You can purchase Random Realities here (you can see a sample page from the zine there)
I realized I have lots of what I would call tabletop RPG “toys” and “tools.” These documents aren’t necessarily an entire game but can be used to create or add to complete games. I’ve had a desire to jump into a new setting, and rather than choosing a game first, I decided to use some of these tools to do world-building, and that would, in turn, lead me to a system that would fit what I needed. I’m also using advice from Geek Gamer’s Solo Game Master Guide, specifically, her recommendation that you focus on the world first, and character will naturally emerge from those elements.
First up, we’ll be using Cezar Capacle’s Random Realities. This oracle zine is meant to help spark ideas in any aspect of a tabletop RPG campaign. It’s over 60 pages with 10 categories on each page. The PDF version has a neat feature where you can simply click on the picture of dice in the bottom corner, and it will send you to a random page in the book.
The categories are General (Yes/No oracle and other abstract results), World, Quest, Location, Exploration, Creation, Scene, People, Creature, and Fate (Odds of something happening). Within each of these categories are other labels. For example, you have Name, Aspects, and Inhabitants under World. Under Scene, you have Challenge, Reaction, Senses, Activity, Detail, Development, Complication, and Advantage. The idea is that no matter what part of roleplaying you are engaged in, Random Realities can be used to add something to that story.
I decided to use Random Realities to roll for three aspects that I would apply to four genres – fantasy, science fiction, horror, and superhero. From there, I would individually role for an inhabitant, a picture icon, and a location for each genre. Then, I would do a rough write-up of the ideas these sparked.
Because I want you to have some say in where we go next, read the descriptions below, and then vote in the poll at the bottom of the page to decide which of these we will develop further into a solo campaign.
Aspects for all four settings– Void, Death, Desert
Fantasy –
Inhabitants: Celestial Assassins
Icon: Bamboo
Location: Gold rush – embassy, exposed – barren, poisonous extraction, healing – reflective, monarch heir, stoic indifference, bewitched painting, healing – refuge
Concept:
Magic was discovered millennia ago by the first mages. They found a parallel realm of pure energy that could be harnessed through unique objects (wands, staffs, crystal balls, etc.). Now, the world has prospered from this magic. A vast desert was formed when the land was laid waste during a war between mages. Some magic users are pushing its boundaries, and stories of the risen dead are becoming more prevalent. But the void where magic power comes from is not that at all. There are beings composed of energy who live there, and the more humans on the material plane use magic, the more they destroy the other realm. Celestial assassins have come from the void intent on killing the magic users and destroying the artifacts in a desperate bid to save their world.
The primary location of this adventure would be an embassy on the fringes of an empire. This had once been a booming town during the days of the great mines whose ore was used to forge the magic conduits. Desperate people with few chances left gather here. It’s a barren wasteland due to brutal battles between some of the greatest mages ever known. It has become the home of Prince Phelix, the exile of the Kingdom of Murimont. He is elderly and near the end of his days, having never sat on the throne. This embassy is also home to a painting of Ravenna Metus, one of the most infamous necromancers in history. The painting is said to be cursed and that as long as it exists, Ravenna can be resurrected as her blood was mixed with the pigment.
This setting combines elements of fantasy and westerns. It is an embassy at the end of the world where disparate people have gathered. It has a lot of potential for diverse characters, with lots of double-crossing, hidden agendas, and the looming threat of the celestial assassins coming to town and taking out every magic user.
Science Fiction
Inhabitants: Mysterious Mechas
Icon: Gordian Knot
Location: piracy – military, prosperous – glimmering, treacherous pact, spirituality – ornate, divine entity, immediate camaraderie, ancient ruins, champions – solace
Concept:
Humans have spread from their original home on Earth to many colonies across the galaxy. Space is quiet as the distance between outposts is quite vast. One of the worries in these outer colonies is the resurgence of a plague thought to have been cured. It is said to be wiping out vast swaths of humanity. The looming threat of mass death has forced factions who previously were at each other’s throats to combine resources to make it through this dark period. This is easier said than done because long-standing grudges make it difficult for some to work together.
One colony has finally organized once rogue pirate forces into a trained military to protect them from those like them. However, the prosperity they once enjoyed due to resource harvesting has dwindled, leaving the future uncertain. The colony’s leaders entered a deal with an antagonistic force wanting more control. The community circles up around their shared belief in a divine figure tied to the colony’s founding. As the newly turned pirates into soldiers show more allegiance to the evil force the community has made a pact with, it is time for outside heroes to save them from this quicksand. Then there are stories of mysterious mechs made by alien technology that have activated and are destroying whatever crosses their paths.
Like the fantasy setting, this would include elements of westerns or classic Kurosawa films. I see a beleaguered mayor or marshall trying to wrangle a motley crew of soldiers. I’d also be interested in developing this villainous figure and what they want from the arrangement. The alien mechs in the background are also looming threats that could be fun. I could see the player character being a mercenary or drifter pulled into the colony’s drama.
Horror
Inhabitants: Dreaming Sages
Icon: Cactus
Location: discovery – medicine, radiant – dense, a skeleton in every closet, innovation – overgrown, trade consortium, infectious joy, missing heirloom, diplomacy – hospitality
Concept:
Falcon Creek, Tennessee, has become another casualty lost to drugs. Once a thriving manufacturing town centered around a washing machine/dryer factory, the business has been moved overseas, leaving the economy in a nosedive. A new drug has shown up in town, nicknamed Void, and is believed to be a research chemical. Users claim it takes them to another place, a dark building they wander through but never find the exit. Some have overdosed and died, leading residents to recall similar drug deaths from back in the 1990s. Something has awakened in Falcon Creek. It is putting itself back together, using certain townsfolk as its protectors even if they are unaware.
The primary location here would be the town itself. Falcon Creek had been the site of a mineral boom when it was founded, and now, with the factory closing down, the most activity has been the arrival of CDC agents who are studying and treating the many drug overdoses. Everyone seems to have a dark secret, making it hard to know who to trust. A handful of Void users have formed a cult on the edge of town, projecting an image of overflowing joy & health, but most people don’t buy it. It hasn’t been discovered yet, but the diary of town founder Ebenezer Sutter has been stolen from the town museum, and it answers what is happening.
The dreaming sages prompt has me thinking this could be a very Twin Peaks-esque campaign. I could see playing as a high school student with friends getting caught up in Void use. I could also be a local authority or even a CDC agent from outside coming into town to get to the bottom of things. A different angle could be an occultist who comes to town to try and drive back the evil force beneath the surface. I see this as a modern-day story with some elements of cosmic horror throughout.
Supers
Inhabitants: Timeless Spies
Icon: Quill pen & ink
Location: artifacts – academy, thriving – pristine, rebellion stirs, ceremony – foreboding, local magistrate, contagious enthusiasm, eldritch tome, technology – sanctuary
Concept:
The attempted invasion of Earth failed. An interplanetary alliance had built up their forces secretly and launched a brutal attack on the planet. Thankfully, many superpowered heroes joined together to repel the enemy. Left behind are tons of advanced pieces of weapons and tech that are being snatched up by Earth’s supervillains, making them deadlier than ever. A team of heroes is using the same tech for good, though. They attempt to transform the Sahara Desert into a lush paradise and end some of humanity’s suffering. A hero who has been believed dead for decades has emerged, but even his old friends find something wrong. The answer may lie in the memoirs of an obscure Golden Age hero who knew the deceased figure. Then there are the Chrononauts, multiversal police, who are trying to repair the damage done to reality by some of the most dangerous alien weapons.
Our primary setting would be a superhero academy founded during the 1940s, in the wake of World War II. It was once the jewel in the superhero community but has lost much of its grandeur following a darker turn in the 1990s. Some instructors find the current headmaster delusional, and talk of a coup has surfaced. The authorities of Forge City have allowed the academy to stay open for decades, but new leadership has plans to take over the institute. They want to ensure the heroes are trained to serve them alone. The academy is also home to a vast occult library, and within the collection is a tome that can be used to awaken long-slumbering dark gods.
In this world, there are many options for characters to play. I could be a student at the academy, one of the instructors, a member of the team working on transforming the Sahara, a former friend of the resurrected hero, an investigative reporter assigned the supervillains using alien tech story, and more.
Check out part one of our look at The Location Crafter as we continue our world building exercises.
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