Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Makseb 10-29-04, 12:34 PM	Anyone DM'd to just one player before? I have almost no desire to build a gaming group, and I want to bring my girlfriend through Eberron. I was planning on using an NPC or two over time to balance out the party a bit, but sometimes she'll be going solo. She is new to D&D and has a great imagination and no doubt will be a wonderful roleplayer, but combat will be a bit tricky. She'll be playing a 1st level rogue. I'm not too worried about it, because I can tailor encounters that will be fun, interesting, and challenging to her. In fact I'm looking forward to it. But...I thought I'd drop a line to see if anyone has any advice for this kind of game... Thanks!
JDubTrafficGod 10-29-04, 12:39 PM	I know you only want to DM for your girlfriend, but you might want to consider grabbing one other person. With two Pcs interaction will be easier, and solving puzzles (I.E. map in Shadows of the Last War) is much easier if done by one person than if done by two. Otherwise you may end up hand feeding her ( :D ) through the whole game. I'd sujjest a friend you both get along with, or possibly a family member, either yours or hers. Just a thought.
polt 10-29-04, 12:47 PM	If she is a rogue, make it a little Thief- or Splinter Cell like. With one person only you can focus all challenges on what she is, a rogue.
m15a 10-29-04, 02:06 PM	though the original poster might know, could you explain what thief and splinter cell are? i know i could probably google it, but (a) that wouldn't help everyone else and (b) i wouldn't know what elements you mean. just asking because i hear people talking about "thief" a lot. thanks!
BuddyL33 10-29-04, 02:24 PM	Thief & Splinter Cell are both video games with themes of steath, espionage, counter terrorism, murder, assasination, heroism, etc.
Master of shaarat'khesh 10-29-04, 02:59 PM	Originally Posted by:Makseb Anyone DM'd to just one player before? I have. Many moons ago I would DM just my brotherand me. I wouldn't say it was very difficult at all. He was a very good role player so I didn't have to "hand feed" him anymore really, than a larger group that might need a little help from time to time. I played along as what I called a "PC-NPC". It was just like any other player I might play except with a cautiousness of not knowing to much as the DM. That was sometimes difficult but I made sure to keep in character.I'd hand out XP and advance the same as his PC except at the minimum award level so he always remained the "star". He was quit a bit younger than me and not really able to game with my regular group but he loved the game. So after talking it over with my DM, who was much more experienced than me at the time, It was decided that it would not only be an outlet for my brother but also help in my understanding what it took to DM. It can be sometimes taxing and stressfull but, all in all though, as I look back those were some of the most fun game sessions I've ever had. I say, go for it and have fun, but if you can find someone else to join that you feel comfortable with It will be easier. If not, since she's your girlfriend, keep it civil and hands on top of the table :) *leaves .02 cents*
Brastan 10-29-04, 03:09 PM	The game dynamics will be different then even a two Player one DM match up will create. It will be you and her working together, with you acting as referee, not opposition. For combat/ xp remember that the EL for encounters and CR for monsters and traps are generally rated for a part of 4 balanced adventures. I would say start with 1/8 what would be recommend as a challenging for a party of 4 and work up until you find the balance between challenging and overwhelming. A good idea throw in some NPC help, but remember they should be there for support and should augment her characters abilities or cover a weakness (like healing) [As a side my gaming group will occasionally conduct character combat test. From this I've learnd that a one on one is prity much a solo adventure but with the 'DM' acting as the unknown in monster behavior or encounters. The 'Player' is the one really running the game.]
Korhal IV 10-29-04, 09:22 PM	You'll want encounters that are CR 1/4 if she's 1st level. The CR scaling rules, according to Monte Cook's Dungeoncraft, are -2 for every time you halve the number of PCs. This works out to about one kobold warrior at a time. Perhaps she's stealthily entering through their pantry, or outhouse, or some other place where the kobolds aren't swarming. But yeah, I'd try and get at least one more player. Bad moods, inattention, carelessness, any of these could derail a session if it's just you two, and we all have our off days. Plus, roleplaying builds a lot off of interaction between the people at the table, and three is infinitely better than two for that purpose. Of course, if in the back of your dirty mind you think that this much alone time with each other will devolve into a different sort of roleplay, leave the third person at home. Or make sure she's attractive too. :D
Gurv 10-29-04, 10:50 PM	I've DM'ed solo games more than once. It is totally different from running a game for a group, but not hard at all. First, realize that the game will have to focus around roleplaying more than combat (which is great for an Eberron game), because she is alone. That means no flanking, for example. And no one to drag her out of the fire when the **** hits the fan. Second, the combats that you run have to be short and quick, and well thought out. Fortunately, she is a rogue, who specialize in ending combats fast. Just remember that if she fails to make a sneak attack, she's going to get hurt. A game of breaking-in-past-solitary-guards works well. Adding an NPC as back-up isn't a bad idea. Similar to a cohort, but you should run the character. Make sure that the NPC is the strong silent type that doesn't interfere with what she wants to do, and who can keep up with whatever her focus is. I would use a stealthy-bard in a game for a rogue; he won't overshadow her rogueliness and can provide a bit of healing, as well a some additional skills. One player can't have them all.
Azual 10-29-04, 11:37 PM	where dyou people get brothers? i know this will **** him off but my brother has a very 'kill the goblin, i dont care about its reason to attack me!' attitude i mean i usually can get him to settle down for like an hour, but after that, he just decides NO MORE DIPLOMACY and blows the head off the nearest troll
GMSteve 10-29-04, 11:52 PM	Well, just to add my 2Yen into the picture. I am doing the exact same thing with my wife. I have not started yet, but have had quite good luck with this in the past. My wife is playing an Aerenal Wizardess. I have a hired NPC guard type who will help her with the combat, but she will be calling all the shots. First off, depending on who you are playing with, in my opinion, you have to completly rethink your adventures. Dungeons I don't think work very well, maybe smaller ones like the 1-4 room type. Have a bit of intrigue and mystery to the main focus of the plot. Combat should just be another element of the game, and should be a minor element. Try to limit the number of foes. It is really easy for even very weak creatures in groups of 2 or 3's to kill a single character. And I speak from expierence it is very very bad to kill your wife/girlfriends character. ;) In case it is helpful this is the plot that I am running for my wife: (1) She comes to sharn to work for the ambasador of Aerenal to Sharn. (2) The Secetary to the Ambassador warns her that their house has been compromised by someone unfreindly to the Aerenal (actually it is a sub-group of fantatics that are being fueled by their extremism by the Emerald Claw).They are looking for a book. One that if the pages are read aloud would give the users much power. She can trust no-one which is why she sent for my wife's character. All of this is told on the balacony cafe away from the embassy tower. But then - a crossbow bolt flies from a passing air carriage, and the secetary is dead! (3) Now the only two people are my wife and her escort bodyguard, who takes her out of the high life of the upper city to the middle wards for safety. (4) She has to try and find this book, uncover who is behind the attacks (the Emerald Claw), and Try to figure out why the book is so important. She will probably run into other shadowy figures once word is spread that this book is so important. Who can she trust? How can one lone wizard handle all this? Is her escort someone she can trust or not? Anyway I hope that it shapes up to be a good adventure. But in short - playing with your significant other can be a lot of fun!
MikeJW 10-30-04, 01:54 AM	I used to solo campaign with my cousin as the lone player. If she's comfortable with it you may try troupe style where she controls more than 1 player.
Wil_Hyral 10-30-04, 03:08 AM	I'm doing the same. Actually i have an NPC that helps her, but he doesn't contribute ideas, new information, or even remember everything. Just so she has to ;) But it's pretty fun, she loves her druid. What's with girls and druids, anyway? I wanted to DM in Sharn :P
smrtgmp 10-30-04, 07:45 AM	I've done it several times over the years, and it can be a blast, especially if you are blessed with a good player. When my friend and I got started way back in the day (87 or so) we didnt know anyone else who played, so we took turns DMing for each other. We still play in solo online games via AIM once a week. It can be a lot of fun. One thing I reccomend is to create some colorful NPC's to help the player out. Nothing that will steal the scene and detract from the feeling that their character is the star of the show, but something to provide a little help when needed. A friendly healer, for instance, can go a long way toward keeping a solo PC alive. The types and quantities of NPCs can vary greatly depending on what class(es) the PC has and what type of campaign is being run. In a solo rogue "in town" adventure, you dont need as many, since they can do a lot of things on their own. All they really need is a fense and someone from whom they can aquire healing if they need it. A flushed out guild can make things interesting as well. If they want to go out adventureing, then they usually need a little more support, as most challenges on the road require a wide variety of skills to overcome. Another idea is to use Gestalt characters (from UA) which gives the character access to the class skills of two classes. Its very similar to the multiclass systems from past editions, and can really add to the staying power of a solo PC.
polt 10-30-04, 08:05 AM	Splinter Cell is a very stealth focused video game, where you sneak around trying not to be seen by the bad guys (Guards and stuff like that). You can sneak up behind people and strangle them or shoot them, all with stealth and silence so other guards wont hear it.
chesstiger 11-02-04, 12:30 PM	Just to put my 2 xps in, have you thought about allowing her to play two PCs instead of one. That way you wouldn't have to play a NPC on her team. There should be no problem just two people playing. Have fun. :D
m15a 11-02-04, 01:32 PM	thanks for the responses regarding thief and splinter cell. it sounds like a game i've seen before where you're a ninja or something.
Ravenstein 11-02-04, 02:46 PM	For a rogue, a Thief or Splinter Cell type of setup would be great. The Rogue could have to break into a building with a few roaming guards. She could have to sneak by and earn XP for "avoiding" fights. And even if she was detected, a single weak guard trapped in a hallway shouldn't be too much of a fight. You could make the entire point of her gaming experience to be avoiding fights, using diplomacy, and other skills to accomplish tasks. That's just how Eberron was made to work really.
Makseb 11-02-04, 02:52 PM	Good suggestions all around. I've debated having her control two characters and that might be something that'll happen later on, but since she's new to the game I think she'll be better off sticking with one at first. One problem I'm having is the encounters. I've got great encounters lined up, but I'm worried that I'm gonna be doing a lot of 'railroading.' I don't really know how to avoid this, and what I've done so far is plan out a bunch of encounters that may or may not occur based on what she does. I'm setting DC checks fairly low, to make sure that most of them will take place, because hey, I like 'em and want them in there. And maybe this goes more towards DMing in general, but it seems especially tough to avoid in a 1:1 situation. I really have to tailor the adventure to suit it for the player, which is fine, except that I want her to be able to do whatever she wants... See my problem? I dunno. Guess this is more a rant, but maybe someone out there has some ideas?
Sceadeau 11-02-04, 03:51 PM	DM's have many dirty little secrets. For example, we really do like when our players do well, and aren't really out to kill anyone. We like to build things, and take joy in watching them getting torn down by imaginative players. One of our secrets though is the fact that when you are low on material, the world shifts to accomodate player actions. If you set up "fight with X if she walks S" and have nothing for if she walks north, you just switch the two in your head and continue on. That isn't railroading, it's just making up for the fact that you didn't fully prepare for everything. Eventually, you will have many "just in case" scenarios built for use when players do things that go completely against what you've built. It's good to have them handy for the day that inevitably happens. The key though is to make sure the players feel as though they are excersizing free will, or they will eventually just ask you to tell them the story instead of playing in it, as it is ultimately the same thing. In the above north/south scenario, it's best if one way has her having to avoid a trap, and the other way having to avoid a guard. Listen checks will tell her which way the guard is, etc. In short, give her the opportunity to excersize free will and let thing happen based on her decisions. Barring that, just railroad her unknowingly. The game is about enjoyment for all involved, so use that golden rule, and everything else will fall into place.
Alexander Cross 11-03-04, 07:29 AM	I've been running solo adventures for awhile now. I've run groups before as well and I have to say that I like elements of both. I like the fact that you can get as in depth as you want with solos because you are providing everything for one person instead of a group that wants to go several different ways at once. @ Makseb: Try looking into Unearthed Arcana for the Ghestalt classes. Basicly two classes slammed into one, very nice and it may take some of the heat off of you coming up with encounters. @ GMsteve: An idea you may have thought of already but have the priests of Aerenal stick your player with a deathless guardian for some unknown reason. Just have her resting one night and wake up with a deathless in her room, aside from the creepiness factor don't have them tell her anything about why they where assigned to her. someone owes me a cookei, Cross
Save-vs-DM 11-03-04, 10:07 PM	I second the Unearthed Arcana Gestalts - but keep in mind that she won't be equal to 2 PCs in a fight - she still only has one move action and one standard action a round. However that might be a bit too complicated for her at this point. I'd also suggest giving her GOOD stats. For a beginning solo player, this can make a huge difference. If you go with point buy I'd even suggest something as high as 38 or maybe even 42 (I know that's hugely excessive, but she'll probably need it). If you roll, let her roll 5d6, drop the two lowest and reroll ones. One option that hasn't really be said before is think about doing a more "super hero" game. I can think of plenty of super heroes that worked alone (Spider Man, some Batmans, Superman, Hellboy at times, Daredevil, The Green Lantern, and so on). If you go this route consider giving her a few spell-like abilities to use at will (I think spider climb and jump might be cool for a rogue). You could treat them as super powered dragonmarks. As for the encounters: don't sweat it. She doesn't know what your map looks like! If you want her to find a goblin and kobold fighting, she finds it wherever she turns. When I run solo games I usually just write up a good 2 dozen encounters on 3x5 index cards and keep them handy. They have NPC stat blocks and a short sketch of the area with a small description. I key them to NPCs or a type of place, such as "artificer" or "old tavern." Then I just pull one off the stack when I need an encounter and run it. My one last advice is maybe give her an awakened animal companion? An awakened racoon or cat might be good for a rogue - smart enough to take orders but the rogue is still the boss. Hope some of this helps. Cheers, SvD
tete 11-04-04, 07:15 AM	One on Ones are great, especialy if you get the time to have 5 sessions or so with each player before bringing a group togeather. There are a few important things to stress in a one on one. 1) Its about the character first and for most. This is you chance to she how she veiws her character, leave your stereotypes at the door. Stories should focus on her decisions and how they impact her world 2) For a new player is a good way to teach the rules slowly. Be slow to do anything that will require her to look at her sheet or roll a die. The most fighting you should have is a bar brawl at the begining. Give her a chance (in a non leathal situation) to find out what she can and can not do. This is also a good way to keep a munchkin from forming by using situations where using a sword has really bad stuff attached to it. 3) Learning the world. Again for a new player you should write down one or two things about the world that you will introduce into each session. My group is slowly learning about Sivis and Canith for example. 1/50th of a dollar
EagleVT94 11-05-04, 02:45 PM	I run 1st level solo adventures in the online play-by-post world. One, it gets people used to the feel. And two, it makes sure you have someone that can post regularly enough to join 'the group'. This worked on other sites, and doing it now on a new site with Eberron www.rpgoutpost.net/eberron Ciao
1/1 Insect token 11-05-04, 11:29 PM	If you have access to the Miniatures Handbook, it contains some guidelines for running a random dungeon delve without a DM. It might not be the best primary method of running your campaign, but could provide a nice change of pace, as the two of you could play alongside each other in a dungeon that is essentially of your design, but with some randomness thrown in to make it less predictable for you. I've "run" a session of this with my roommate, and it was a lot of fun. You can still add all the flavor and description you want to each encounter. A note on the method I chose, should you decide to try this: Since we were playing with miniatures, I drew each room of the dungeon on paper and cut them out beforehand, then made a separate deck of cards, with each one indicating one of the rooms. Each successive room was thus determined randomly as we moved through the dungeon, to add a tiny extra bit of unpredicatability. (And I realize this probably isn't at all original as a method of laying out a dungeon, but it was fun.)
Brastan 11-06-04, 01:52 AM	:twocents: *clink* *rattle rattle* Not a bad idea, I've made some crazy dungeon maps using random tiles. The random Mini's adventure can work but it can be hard to make the same theme based environments that normally exist. For another solo adventure source you may want to drop by the Metal Gear Solid Eberron Style that is being worked on. Gestalts could help or just make advancing the character complicated. The best thing to do would be to add ally NPC characters (with NPC classes for the most part) to help in larger combats. This essentially is just cancellation, you have one NPC ally for each NPC enemy you want to remove as a threat. If evenly matched they should kill each other. Then you have the real encounter submerged inside of the large fight. To keep it from getting out of hand track the rest of the fight by how the PC's encounter is going. If the PC is winning then her side is generally winning, and revise holds true. This gives you an excuse to add enemies or allies as the need arises. I've found this useful for managing city wide combats. It also keeps the PC center stage, who has to victorious for it to end well.
thodin 11-08-04, 05:25 PM	I played along as what I called a "PC-NPC". It was just like any other player I might play except with a cautiousness of not knowing to much as the DM. That was sometimes difficult but I made sure to keep in character. This is what I have done when we only had two people to play. With only that one character getting the "spot light" it tends to build a pretty good PC also.
Naudachu 11-08-04, 07:45 PM	I really like one on one gaming. I just recently started a group campaign and realized its a different set of skills. The main thing to keep in mind is, for the most part: if the character dies, the story is over. You can't just easily add in new character and continue the storyline. So, contingency plans for character death are more important: capture, left for dead, become undead (spawned from death by undead). Couple of ideas: - Nobody's mentioned this, so I'm wondering if its taboo, but try starting the character at 2nd level. I've never liked 1st level to begin with. They just seem to fragile. With a 2nd level character you can recover from some mistakes (which a new gamer will do more often). - Also, you can really focus the story on one character. Flesh out their family, friends, neighbors, etc. These are all good fodder for cohorts, companions, enemies. Also, it gives the character a sense of security in the beginning. I've never had the opportunity to game with a girlfriend. Sounds like fun. Let us know how it goes.
ThanisKartaleon 11-09-04, 06:03 AM	My fiancee plays a talenta halfling cleric in our one on one. Fun stuff. I enjoy it because of the personal interaction. You both have each other's full attention. Not only is this good for you guys relationship wise, but also no one gets frustrated because "the DM never listens to me", which tends to happen in large, loud groups like my main one. I'd say use Gestalt rules if you have the Unearthed Arcana. Good combos are Rogue/Bard, Fighter/Rogue, Rogue/Fighter, Wizard/Sorcerer, Monk/Sorcerer, Monk/Rogue, Fighter/Cleric, and Rogue/Cleric. If she doesn't want to be partial cleric (or you don't have the UA or don't want to use it) give her cure potions... like 5 or so, then have her find a stash of 10 soon after she runs out. That way she'll get used to knowing when to use them without burning through them every time she takes a scratch. Start at first level. Yeah, she'll be weak. But events happen in first level that are usually pretty memorable. And anyway, the amount of XP she'll likely earn, she won't be 1st level for very long. (one character in a party - 300 xp for a CR 1 at level 1) Oh, and encourage the use of action points. Be lenient on when she calls for it at first, but once she gets the hang of it, let her know that she has to call for them before you tell her if she got a success or not. Remind her that action points can be used on ANY d20 roll. I also give my players contact points, again out of the Unearthed Arcana, with a bonus contact point at first level. It's a great tool to get the character immersed in the setting, and can provide them with a hireling in a pinch. If you use this, remind her she has these as well. Every session if need be (several members of my main group still haven't used theirs) I'll bet that heavy combat will bore her. So keep combat light and short. The focus should be on interaction with npcs and lots and lots of intrigue. Read up on noir adventures like detective stories, Casablanca, the Maltese Falcon... stuff like that. Always keep her guessing. That will perk her interest and keep her playing. Set a personal stop point a couple hours in, right at a cliffhanger if handy, and ask her if she wants to stop. Yeah, you would probably play until you fell unconscious from lack of sleep (I do), but she might be done for the time being. It's her game too. If you know she won't be using this character with a group of players, feel free to give her ALL the good stuff. With one-on-one games, things really can't get unbalanced. You control how powerful the opposition is, and there's no other players to complain about favoritism or whatnot. Have Fun!
Celiwyn 11-11-04, 10:14 PM	Oh... and a tip... when it's her first alone combat ever at lv. 1, don't sick zombies on her and leave her with no weapon... *laughs warmily* One factor that I think helps in a one-on-one game is to not have a NPC-PC that you the "DM" plays for at least awhile. This keeps the game from turning too romantic from the start. Well... unless your intention is to turn the game romantic, but take it from me, those games don't always work out so well. Let the player struggle from Lv. 1 if you want to start them from scratch or work together with her to build a good story background and start Lv. 2 to up to even level 5. Like Thanis suggested, make sure to pause and see if she needs a break. In a multiplayer game I was in once the DM didn't even know that was had fallen asleep until it was time for a battle. Normally pausing during a cliff hanger is a good way to get the girl to keep playing... though it can be overused and cruel if it is getting time for bed... so use the cliffhanger to keep her playing trick only once in awhile. It's ok to give a single player party over powered gear, as you can up the CR just a tad to adjust for that and it makes things more interesting. Just make sure both of you are having fun. And as for some peoples idea of bringing in a second player, that's up to you. But for me, playing a one on one game with my fiance is more fun then playing in his large game with 3 other players. Having to fight for the attention of the DM from other players is irrating for newer players, and it's worse when the DM is your boyfriend and you feel ignored. One on one works beautiful.... when the DM actually runs the game. *hint hint DM*