The 9Qs: Fast, No-Frills Solo RPG Play

Aargh! I just failed YET AGAIN to get people to play the Advanced Fighting Fantasy RPG with me! (See previous rants about this HERE and HERE.)

Time for soloing, I suppose, but what if I don't have the time to follow the many intriguing threads that develop with the Mythic Game Master Emulator? I need a simple, quick way to get the action going and keep it moving to a definite end.

Here's my idea, wherein I would be GM at times and then the player(s):

• Start with a system and setting you already know very well. (That will save an enormous amount of time.)
• Create one or more hero characters, each with a shared heroic motivation for adventuring. That motivation needs to be explicit in order for the adventure to move swiftly and smoothly!
• Grab Rory's Story Cubes (the original or the Voyages version with fantasy images) and a d6.
• Answer each of the following 9 questions with a roll of a single random Story Cube. Do not reuse a cube once rolled. For each roll, interpret the Story Cube's symbol within the context of the setting and the heroic motivation. (The questions are clearly based on the classic yet much-maligned Three-Act Model by Syd Field.)
• Then, for each answer, roll a d6 twice to determine the kind of scene that will dramatize the interpretation. If the results of the d6 rolls are different, combine the two results into a single event.
• Optional Consideration: Try to have the results of every three questions (1-3, 4-6, 7-9) take place in a different locale.

THE 9Qs

1. What looming threat inherent within the setting suddenly comes into conflict with the heroic motivation, threatening to worsen over time? Play a scene of seemingly random (1-3) social distress and/or (4-6) physical combat.
2. What overtly troubling event somehow tied to the results of Question 1 occurs, confirming that something seriously adverse to the heroic motivation is afoot? Play a scene of (1-2) intrigue, (3-4) flight, and/or (5-6) physical combat.
3. What aspects of the previous interpretation of the results of Questions 1 and 2 suddenly get twisted in a surprising manner, increasing the danger to the heroic motivation? Play a scene of (1-2) betrayal, (3-4) revelation, and/or (5-6) physical combat.
4. How can the fight be brought to the enemy, gaining ground for the heroic motivation? Play a scene of (1-2) defiance, (3-4) infiltration, and/or (5-6) physical combat in which any significantly bad rolls or results are slightly altered in the favor of the hero(es).
5. How can the success(es) from the results of Question 4 suddenly be perverted, turning into a terrible reversal of fortune for the heroic motivation as new information about the true face/scheme/power of the enemy becomes known? Play a scene of (1-2) betrayal, (3-4) revelation, and/or (5-6) physical combat.
6. How can the results from Questions 4 and 5 be adversely intensified, forcing the hero(es) to commit to a do or die course of action in accordance with their heroic motivation? Play a scene of (1-2) intrigue, (3-4) flight, and/or (5-6) physical combat.
7. Where can the heroic motivation be most effectively redeemed? Play a scene of (1-2) defiance, (3-4) infiltration, and/or (5-6) physical combat.
8. Where does the final showdown between the hero(es) and the enemy take place in relation to the results of Question 7? Play a scene of (1-2) defiance, (3-4) infiltration, and/or (5-6) physical combat.
9. Where does the world stand after the results of Questions 7 and 8? Take setting notes and advance surviving heroes.

This has some solid fast-play potential and could probably also serve well a GM with a group (not me, of course) for original adventure generation, but it might do with some more tweaking. E-mail me any suggestions you might have or feel free to comment below.

I'll run a test game with AFF in the next couple of days.