Solo Dungeon Crawler - Solo DnD Tutorials

Monster Reaction Rolls have become a Dungeons & Dragons staple since its inception in 1974. Adjustments to this kind of roll have always applied but there is some abiguity involved that may be considered to affect consistency. If you are a solo gamer like myself and playing original Dungeons & Dragons then consistency is key and therefore some level of robustness is necessary! OD&D Applying Consistency to Random Actions by Monsters In Underworld & Wilderness Adventures there is some discussion in regards to Random Actions by Monsters. These rules tell us that "Other than in pursuit situations, the more intelligent monsters will act randomly according to the results of the score rolled on two (six-sided) dice: 2–5 negative reaction 6–8 uncertain reaction 9–12 positive reaction The dice score is to be modified by additions and subtractions for such things as bribes offered, fear, alignment of the parties concerned, etc. There is also some additional...

In a game of Dungeons & Dragons it is never surprising if a group of Player Characters decide to visit an inn or a tavern in order to gain some local information pertaining to myths and legends. This is to be expected, so if you are playing solo (and like me you strive to achieve an authentic version of the game) then picking up a legend in this manner should be standard procedure! In Underworld & Wilderness Adventures (the 3rd Volume of Original D&D rulebooks), it says, "RUMORS, INFORMATION, AND LEGENDS: Such activity as advertising will certainly gain the notice of the locals and begin a chain of rumors. So will almost any other unusual activity. Even the departure of a party from a town is likely to be noticed. Obtaining such news is usually merely a matter of making the rounds of the local taverns and inns, buying a round of drinks (10–60 Gold Pieces), slipping the barman a few coins (1–10 Gold Pieces) and learning what is going on. Misinformation is up to the ref...

The use of hired NPCs is heavily implied across the various OD&D rule books, but of course, a heavy amount of ambiguity regarding these "hired hands" meant that it wasn't all too obvious how to approach such a matter. The problem was however, addressed in a little more detail in the AD&D Dungeon Master's Guide and my initial attempt at producing a set of rules for both solo and group play to handle NPC recruitment was heavily based on the DMG. However, I have since rediscovered a set of "Advertising" rules included in the Judge's Guild Ready Reference Sheets (published in 1979), which provides an alternative (and slightly simpler) method. OD&D Hiring Non-Player Characters As the JG Ready Reference Sheets, as well as other OD&D third party products by the Judges Guild were popularly used throughout the mid to late seventies, it seemed appropriate to look at these rules in more detail and revisit my own rules to see how they might then be i...

Just a quick one today! I came across something I felt was interesting when I was running through a wilderness adventure. The Underworld & Wilderness Adventures book (D&D Vol. III) dedicates just 1 and a 1/2 pages of it's 30 plus pages of rules to movement across a wilderness hex map. There are a couple of references to OUTDOOR SURVIVAL, the early 70's wilderness survival board game. For the most part OD&D implies that terrain penalties are the main thing to be adopted if using a "Referee's map" for "exploratory adventures." But the text regarding lost parties is intriguing.  OD&D Wilderness Movement The Underworld & Wilderness rulebook tells us that "There is a chance of being lost, the chance depending on the type of terrain the party begins its turn upon. A lost party must move in the direction indicated by the die roll (1–6, as shown in the OUTDOOR SURVIVAL rules and on that board) and may make only one direction change from ...