Adding Narrative to a Solo/Co-op RPG Through Boons

Posted on Posted in solo/co-op Tagged with , ,

Our recent post kicking off designing a solo/co-op RPG started with a list of goals and led into a list of quest backgrounds (what the villains did to cause a quest to be needed) and a list of quest starts to get the party involved.

But the story needs to progress.  Sure, we can just get the PCs to the caves, clear them out, and find the big bad guy or treasure that will solve the quest.  But that’s only fun on one level.  Part of why we love RPGs is putting our characters in interesting situations and role-playing them.

So this system will have the player roll for something special occurring when they roll their system’s equivalent of a critical success or failure.  This can happen when they are searching for something–they learn even more than they expected or trigger more than a simple trap.  It may also happen when interacting with someone–maybe they made a friend or enemy.

And there are even ways to drive narrative with a critical success or failure in combat–they recognize a symbol on foe’s shield or the PC leaves behind something that may identify themselves.

Below are several charts that may be rolled upon a critical success in varying situations. For critical failures, consider opposite (or at least related) detriments.  Ex: A symbol on a foe that the PC recognizes may not be truly that foe’s faction.  It could just be on an item that foe took from a random opponent or it could even be a purposeful red herring.

Combat Critical Success Boons

  1. The PC recognizes a symbol on a foe. Perhaps a coat of arms on a shield or tunic, stolen item, or a brand on a creature.
  2. The PC recognizes a weakness in a foe that will give a bonus on the next attack.
  3. Foes’ banter lets slip a secret or way to leverage the foe.
  4. You see the foe has something of value such as an item you may need (a potion, a piece of armor you need to repair yours, etc.)
  5. There is something about the area or terrain that is helpful to you. Perhaps something magical like an unusual aura or being watched by a potential benefactor or as simple as you have the higher ground.
  6. You spot something helpful to your overall quest as you fight. Perhaps you spy a book on a table that will have a clue or your sword’s stroke lands in the seam of a secret door.

Search (in addition to finding if anything is to be found) Critical Success Boons

  1. The PC now knows how these foes typically hide things and have a small bonus going forward.
  2. A scrap of paper or other clue reveals more about the mastermind behind this or the item sought.
  3. You notice something about the architecture of the area that will help a future search.
  4. You somehow get a sense of what is in the secret door/compartment/trap before you open it.
  5. You find some nuance of the item that lets you quickly close it or avoid any negative effect, if it has one.
  6. Your search is so thorough that you feel sure that any secret you found is the only one to be found or you find any others nearby or any additional secret compartments contained within the initial secret.

Influencing Another Critical Success Boons

  1. The other party is one step closer to being a friend. For example, if the PC was a foe, they are now wary.  If your RPG doesn’t have a system for this, consider: hostile -> wary -> neutral – > respected -> friend -> family.
  2. The PC learns a secret about the other person that they can leverage later.
  3. The other person adds more detail than expected. For example, they were asked a “who” question but also gave a “why” or “where”.
  4. You are so suave when speaking to the other party that others nearby overhear and are compelled to offer a bit of advice.
  5. The other person offers something (even as simple as an extra torch) to help you on your quest.
  6. The other party introduces you directly to an expert who can help.  They don’t simply mention someone, they go with you to meet them and introduce you.

This list is a good basic start.  You could apply them to other skill tests.  For example, if a character is climbing and has a critical success, roll on the combat or search charts.  Perhaps they find a clue or a secret entrance.