I don't ever comment on RUclips, but know that your efforts are very much appreciated. Will definitely be a patron when I am done paying for business school lol. Keep it up, you're doing God's work here
I’ve been meaning to make the same comment for some time now. @TheDungeonDive, thank you for working so hard to put out these videos. You are my goto for solo!
I think I heard about this type of game from kruggsmash, he normally plays dwarf fortress and creates stories as he goes along. It reminds me of floorhammer, wargaming against yourself with unpainted minis on your bedroom floor
As dramatic as it sounds it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say finding this video changed my life lol I'll spare you the sappy details but you've ignited a new passion in me after giving up hope for RPGs a decade ago due to social reasons. Fast forward 2 months after randomly being recommended this video and I've learned book binding and half a dozen game systems and a backlog of a few times that. I can't express how much it means to me. Thank you for everything!
Thanks Daniel for featuring Ker Nethalas once again! My personal favorite has always been D100 Dungeon because I'm a sucker for D100 rulesets, and it offers a perfect amount of crunch. But I wouldn't be here if it weren't for the amazing 4AD, which was my intro to solo gaming (excluding gamebooks and boardgames, of course). Awesome video!
I need to try d100 Dungeons, maybe it will do a better job than 2d6 Dungeons does. God I hate those names though. Games named with zero creativity, theme, flavor or vibe. You'd think a designer would care about their own work enough to at least make even the bare minimum of a half-assed attempt.
Thanks for the amazing video Daniel. So much information and insight, very useful. You really know your stuff. Also thanks for featuring 2D6 Dungeon and for the kind words. I'm pleased you like the combat system and tables ;-)
0:00 Introduction 4:03 Caves & Catacombs 14:20 NoteQuest 24:20 D100 Dungeon 35:24 Marching Order 45:54 Ker Nathalas 55:19 Four Against Darkness 1:06:23 2D6 Dungeon 1:14:11 A Torch in the Dark 1:21:54 Outro Great video, by the way. :) As a newbie to solo adventuring, I'm very excited to give some of these a try! 🎲
I am a huge fan of D100 dungeon. I just find the depth of the system and the breadth of the expansions to be superb. As a FYI, some of the modules have even been added to Steam to simplify and expedite the bookkeeping and setup. It is super deep and rewarding in my opinion.
Ah man. I love old dnd modules, just reading them and looking through the art, and occasionally running little spoken word adventures for my friends at sleepovers. I had no idea this stuff existed, and it feels perfect, plus you just seem like you're having so much fun talking about them. Thank you for introducing all these cool adventures!
IMO, the World Builder for D100 Dungeon is the best overworld hex system of any game I've played in this genre. Yes, better than Dungeon Universalis. League of Dungeoneers, and HexCrawl for Shadows of Brimstone....and I'm not knocking those games at all. D100's overland system is THAT good.
@@TheDungeonDive I settled for Broken Cask, as a gift for my sister. I think she will like the setup, and I love her writing, even if she doesn't write much. It seems a great way to engage in it without pressure. I'd like to find some in French to gift my dad, if you have some info on translations. Great video anyway, I'm way too self conscious to play with people, so it can be a cool hobby.
Good intruduction to these games. I want them all now. I like how you're using index cards for the sections instead of mograph or video titles. It's on-theme. 😊 Peace.
Finally I don't need my embarrassed self-conscious friends to enjoy a pencil paper dungeon crawler! thanks for the video I would have never known this existed.
Check out Tunnels and Trolls! There were a ton of "solo adventures" released commercially and open license, though several are lost media. It was a DnD competitor back in the day, and solo play was it's main selling point.
This is an incredible video, thanks so much for putting it together! I’m inspired to try several of these games out and I will be viewing this video in its entirety over the next day or two.
I own 3 of them : D100 Dungeon, 4vs Darkness and because of you : Ker Anthalas. I agree with you, these games are contemplative .... I love drawing nice maps after playing the dungeon.
Do you prefer one of those over the others? I enjoy how these kinds of games kind of force players to slow down. Theyre great for escaping the daily grind.
@@TheDungeonDive I just tried Ker Nethalas a few days ago. I reached the end of my very First Domain. It's too early to tell about that one. I tend to prefer 4 Vs Darkness over D100 Dungeon, because it's more tactical. Nevertheless, I love all of them. They are great for playing peacefully and quiet. And yes, to slow down.
Man this is CRAZY, I have thought of this concept before wishing it was a thing. Super crunchy, dungeon delving, and solo. And VOILA HERE IT IS, a genre of its own! I have a question though, do any of these systems (or any not mentioned you may know) lend themselves to "2 player" or "player vs dm" 1 on 1 style play? I'd like to be able to play a game like one of these with the lady, being the dm and running limited (still at rhe behest of rolls for the most part) control of enemies vs a single player (as well as handling all the charts and narrative piecing work). Would any of these work more or less for that?
I know people do play some these multiplayer. Maybe co-op Four Against Darkness where you each control 2 heroes. Also, you could run almost any of them as a DM / GM.
I like when to talk about a group of games that are similar. I have 4 Again Darkness and 2d6 Dungeon as these are my style. A Torch in the Dark is not. The other four I need to do more research on them before I buy, but your insight on the game helps a lot, mainly to let me know what is available.
I didn't really like A Torch in the Dark, because it ended up feeling repetitive in the extreme. Ker Nethalas is fun, albeit extremely punishing. I think I might try D100 next to get some of that overland exploration as well.
Nice to hear you mention The Bard's Tale. God, I loved that series. The leader of my party was a fighter named Jasn Dragonsbane, but after playing a bit, I felt it was a bit presumptuous to have such a name, soi made a backstory for him, saying it was inherited from his father. Then I had to develop details about his father and how he got that name. I wound up going back one generation further, then another... By the time I was done, I had written 700+ years of history, drawn maps, and written the creation myths of the game world, which had morphed into a mix of my own story and the official lore. Good memories.
How do you actually play Tombs & Catacombs though, do you have to draw the map of the dungeons as you go or it all lives in the players' mind based on the rolls of the dice?
I wonder if ChatGPT or any other LLM can be trained to generate a solo RPG like this on the fly and maybe even generate images relevant to how the story is going.
Yes - it can. But I prefer my games made by humans, for the most part. I have nothing against people who like AI gaming, though, and it totally works and people seem to like it.
Thank you for including the less than complex games in the list. One of the things I dislike about TTRPGs like D&D is how complex they are and the minutiae when I just wanna have a fun dungeoncation
Damn,4 against Darkness.That was a long time ago,was my first Solo RPG i got from the Internet.Was great to play,played it with dungeon tiles and Miniatures.
Excelente video, muy buen trabajo como siempre, me encantaría poder adquirir tu expansión de notequest, por ejemplo en itch, ya qué es un juego que me gusta mucho, saludos desde México
Awesome video, thanks for making it! I hadn’t heard of Caves and Catacombs but was looking for something to use HeroQuest components with to introduce my kids to dungeon/hexcrawling and it looks like this will be a perfect fit.
Fantastic video. Looks looks like I need to get a few more books for 4AD. Caves and Catacombs looks cool too. I’ll have to rewatch your how to make a zine video. 😅
So I came up in the 80s with AD&D , but did not do any solo play except when I was conceptualizing the dungeons I was building as I was most groups DM in those years. Anyway I find this fascinating. And I really enjoyed this video. Another thing that many of my friends did back then was play by mail and I recently found a old horde of gaming magazines at a local shop and they were from the middle 1990s or so and there were still ads for play by mail games
@@TheDungeonDive me neither but I did find it fascinating that it was still quite viable through at least the late nineties and I would imagine it's probably out there in some capacity even now. Most of us old schoolers have put in hundreds and hundreds of hours either side of the DM screen and it is interesting to me that in all that time I haven't done Solo or played by mail and yet I consider myself a veteran of the hobby, somehow those situations just weren't available or I probably wasn't aware that they were even a thing. Curious.
Thanks for the look. I bounced off D100 and 4AD. I was wondering if you have tried the following: Dungeon Scum, Goal System Delves, and Call of Dungeons?
Very nice video. Only have two of these: Marching Order and 2D6 Dungeon. The drawing aspect of these games is what has typically held me back from playing them. I draw well, but tend to be a perfectionist.
@@TheDungeonDive While I understand the node system, I do miss the art and look of a dungeon. Playing with my kids, I found that I could re-use some of the drawings I did, and basically added them on top of a cardboard sheet. Now they work like the D100 Mapping Game, where you can just draw tiles from a pile, and place it on the board.
Thanks for the primer!! I think im going to give Four against the darkness a try. It seems the most fkeshed out. However i also have an early d100 book and telt at that time it needed a wilderness supplement which it now has. Maybe I'll just get both!! 🙂
Just the # of expansions for 4AD, turns me way off... no way i want to buy that much. Awesome video. For solo play I have really loved Ker Nethalas. I went and got the hardcover of it, i liked it so much.
I have a running theory that all the point crawl type games you've reviewed can combine all their various tables and they just, work, altogether. All at once.
The lamest thing about our options in the genre, none of them have overland travel baked into the system. It’s always a seperate system that can be purchased seperately. Completely tacked on feeling. PS. I would not comment so negatively if I didnt enjoy the niche.
that's how I felt as well, and which is why I wrote Disciples of Bone & Shadow. The first version of the game was basically 4AD + overland hexcrawling. I did end up expanding it into a proper RPG, but 1e was exactly what you say. I chose not to go that same route with Ker Nethalas cause I personally was in the mood of just a pure dungeon survival experience, without any sort of overworld elements, I wanted players to feel trapped down there!
I cobbled together Plight just to fill in this gap @thedungeondive . Mucho respect to Alex T. At least there is a narrative reason to never see daylight in Ker Nethalas. Great game. @blackoathentertainment5617
@@SeekersHollow honestly at this point it's just a poor man's Broken Shores. It's been clearly abandoned by the publisher, and it was my first game so it's pretty flawed.
Good to have an update on the state of these games and see them together. I love 4AD, NoteQuest and 2D6. I also own Marching Order but only digitally and still need to print out all the stuff.
As a kid, I had one of these that was in a Choose Your Own Adventure book. It's called The Warlock of Firetop Mountain. It was really fun. There was another that I had that was set it space, but that didn't interest me as much. I dont remember even playing through the whole thing.
I loved this video. Great summary and analysis of each of these great games!! I also really like how you print your zines with a colored front and back page. Do you do anything beyond just loading a colored sheet on the top of the printer stack?
It's great to see the solo TTRPG genre getting attention, for those who might want to play, but don't have a group to game with. We need more videos like this. 👍 Hadn't heard of Ker Nethalas before now, so need to check that one out. 😁
Hey there, I wanted to say this was a great video as I had no idea that solo RPG's were even a thing! You have a great presentation style and I appreciate the overviews of each game you give, they have really got me quite excited to give these games a go myself. Since watching this video last week I've bought myself a copy of Caves & Catacombs and also have your solo horror video a watch too and grabbed a copy of Seekers Beyond the Shroud too and some materials to get started printing my own zines following your guide on how to make them. Also going to be sharing your stuff with my D&D group as I know they will really enjoy all of these too.
The only item here I don't have is Marching Order. Thanks for the great look at it. Looks fun. I'd say it makes me think of Ker Nethalas in that it is a singularly unique experience. I like Notequest for it's simpicity. D100 is easily the Deluxe experience, and 4AD is probably the most expansive. For when you don't have a group, and still want to get in some fun rather than pretend that playing a full blown RPG's worth of PCs solo is 'practical'. I have pondered for instance, playing Warhammer FRP by myself, but, dang that is a substantial effort :)
@@TheDungeonDive I have Warlock! I call it Warhammer Lite. I recently grabbed Hack 100. All the fun of Warhammer, none of the complexity. Zweihammer is just a shyt rip off and isn't even supported any more.
Zweihander is my favorite starter set of all time. Cannot be beat for the price. Years of gaming in a box for like $30. That and the D&D essentials set. Such great values.
How about Steve Jackson games like Melee and Wizard with Micro quests like Deathtest? I played the micro quests a ton solo when I was young. Great times and memories. :)
Love the video!! It got me to learn and print D100 Dungeon which I was having a blast with.. until I got destroyed in 3 rounds by an enemy that rolled 2 6s and a 5 in a row and I haven't played since. I know this is a long shot because "death can come at any time" is a key part of old school RPGs and Dungeon Crawlers, but I'd love recommendations from anyone on similar but less punishing games.
D100 Dungeon supplies I deem essential A Solo Adventuring Game (a must have) like A Players guide The Lost Tome Extraordinary like Players handbook The Dragons Return like Monster manuel. Mapping Game for mapping tiles.
Hey all, which system would you recommend if you wanted to create a dungeon for a groupd of players to explore in a traditional RPG, like D&D 5e? Ideally, I'd like to "double dip" by running a solo dungeon an then reusing it for the game I host with my regular players.
I would just look for a tool to create dungeons for whatever system you want to play. Check out the Deck of Many Dungeons, or the dungeon creation tools in Scarlet Heroes.
@@TheDungeonDive you're beating him in "the contest". His podcast is the complete opposite of what he hoped it would be. The podcast Nazi said "no subscribers for you!". Ok I'm done with the stupid Seinfeld jokes
This reminds me of those adventurebooks in libraries in the 80s and 90s. "Turn to page X". Had its drawbacks but as a kid the first time you ran into them it was pretty wild.
Of yeah. choose your own adventure books and Fighting Fantasy were the biggest. Bunch of others as well. They’re called game books now, and some have come a really long way.
Wow, I picked up a copy of Twelve Years at my local game store, but I had no idea the rabbit hole went so deep! I love looking things up on charts too :]
I only just found out about these games, wow what a lucky time for me to find a video like this! These games seem really interesting, I’m fed up with large game boxes!
I ran across your channel with the Ker Nathalas review, thanks for pointing me to this video too! Subscribed so I can follow more content, I never knew there was a dungeon crawling subgenre like this for tabletop gaming and now my wallet is recoiling from me in horror :D I have Ker Nathalas on the way and am excited to try it out, and all of these games look interesting too, going to have to pace myself! One question I would ask, what would be the most reputable and comprehensive online shop to rely upon for games like these? I don't have a nice printing setup at home so prefer to purchase printed material rather than PDF's where possible.
Have fun! Unfortunately, a lof of these are only available PDF, so you'll have to print your own. I also have a video on printing / making your own zine. DrivethruRPG offers some on POD, and their quality is great. Some might be on Lulu. Others are on Amazon. For PDFs I mainly use itch.io.
I've designed some free "gateway" pen and paper dungeon crawls for people who want to try this type of game but don't want to spend money in case they don't like it. Are you happy for me to post a link here?
Hi Daniel, is it possible to "win" a run on these games ? Especially for Ker Nethalas, which is the one that interest me the most for the moment (I never played it). Thanks you for your great Channel !!!
![FendiDa Rappa - Clock Dat ft. Shamar Marco [Official Music Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/3NBU8KHdxYY/mqdefault.jpg)
I don't ever comment on RUclips, but know that your efforts are very much appreciated. Will definitely be a patron when I am done paying for business school lol. Keep it up, you're doing God's work here
A view and comment is greatly appreciated. :)
I’ve been meaning to make the same comment for some time now. @TheDungeonDive, thank you for working so hard to put out these videos. You are my goto for solo!
As someone who had no idea this genre existed before I stumbled across this video, I am fascinated
Right on! There are some great things out there.
same, reminds me of being a kid playing d&d freestyle imagination no board or anything physical, just imagination.
Exactly!
This. It just popped up in my videos. Haven't played a (non video game) RPG for more than 30 years!
I think I heard about this type of game from kruggsmash, he normally plays dwarf fortress and creates stories as he goes along. It reminds me of floorhammer, wargaming against yourself with unpainted minis on your bedroom floor
As dramatic as it sounds it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say finding this video changed my life lol
I'll spare you the sappy details but you've ignited a new passion in me after giving up hope for RPGs a decade ago due to social reasons.
Fast forward 2 months after randomly being recommended this video and I've learned book binding and half a dozen game systems and a backlog of a few times that.
I can't express how much it means to me. Thank you for everything!
Nice! Glad to hear you're having fun with the games and DIY hobby. :)
Thanks Daniel for featuring Ker Nethalas once again! My personal favorite has always been D100 Dungeon because I'm a sucker for D100 rulesets, and it offers a perfect amount of crunch. But I wouldn't be here if it weren't for the amazing 4AD, which was my intro to solo gaming (excluding gamebooks and boardgames, of course). Awesome video!
I need to try d100 Dungeons, maybe it will do a better job than 2d6 Dungeons does. God I hate those names though. Games named with zero creativity, theme, flavor or vibe. You'd think a designer would care about their own work enough to at least make even the bare minimum of a half-assed attempt.
Thanks for the amazing video Daniel. So much information and insight, very useful. You really know your stuff. Also thanks for featuring 2D6 Dungeon and for the kind words. I'm pleased you like the combat system and tables ;-)
My pleasure!
0:00 Introduction
4:03 Caves & Catacombs
14:20 NoteQuest
24:20 D100 Dungeon
35:24 Marching Order
45:54 Ker Nathalas
55:19 Four Against Darkness
1:06:23 2D6 Dungeon
1:14:11 A Torch in the Dark
1:21:54 Outro
Great video, by the way. :) As a newbie to solo adventuring, I'm very excited to give some of these a try! 🎲
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it.
Thanks for all the great information you've provided/presented on solo RPG'ing!
Thank you! Appreciate it.
I am a huge fan of D100 dungeon. I just find the depth of the system and the breadth of the expansions to be superb. As a FYI, some of the modules have even been added to Steam to simplify and expedite the bookkeeping and setup. It is super deep and rewarding in my opinion.
i was laughing when you started bringing out all the 4 against darkness books. Was like a neverending clown car 😂
I bought 4 more 4AD books after making this video. Lol.
They are so inexpensive so understandable. If you do not get them it feels like losing money, haha.
Ah man. I love old dnd modules, just reading them and looking through the art, and occasionally running little spoken word adventures for my friends at sleepovers. I had no idea this stuff existed, and it feels perfect, plus you just seem like you're having so much fun talking about them. Thank you for introducing all these cool adventures!
Right on! Hope you find some things to enjoy in this space.
IMO, the World Builder for D100 Dungeon is the best overworld hex system of any game I've played in this genre. Yes, better than Dungeon Universalis. League of Dungeoneers, and HexCrawl for Shadows of Brimstone....and I'm not knocking those games at all. D100's overland system is THAT good.
It’s amazing. One of the best expansions I’ve ever purchased.
Great timing! Just about to go on a trip with Ker Nethalis and 4AD.
Didn't watch the video yet, I don't know what this is, all I know is I must refrain from buying.
Edit : I failed to refrain from buying.
Hahah! What did you get?
@@TheDungeonDive I settled for Broken Cask, as a gift for my sister. I think she will like the setup, and I love her writing, even if she doesn't write much. It seems a great way to engage in it without pressure.
I'd like to find some in French to gift my dad, if you have some info on translations.
Great video anyway, I'm way too self conscious to play with people, so it can be a cool hobby.
Playing solo is the way to go! You can play any time, and no else is around to spoil the mood.
Good intruduction to these games. I want them all now. I like how you're using index cards for the sections instead of mograph or video titles. It's on-theme. 😊 Peace.
Keep it old school! Note cards and clip boards.
Finally I don't need my embarrassed self-conscious friends to enjoy a pencil paper dungeon crawler! thanks for the video I would have never known this existed.
Right on! I also have a very detailed beginner’s guide to Solo RPGs on the channel. :).
@@TheDungeonDive that’s awesome. I’m about to purchase Notequest and then I’ll go check that out 😎
This is great. You should do a similar video for adventure game books like Fighting Fantasy, Fabled Lands, DestinyQuest, etc.
Unfortunately I don’t really have enough to do so.
Your hands are so animated it looks like you are casting a spell. And, in a way, you are.
Check out Tunnels and Trolls! There were a ton of "solo adventures" released commercially and open license, though several are lost media. It was a DnD competitor back in the day, and solo play was it's main selling point.
Yeah! I’ve got a bunch of stuff for T&T. Not a big fan of the system any more, but it was cool a long time ago for solo gaming for sure.
This is an incredible video, thanks so much for putting it together!
I’m inspired to try several of these games out and I will be viewing this video in its entirety over the next day or two.
Have fun!
Im like 250 bucks in to.4ad, and ive had fun.but there just is no cohesive game.and thats why i dont play anymore
Add table of fables and the world builder cards for 4ad called the norinndal oracle they also have cards of maps called pocket lands
This allows you to generate adventures land religion foes etc
I would gladly jump into 4AD if they made an omnibus like you describe. I'm not sure why I haven't tried it yet.
I own 3 of them : D100 Dungeon, 4vs Darkness and because of you : Ker Anthalas.
I agree with you, these games are contemplative .... I love drawing nice maps after playing the dungeon.
Do you prefer one of those over the others? I enjoy how these kinds of games kind of force players to slow down. Theyre great for escaping the daily grind.
@@TheDungeonDive I just tried Ker Nethalas a few days ago. I reached the end of my very First Domain. It's too early to tell about that one.
I tend to prefer 4 Vs Darkness over D100 Dungeon, because it's more tactical. Nevertheless, I love all of them.
They are great for playing peacefully and quiet. And yes, to slow down.
Great selection of games there!
This one was highly anticipated! Treat of the day! Sitting & relaxing now!. (Pressing play now).
Enjoy!
I bought Ker Nethalas because of your long review of it. It’s my first solo rpg and like it a lot.
Thank you for playing my game!
@@blackoathentertainment5617 Thank your for making it!
So glad I found your channel: It's a real treasure for solo RPGers
Right on! Thank you. Enjoy the episodes. :)
I love D100 Dungeon combined with Scarlet Heroes and Shadowdark. Spells I use a home brew
version of Easy D6.
Sounds like a good combo!
Man this is CRAZY, I have thought of this concept before wishing it was a thing. Super crunchy, dungeon delving, and solo.
And VOILA HERE IT IS, a genre of its own!
I have a question though, do any of these systems (or any not mentioned you may know) lend themselves to "2 player" or "player vs dm" 1 on 1 style play?
I'd like to be able to play a game like one of these with the lady, being the dm and running limited (still at rhe behest of rolls for the most part) control of enemies vs a single player (as well as handling all the charts and narrative piecing work).
Would any of these work more or less for that?
I know people do play some these multiplayer. Maybe co-op Four Against Darkness where you each control 2 heroes. Also, you could run almost any of them as a DM / GM.
I like when to talk about a group of games that are similar. I have 4 Again Darkness and 2d6 Dungeon as these are my style. A Torch in the Dark is not. The other four I need to do more research on them before I buy, but your insight on the game helps a lot, mainly to let me know what is available.
I didn't really like A Torch in the Dark, because it ended up feeling repetitive in the extreme. Ker Nethalas is fun, albeit extremely punishing. I think I might try D100 next to get some of that overland exploration as well.
Fantastic video! I found this very helpful and will definitely be trying some of these out.
Excellent!
Nice to hear you mention The Bard's Tale. God, I loved that series. The leader of my party was a fighter named Jasn Dragonsbane, but after playing a bit, I felt it was a bit presumptuous to have such a name, soi made a backstory for him, saying it was inherited from his father. Then I had to develop details about his father and how he got that name. I wound up going back one generation further, then another...
By the time I was done, I had written 700+ years of history, drawn maps, and written the creation myths of the game world, which had morphed into a mix of my own story and the official lore.
Good memories.
Oh dang, that’s awesome.
Thank you for making this video. I am looking forward to the Marching Order expansion you mentioned.
How do you actually play Tombs & Catacombs though, do you have to draw the map of the dungeons as you go or it all lives in the players' mind based on the rolls of the dice?
Draw maps.
I wonder if ChatGPT or any other LLM can be trained to generate a solo RPG like this on the fly and maybe even generate images relevant to how the story is going.
Yes - it can. But I prefer my games made by humans, for the most part. I have nothing against people who like AI gaming, though, and it totally works and people seem to like it.
Didn't even know this was a thing either. Bought d100 last night.
Nice! Enjoy.
Thank you for including the less than complex games in the list. One of the things I dislike about TTRPGs like D&D is how complex they are and the minutiae when I just wanna have a fun dungeoncation
annotations and time markers would be awesome on this video!
Peerless overview of my favorite RPG sub-genre. Thanks very much for your valuable insights and efforts, Daniel!
Thank you! And my pleasure. :)
Damn,4 against Darkness.That was a long time ago,was my first Solo RPG i got from the Internet.Was great to play,played it with dungeon tiles and Miniatures.
Great video Sir! Thanks for the amazing work!
I'm enjoying this video. I think you are doing a good job.
Glad you enjoy it!
Excelente video, muy buen trabajo como siempre, me encantaría poder adquirir tu expansión de notequest, por ejemplo en itch, ya qué es un juego que me gusta mucho, saludos desde México
Those rules were never really solidified, and are just available as a perk for patrons.
Awesome video, thanks for making it! I hadn’t heard of Caves and Catacombs but was looking for something to use HeroQuest components with to introduce my kids to dungeon/hexcrawling and it looks like this will be a perfect fit.
Perfect!
Fantastic video. Looks looks like I need to get a few more books for 4AD. Caves and Catacombs looks cool too. I’ll have to rewatch your how to make a zine video. 😅
There are so many awesome 4AD books! I got 4 more after making this video! Lol.
So I came up in the 80s with AD&D , but did not do any solo play except when I was conceptualizing the dungeons I was building as I was most groups DM in those years. Anyway I find this fascinating. And I really enjoyed this video. Another thing that many of my friends did back then was play by mail and I recently found a old horde of gaming magazines at a local shop and they were from the middle 1990s or so and there were still ads for play by mail games
Oh nice! Play by mail is one thing I’ve never done.
@@TheDungeonDive me neither but I did find it fascinating that it was still quite viable through at least the late nineties and I would imagine it's probably out there in some capacity even now. Most of us old schoolers have put in hundreds and hundreds of hours either side of the DM screen and it is interesting to me that in all that time I haven't done Solo or played by mail and yet I consider myself a veteran of the hobby, somehow those situations just weren't available or I probably wasn't aware that they were even a thing. Curious.
Really good stuff, I’ve got some of these but just picked up Ker Nethalis based on your recommendation
Sorry to be off topic but what is that play surface table mat underneath your games? Looks like a nice faux leather?
That’s exactly what it is. Got it at Joann’s.
@@TheDungeonDiveawesome thanks.
Thanks for the look. I bounced off D100 and 4AD. I was wondering if you have tried the following: Dungeon Scum, Goal System Delves, and Call of Dungeons?
Have not. Haven’t even heard of them!
Very nice video. Only have two of these: Marching Order and 2D6 Dungeon. The drawing aspect of these games is what has typically held me back from playing them. I draw well, but tend to be a perfectionist.
Thank you! I switched over to doing most of my drawings in a node or point to point style because, like you, I grew tired of the drawing.
@@TheDungeonDive While I understand the node system, I do miss the art and look of a dungeon. Playing with my kids, I found that I could re-use some of the drawings I did, and basically added them on top of a cardboard sheet. Now they work like the D100 Mapping Game, where you can just draw tiles from a pile, and place it on the board.
Fantastic video! When I find time, I'll definitely check into some of these. :)
Speaking of menus, how about that Romancing SaGA 2 remake menu huh....pretty darn great.
Haven’t seen it! I’ll check it out.
Thanks for the primer!! I think im going to give Four against the darkness a try. It seems the most fkeshed out. However i also have an early d100 book and telt at that time it needed a wilderness supplement which it now has. Maybe I'll just get both!! 🙂
You’re awesome
Just the # of expansions for 4AD, turns me way off... no way i want to buy that much. Awesome video. For solo play I have really loved Ker Nethalas. I went and got the hardcover of it, i liked it so much.
OD&D is a good option as well if one is inclined to give the OG a try.
Has some good stuff for dungeon generation!
I have a running theory that all the point crawl type games you've reviewed can combine all their various tables and they just, work, altogether. All at once.
Hey, why not? UBER GAME.
@@TheDungeonDive That's the plan! ^^
The lamest thing about our options in the genre, none of them have overland travel baked into the system. It’s always a seperate system that can be purchased seperately. Completely tacked on feeling.
PS. I would not comment so negatively if I didnt enjoy the niche.
that's how I felt as well, and which is why I wrote Disciples of Bone & Shadow. The first version of the game was basically 4AD + overland hexcrawling. I did end up expanding it into a proper RPG, but 1e was exactly what you say. I chose not to go that same route with Ker Nethalas cause I personally was in the mood of just a pure dungeon survival experience, without any sort of overworld elements, I wanted players to feel trapped down there!
Yeah, I don’t mind that at all. Sometimes I want it, sometimes I don’t. So when it’s separate I can ignore or block include.
I cobbled together Plight just to fill in this gap @thedungeondive . Mucho respect to Alex T. At least there is a narrative reason to never see daylight in Ker Nethalas. Great game. @blackoathentertainment5617
@@blackoathentertainment5617 Damn, I'm gonna have to try DBS now!
@@SeekersHollow honestly at this point it's just a poor man's Broken Shores. It's been clearly abandoned by the publisher, and it was my first game so it's pretty flawed.
Good to have an update on the state of these games and see them together. I love 4AD, NoteQuest and 2D6. I also own Marching Order but only digitally and still need to print out all the stuff.
Thank you! Really appreciate it. Glad you enjoyed the video. :)
As a kid, I had one of these that was in a Choose Your Own Adventure book. It's called The Warlock of Firetop Mountain. It was really fun. There was another that I had that was set it space, but that didn't interest me as much. I dont remember even playing through the whole thing.
Oh heck yeah! The Fighting Fantasy game books!
Great video to watch while I paint some minis tonight, thank you for the hard work!
Good combo. ;)
This is why I love the internet. So good.
Thanks! I’ll have a guide to solo analog horror out this week!
Absolutely top tier! 🎲 Destined to be a classic Dungeon Dive video! Thanks for your efforts Daniel!
My pleasure!
Marching Order is sounding like Darkest Dungeon and Talisman had a baby! 😂
Can you play any of these games solo? I don’t have any friends that like this stuff.
There are two hints in the title of the video. (Hint: the two hints are the word solo)
@@TheDungeonDive thanks for the clarification. I have special needs and don’t speak English well
About 99% of the games I cover on the channel are solo! I play solo most of the time.
I loved this video. Great summary and analysis of each of these great games!!
I also really like how you print your zines with a colored front and back page. Do you do anything beyond just loading a colored sheet on the top of the printer stack?
Thanks! I have a whole video detailing how I print zines at home.
ruclips.net/video/GqRwtWVepYw/видео.htmlsi=xETfxQRdz-OZpuT_
@@TheDungeonDive Perfect!! Thanks so much!
It's great to see the solo TTRPG genre getting attention, for those who might want to play, but don't have a group to game with. We need more videos like this. 👍
Hadn't heard of Ker Nethalas before now, so need to check that one out. 😁
Right on! I’ve got a whole playlist dedicated to solo RPGs! So many videos. :)
Hey there, I wanted to say this was a great video as I had no idea that solo RPG's were even a thing!
You have a great presentation style and I appreciate the overviews of each game you give, they have really got me quite excited to give these games a go myself. Since watching this video last week I've bought myself a copy of Caves & Catacombs and also have your solo horror video a watch too and grabbed a copy of Seekers Beyond the Shroud too and some materials to get started printing my own zines following your guide on how to make them.
Also going to be sharing your stuff with my D&D group as I know they will really enjoy all of these too.
Hey, right on. Hope you have fun checking out the games!
The only item here I don't have is Marching Order. Thanks for the great look at it. Looks fun. I'd say it makes me think of Ker Nethalas in that it is a singularly unique experience. I like Notequest for it's simpicity. D100 is easily the Deluxe experience, and 4AD is probably the most expansive. For when you don't have a group, and still want to get in some fun rather than pretend that playing a full blown RPG's worth of PCs solo is 'practical'. I have pondered for instance, playing Warhammer FRP by myself, but, dang that is a substantial effort :)
Have you looked into Warlock of Zweihander to scratch that WFRP itch? They might be a bit simpler for solo play.
@@TheDungeonDive I have Warlock! I call it Warhammer Lite. I recently grabbed Hack 100. All the fun of Warhammer, none of the complexity. Zweihammer is just a shyt rip off and isn't even supported any more.
Zweihander is my favorite starter set of all time. Cannot be beat for the price. Years of gaming in a box for like $30. That and the D&D essentials set. Such great values.
@@TheDungeonDive I'm guessing you meant the Zweihander Horror starter. I'm referring to the Zweihander fantasy core manual RPG.
My sincerest appreciation for this video
How about Steve Jackson games like Melee and Wizard with Micro quests like Deathtest? I played the micro quests a ton solo when I was young. Great times and memories. :)
Yeah! There are all kinds of games like this.
Love the video!! It got me to learn and print D100 Dungeon which I was having a blast with.. until I got destroyed in 3 rounds by an enemy that rolled 2 6s and a 5 in a row and I haven't played since. I know this is a long shot because "death can come at any time" is a key part of old school RPGs and Dungeon Crawlers, but I'd love recommendations from anyone on similar but less punishing games.
If you like the system, just house rule more HP or defense. Let your character start with more armor. It’s your game. Make it fun.
My favorite solo RPG is SORCERY! by Steve Jackson games. That one was a lot of fun
Super fun game books! I really like the more recent digital versions of the Sorcery! games. SO much fun.
Thank you for this video! Truly excelent!
D100 Dungeon World Builder seems amazing!
Thanks for the detailed information! Looking forward to future videos.
D100 Dungeon supplies I deem essential
A Solo Adventuring Game (a must have)
like A Players guide
The Lost Tome Extraordinary like
Players handbook
The Dragons Return
like Monster manuel.
Mapping Game for
mapping tiles.
Hey all, which system would you recommend if you wanted to create a dungeon for a groupd of players to explore in a traditional RPG, like D&D 5e? Ideally, I'd like to "double dip" by running a solo dungeon an then reusing it for the game I host with my regular players.
I would just look for a tool to create dungeons for whatever system you want to play. Check out the Deck of Many Dungeons, or the dungeon creation tools in Scarlet Heroes.
News to make you feel good today: your channel has more subscribers than Jason Alexanders podcast channel.
Haha! Take that, Jason Alexanders! ;)
@@TheDungeonDive you're beating him in "the contest". His podcast is the complete opposite of what he hoped it would be. The podcast Nazi said "no subscribers for you!". Ok I'm done with the stupid Seinfeld jokes
Worlds colliding!
This reminds me of those adventurebooks in libraries in the 80s and 90s. "Turn to page X". Had its drawbacks but as a kid the first time you ran into them it was pretty wild.
Of yeah. choose your own adventure books and Fighting Fantasy were the biggest. Bunch of others as well. They’re called game books now, and some have come a really long way.
Great video! Thanks for making it. :)
Glad you liked it!
Wow, I picked up a copy of Twelve Years at my local game store, but I had no idea the rabbit hole went so deep! I love looking things up on charts too :]
Oh boy does it ever!
Why do I like that little lantern so much
We all need a little light.
This video is amazing. Thank you for the background and context on this fascinating dungeon niche.
Glad you enjoyed it!
great video! i was wondering, given the laco of a DM for these modules, can it be possible to play with another person?
I think so. At least to come capacity.
Question, for the hex crawl parts of some of the games, would it be possible to use the tiles from shadows of malice to take the hex paper’s place?
Definitely! It’s fun to use pre existing maps from other games.
I only just found out about these games, wow what a lucky time for me to find a video like this! These games seem really interesting, I’m fed up with large game boxes!
It’s really nice to have these small options available.
Theres nothing i want more than for this channel to have more subscribers than kingofaverage.
Hahaha. I need to cover more big crowdfunds for that to happen. :)
@@TheDungeonDive youre only a few thousand away you can do it
I ran across your channel with the Ker Nathalas review, thanks for pointing me to this video too! Subscribed so I can follow more content, I never knew there was a dungeon crawling subgenre like this for tabletop gaming and now my wallet is recoiling from me in horror :D I have Ker Nathalas on the way and am excited to try it out, and all of these games look interesting too, going to have to pace myself!
One question I would ask, what would be the most reputable and comprehensive online shop to rely upon for games like these? I don't have a nice printing setup at home so prefer to purchase printed material rather than PDF's where possible.
Have fun! Unfortunately, a lof of these are only available PDF, so you'll have to print your own. I also have a video on printing / making your own zine. DrivethruRPG offers some on POD, and their quality is great. Some might be on Lulu. Others are on Amazon. For PDFs I mainly use itch.io.
@@TheDungeonDive Thank you for the advice, much appreciated!
thanks😊
I tried Ironsworn once, not much of a dungeon crawl but good for the imagination
Yeah. Not a big fan of Ironsworn. It does have the dungeon crawl expansion though.
Great video Daniel, thank you!
My pleasure!
I've designed some free "gateway" pen and paper dungeon crawls for people who want to try this type of game but don't want to spend money in case they don't like it. Are you happy for me to post a link here?
I don't think you'll be able to post links in the comments. Maybe share them on the DD Facebook group! Tons of activity there.
@@TheDungeonDive Ah, good point. I don't have a Facebook account, but thanks anyway.
This was a super-cool deep dive into these games. Thanks so much!
Glad you enjoyed it!
🐙
Wizardry!
Super cool, youre my introduction to this and im interested in giving one a shot. KN, D100 and A torch in the Dark interested me the most!
Excellent! Have fun discovering!
@@TheDungeonDive Do you happen to know about any Post Apoc/Wasteland style rulesets?
@@uglymeez236 Check out Eco Mofos, or Vaults of Vaarn.
Where can we find info on that new marching orders expansion?
Probably the crumbling keep website.
@@TheDungeonDive there is a new version of marching order in the works, along with the additional content.
Yep! I mentioned that in the video.
Hi Daniel, is it possible to "win" a run on these games ? Especially for Ker Nethalas, which is the one that interest me the most for the moment (I never played it). Thanks you for your great Channel !!!
Most of these are just about surviving long enough to play more. I don’t know if KN had an ending.
Ok thanks ! @@TheDungeonDive
If you're looking for something you can "win" maybe check out my latest review for Heroes of Cerulea.