve the case and succeed. Narrate your
climactic reveal. You start at 0 Proof.
The Premise
You are “Tex” Williams, a down on their luck private
detective with a (choose one – veteran, socialite,
criminal) past and a weakness for (alcohol, gambling,
love).
Your door swings open to reveal your latest client, a
(femme fatale, mob boss, politician) eager to engage
your services for a (unfaithful lover, high profile theft,
dastardly murder). Will you solve the case?
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Second Guess System by William Lentz is licensed under CC
BY 4.0. To view a copy of this license, visit
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1 An important witness or contact turns up dead.
does the crime scene offer? -2 Proof
2 You tail a suspect, but a dark car violently runs you off the
road. Who were you following? +1 Proof +1 Danger
3 You step out for a smoke. Where do you lounge and why?
4 An old man strums a guitar on the sidewalk and you toss a
few coins in his hat. What keeps you from his fate?
5 You go to see your pal, Jimmy, down at the bank. What
information is he unable to help you locate? -1 Proof
6 You discover an important invoice. What is it for? Where did
you find it? +1 Proof
7 You stop to see your old flame Allison, a telephone operator,
who tells you about a mysterious and furtive phone call. +1
Proof
8 You buy a drink to take the edge off. Why are your funds
running low?
9 An old comrade in arms persuades you to a night out. What
do you reminisce over so hard that you sleep through an
appointment the next morning? -1 Proof
10 You interview the last person to see them before the
incident. What detail do they let slip? +1 Proof
11 You think back to your last case. What went wrong?
12 A letter arrives in the mail among the bills. Who is still
writing you?
13 You stop back in at your office only to find it ransacked and a
fire burning in the wastebasket. What vital information is
turning to ash? -1 Proof
14 Sal, the bouncer at the Crown Club, owes you a favor. Who
did he see acting suspiciously last night? +1 Proof
15 You settle in for a drink at the Crown Club and a figure in the
darkest corner beckons you over. Why do they tell you to talk
to and why are they hiding in the corner? +1 Proof
16 You stop at a Catholic church to confess. What drew you
here? Do you feel better or worse?
17 A kid runs into you on the street. What do they pickpocket
from you? -1 Proof
18 A thug steps out of the darkness in an alley. He pummels you
and tells you to stay out of it. You must be on the right track.
+1 Proof +1 Danger
19 You awaken from a nightmare. What dark deed in your past
still plays on your subconscious?
20 Despite their fear, a witness comes forward. What did they
see? What do they fear? +2 Proof