The Demo Book (9 pages) is a fun free adventure for Animal Adventures: The Faraway Sea. You will use D&D 5th edition to play it. You will need some animal characters. For this, I used Animal Races in The Kingdom of Grimsby. It is free/pay what you want at DriveThruRPG and contains six characters races (hound, rooster, raven, cat, owl, and donkey). I used one of each. The solo engine that I used was CRGE, Conjectural Roleplaying GM Emulator (free/pay what you want at DriveThruRPG). The adventure is at the attached website. It is a kickstarter, so you will see advertising.

For this adventure, the problem is Pooke the goblin chieftain. A cursed mask has turned him into the ultimate villain. The adventurers could tell that the quest giver (Snippy the CHIHUAHUA) did not want to come along, but they did not give him that opportunity. There were goblins to deal with and some nasty terrain. The donkey could not get across the gorge, so he ended up being captured and imprisoned in Skullcano. The rogue character (cat) did not see a trapped doorway and was wounded. The barbarian (hound) took most of the combat damage. The sorcerer (owl) took out the villain with a spell casting duel. Immediately, the Skullcano started to collapse. There was not time to pick up the cursed mask or look for their friend (donkey). Some of the adventurers did take damage from falling rocks, but the remaining five (plus Snippy) did make it back to the village. They had a funeral service for donkey and then they had a quiet evening of fishing. It was the cat’s idea. Maybe you will have better luck.

• • • The Demo Book contains the stats for one NPC, stats for four enemies, but there is no map.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/russrmc/animal-adventures-the-faraway-sea?ref=29gujw

The Wild Sheep Chase (6 pages) is frequently used for a one shot. It is for Fifth edition and characters of fifth level – DerficusRex used it as a one off between tier 1 and tier 2 arcs (for example, after running Lost Mine of Phandelver). He says that it features a sheep-shaped wizard who needs help, and the best red dragon pun ever. It is available for free at Dungeon Masters Guild. It is for a dungeon master and several players. The RPG system that I used was Exodus System SRD. The solo engine that I used was CRGE, Conjectural Roleplaying GM Emulator (free/pay what you want at DriveThruRPG). I used five characters for this adventure. My favorite scene happened just a few minutes after the quest was received. Two women are at the town well gathering water. They hear a loud “toot”, turn, and see a steam wagon. It is being driven one handed by a bounty hunter (Barbosa). His other hand is holding a sheep. The wagon is being chased by a large half-orc, a collared wolf, and a bear. After it is out of sight, the older woman says to the younger, “Well, that is something that you don’t see every day.” Another scene I like happened right after the quest item was retrieved. The prophetess (Carmella) was being chased by an ape in the woods. She used her power, hoping for a favorable result. Instead, she got a storm. It did help the PCs escape, but they all got lost in the woods. At the end, they did give the quest item to the quest giver, but they were tempted to keep it (it was causing too much trouble). Give this a try!

Murder at the Three Swords Inn (18 pages) is an interesting murder mystery for the fifth edition of D&D available at Dungeon Masters Guild. It is for a dungeon masters and several players. The RPG system that I used was D&D 3.5. The solo engine that I used was Perilous Intersections. I used five characters for this adventure. The adventure starts off with my detective receiving a message from another detective. They are to meet him at the inn. When the adventuring party gets there, he is dead. Three of the PCs stay on the first floor and question the customers and workers. The detective and witch search the dead detective’s room. They find a coded message, an unknown drug, other clues, and a pair of woman’s shoes. The witch has the cat smell the shoes, and the cat leads them down the stairs to Avesta who works in this inn. She gives them some leads, but it is obvious to them that she is hiding something. They try persuasion and intimidation with no luck. Next, they go to the apothecary and get more information on the drug. After that, they go to the mausoleum where the smugglers have their base. The detective is convinced that the murderer is one of these smugglers. There is a big battle with the smugglers and the paladin drops when his hit points reach zero. The smugglers are all killed, the paladins is partially healed, and the PCs gather up the loot and the big stash of drugs. They report to the officer of the Guard. They give him the coded message, what it really says (the solution), the contraband, and the location of the smuggler’s base. He asks if the smugglers are dead. The witch says that they were bleeding and not moving. He mumbles about pressing charges, gathers his men, and heads toward the base. The PCs decide it is time to leave town. Give this a try!

Note - There are two handouts, 2 stat blocks, info on 6 NPCs, and no maps.

Gnome Droppings (8 pages) is an interesting adventure for an older edition of D&D (THAC0). It is located in Dungeon issue # 63. Part of the adventure takes place in the cave complex (6 “rooms”), but the grimlocks did not attack the adventuring party, so it was not explored. The solo engine that I used was OSR Solo. The RPG system I used was Whitefrank (DriveThruRPG).

For this adventure, I used six druids. They were in the woods when something fell from the sky and crashed. When they got there, the grimlocks were checking it out. The PCs waited for them to leave. At two in the morning, two nasty spriggans show up. There is a big battle, the two are killed, but one of the druids died. Later, two in the afternoon, the grimlocks leave and the PCs managed to open up the large “cube”. A damaged automaton came out, blew up, and damaged four of the five characters. At this time, five soldiers arrived from the nearby fort. They had received orders to investigate the crash. So, the automaton (Ergo), soldiers, and PCs head for the fort. Eventually the owners of Ergo show up. They do pay a reward for giving him back. After this, the characters go back to the site and perform a burial ceremony. This is followed with rest and healing magic.

• • • Whitefrank RPG is 63 pages of fun. It is based on a 3d6 system. It contains 26 problems/disabilities, 73 powers, 96 skills, 29 character classes (yes, you can be a talking cat), 46 spells, and 14 challenges/monsters.

Give this a try!

Solitari (46 pages) is a strange adventure for Whitefrank. I decided to use a U.S. city in the year 1959 as the backdrop. The RPG system I used was Suited Free Sample Edition (22 pages/free at DriveThruRPG) and its supplement Fight the Zombiearchy. I did use the Solo Investigator’s Handbook to solo this adventure. I started with five female PCs who started their own club - Save the World With Pumps (shoes and shotguns). They meet one evening a week at the local diner. It is here that they discuss Gabby’s visions (she is a clairvoyant) and they try to decide if it is a true quest or a bit of undigested beef.

One night at the meeting they notice some strange things going on. They follow the “odd” person and end up exploring an underground area and further in, they run into the diety Heket. They have an interesting conversation with her, and then go back up to get their weapons out of the car. The weapons come in handy against the three foot long rat when they get back down there. Later, they find a puzzle box and then Gabby has a vision of Wilma finding her soulmate down here. On the second day during the daylight hours, Oleander opens a shrine to Heket in a downtown back alley intersection. She gains several new members. That evening the club members go back down and find a gibbering mouther. They kill it. They also notice that there are more tunnels and rooms down here. Next, they find an opium den. Later, Wilma finds her soulmate Rick. On the third day, Oleander gets more members for her shrine. When the team go down later that night (with Rick) they get attacked by a Viking. Three members of the team are badly wounded, but they do kill the Viking. On the fourth day they sell Viking stuff, rest, and heal. On the fifth day they explore and find a diner waitress, cook, a prison cell, and glowing rocks (which they collect). On the sixth day Oleander and her shrine members are attacked by masked men yelling, “Kill the cultists!” Most of the members are captured, doused with gasoline, and set fire. Oleander escapes and reports back to Heket. Dark green clouds form over the city. Pregnant women give birth to frogs. Gabby has a symbolic vision warning her of danger. They all hide together at Bernice’s place. That evening the masked group attacks the dungeon. Gabby gets a phone call. Men in Black have been seen in the city. On the seventh day, soldiers destroy the dungeon.

So, I wonder, who are the bad guys? The PCs will now have time to check out the puzzle box. What could go wrong?

Solitari (46 pages) is a strange adventure for Whitefrank. I decided to use a U.S. city in the year 1959 as the backdrop. The RPG system I used was Suited Free Sample Edition (22 pages/free at DriveThruRPG) and its supplement Fight the Zombiearchy. I did use the Solo Investigator’s Handbook to solo this adventure. I started with five female PCs who started their own club - Save the World With Pumps (shoes and shotguns). They meet one evening a week at the local diner. It is here that they discuss Gabby’s visions (she is a clairvoyant) and they try to decide if it is a true quest or a bit of undigested beef.

One night at the meeting they notice some strange things going on. They follow the “odd” person and end up exploring an underground area and further in, they run into the diety Heket. They have an interesting conversation with her, and then go back up to get their weapons out of the car. The weapons come in handy against the three foot long rat when they get back down there. Later, they find a puzzle box and then Gabby has a vision of Wilma finding her soulmate down here. On the second day during the daylight hours, Oleander opens a shrine to Heket in a downtown back alley intersection. She gains several new members. That evening the club members go back down and find a gibbering mouther. They kill it. They also notice that there are more tunnels and rooms down here. Next, they find an opium den. Later, Wilma finds her soulmate Rick. On the third day, Oleander gets more members for her shrine. When the team go down later that night (with Rick) they get attacked by a Viking. Three members of the team are badly wounded, but they do kill the Viking. On the fourth day they sell Viking stuff, rest, and heal. On the fifth day they explore and find a diner waitress, cook, a prison cell, and glowing rocks (which they collect). On the sixth day Oleander and her shrine members are attacked by masked men yelling, “Kill the cultists!” Most of the members are captured, doused with gasoline, and set fire. Oleander escapes and reports back to Heket. Dark green clouds form over the city. Pregnant women give birth to frogs. Gabby has a symbolic vision warning her of danger. They all hide together at Bernice’s place. That evening the masked group attacks the dungeon. Gabby gets a phone call. Men in Black have been seen in the city. On the seventh day, soldiers destroy the dungeon.

So, I wonder, who are the bad guys? The PCs will now have time to check out the puzzle box. What could go wrong?

Recently I soloed my way through this one page adventure for Fifth Edition D&D. The RPG system I used was Picture This!. It is available at DriveThruRPG. It is only one page of rules so you do need to fill in the "holes" (example - no stats on a devil). I had better explain more about Picture This! The rules state that you download five images for your phone which become spells. I am not a "phone" guy. I am old school. So, I used five random Magic the Gathering cards which had a mana cost of three or less. This worked great! I have decided that the character levels in the game will at least be one to twenty, so I now have to come up with the rules for character advancement . . . I used the solo engine that I have been testing out so that I could solo my way through this. My fire wizard used Pestilent Haze to avoid a missile attack, he used Molten Blast for his missile attack, he sent demon number one at the monster (the demon fell off the tower), and then demon number two. They grappled and then both of them fell off the tower to their deaths. My wizard even explored the basement of the tower (he got sick down there and had to go to a healer). So, this is a fun two hour adventure.

Fear the Evenfall – a Vaesen Mystery (free/pay what you want at DriveThruRPG) is a fun adventure for the Vaesen Nordic Horror RPG . It is an investigative adventure that takes place in Sweden in the year 1893. The RPG system I used was Wicked Pacts a Modern-day Game of Magic (DriveThruRPG). I did use the Solo Investigator’s Handbook to solo this 35 page adventure. The adventure includes 3 maps, 47 NPCs, 44 possible clues (I found 17 of them), and six locations to explore. I used the six first level characters that are included in Wicked Pacts (warlock, demon hunter, grunt, shadow, seer, and scribe). For my playthrough there was only one major battle and it was of a spiritual/magical/psychic nature (the fifth evening). On the sixth evening a ritual was performed and the “ghost” was taken care of. Roderick the scribe wanted to do library research early in the adventure, but they made him wait until the evening of day four. I felt sorry for him. So, if you like to investigate, this is for you. It would not be hard to change this to a Call of Cthulhu adventure. Good luck!

Fear the Evenfall – a Vaesen Mystery (free/pay what you want at DriveThruRPG) is a fun adventure for the Vaesen Nordic Horror RPG . It is an investigative adventure that takes place in Sweden in the year 1893. The RPG system I used was Wicked Pacts a Modern-day Game of Magic (DriveThruRPG/248 pages). I did use the Solo Investigator’s Handbook to solo this 35 page adventure. The adventure includes 3 maps, 47 NPCs, 44 possible clues (I found 17 of them), and six locations to explore. I used the six first level characters that are included in the Wicked Pacts RPG (warlock, demon hunter, grunt, shadow, seer, and scribe). For my playthrough there was only one major battle and it was of a spiritual/magical/psychic nature (the fifth evening). On the sixth evening a ritual was performed and the “ghost” was taken care of. Roderick the scribe wanted to do library research early in the adventure, but they made him wait until the evening of day four. I felt sorry for him. So, if you like to investigate, this is for you. It would not be hard to change this to a Call of Cthulhu adventure. Good luck!

Recently, I soloed my way through a unique funnel adventure for zero level characters called Slave-Drones of the Fantas-Ti-Plex (44 pages) for Dungeon Crawl Classics. I used the Umerican Survival Guide as the resource to this RPG system. I used One Page Solo Engine as the solo engine. All four of these items are available at DriveThruRPG.

I have to admit, this is not an easy adventure to solo. There is a lot going on. In this adventure, each of my five characters (that I used from the previous adventure – Mother’s Maze) was tested by the Autocrat (not a program). Each character has four other replicants, but only one is active at a time. The facility has ten areas to explore, but there are plenty of encounters to get at least four hours of adventuring.

In this facility, the first PC (drone) casualty was because of a grenade trap that he did not see. The second one died because of a canister that ejected from a wall. Four of them died when they ran into three fixit drones. A file-bot killed the next one. At this point the quest of the adventure had changed because the new drones had been hacked (remember, they have an implant). They were now aware of the truth and wanted to get the heck out of this place. The way out was a bit of a surprise. So, actually, they could go out into the world, adventure and come back to get revenge. But at this time they wanted to get far away from here.

Try this crazy combination of DCC, Logan’s Run, and the Paranoia RPG game from the 1980’s.

Recently, I soloed my way through a fun funnel adventure for zero level characters called Mother’s Maze for Dungeon Crawl Classics. I used Quarrel & Fable (12 pages) as the RPG system. I used One Page Solo Engine as the solo engine. All three of these items are available at DriveThruRPG. In this adventure, each of my four characters got to start with a survival pack. This pack contains one grenade and thirteen other useful items. The zero level characters are being tested by Mother, an old, aging computer. Each character has four other replicants, but only one is active at a time. The maze has 32 rooms, but my characters must have found the quickest way out. Char number One died inside a meat grinding pit. They did find a bracelet that comes with a hologram (think The Doctor, an Emergency Medical Hologram, or EMH for short, the fictional character from the television series Star Trek: Voyager). The characters were then transported to the second training facility (the funnel module Slave-Drones of the Fantas-Ti-Plex). Each of the four characters then had a cybernetic device implanted into their cortex. Char number Two suffered from a drop in intelligence (an implant problem), but he is still functional. I am curious to see what happens next . . . .

Save Game a World of Adventure for Fate Core (60 pages - free/pay what you want at DriveThruRPG) is a setting for Fate (DriveThru – same price). It contains an explanation of the setting, five adventure outlines, and 25 stat blocks. Save Game takes your player characters on a strange trip inside an electronic world.Their digital home threatened, the famed heroes of the 8-bit generation fight against the Glitch. So, there is a wide variety of adventures that you can have with this supplement.

I soloed it with a solo engine I have been testing out. I played this with an agent, a legionnaire, a psion, a priestess, and a bard. To even save the princess, my characters needed more information which was known by a villain with mood swings. Yes, he did cause some problems, but the adventurers were able to get into the inventor’s basement, beat up the clockwork guardian, and get some needed items. Later, they entered Orianna’s fortress (not the opera entrance). They had to deal with guards, traps, Count Chord, and clockwork replicas of themselves. After taking massive damage, they tried to lead the replicas to a trap, but a bad roll sent the adventurers down a chute to face Princess Orianna. Gatti the bard used her rapport skill against Orianna’s vanity with a success. The princess took off the mask and was now back to normal. Great fun! Your turn. Good luck!

The Twisted Stave issue #1 is a fun magazine for 5th edition D & D (24 pages/free at DriveThruRPG). It contains a dungeon (14 pages), a random commoners chart (3 pages), and a puzzle encounter (3 pages). I put my five second level goblins from the magic carnival into this adventure. The system I used was Goblins Grabbed My Dice (I did change the combat system). To solo it, I used The Dungeon Oracle by Paul Bimler. This abandoned temple was designed to be infested with kobolds. However, the Dungeon Oracle transformed this into a bandit hideout. Orfus the warrior goblin was knocked out five times. It is hard to keep a good goblin down. Well, maybe he is not so good. Miles the warlock took out the bandit leader (a wizard) with a wizard duel. The last battle was a nail biter. Three of the goblins had been knocked out and Miles and the priest were still standing. Miles took out the bandit with a sleep spell. At this point they had had enough (they had explored 68% of the dungeon), and they got the heck out of there. They did have some gold treasure that they had found. Maybe you will be able to explore all of it. Note – the dungeon has 16 rooms and the magazine does include two stat blocks. Give this a try!

Recently, I soloed my way through Goblins Grabbed My Dice available at DriveThruRPG for free/pay what you want. This wacky RPG game (one shot) is for a dungeon master and several players. To solo it, I used Solo by M.D. Spurlock. It is also available at DriveThruRPG for free/pay what you want.

This solo engine is 12 pages long. You will need a d4, d6, d8, d10, and a d12. There are 22 charts. There are even rules for hit points and damage.

The adventure – My five goblins started off in a fantasy world. They discover a carnival. They pay the entrance fee to an odd looking fellow, wander in, and notice that things are a bit odd (this carnival connects to multiple worlds – they now have to gather “treasures” and find their way back to their home world). The rogue notices that a woman is wearing an attractive wig. He wants it. He tries to steal it with the help of the others, but fails. They are forced to disappear into the crowd of people. Later, they are able to steal a giant teddy bear and a bunch of candy bars from vendors. This time they are chased into the fun house by a security guard. He “thumps” them and they end up in a cage in a tent with other caged animals. The priest prays to be rescued, and a human woman drinking kale juice comes up to them, talks, finds the key, and lets them out. She does know the way out of this carnival – it is in the maze of mirrors in the fun house. They enter the maze and encounter an elf rogue. He forces them to answer his riddle. They figure out the answer and then explore the maze. One of the mirrors does not show a reflection, only images from the past of the goblin in front of it. They go through this mirror and find themselves back at their home world. They did not get enough “treasures” to win, but they did get home. Maybe you will have better luck.

So, I did change the adventure. I also took out the skill trench coat and replaced it with the skill of my choice. The rogue used the thievery skill. He was “feral” and had the urge that comes with it. The warrior had athletics with the urge – get physical. The warlock had occultism with the urge – read spell book. The priest had religion with the urge to pray. They hunter had nature and the urge to commune with nature. This RPG system is not perfect. It would work well with cartoon characters. It is fun. Give this solo engine a try!

Recently, I soloed my way through Goblins Grabbed My Dice available at DriveThruRPG for free/pay what you want. This wacky RPG game (one shot) is for a dungeon master and several players. To solo it, I used Solo by M.D. Spurlock. It is also available at DriveThruRPG for free/pay what you want.

The adventure – My five goblins started off in a fantasy world. They discover a carnival. They pay the entrance fee to an odd looking fellow, wander in, and notice that things are a bit odd (this carnival connects to multiple worlds – they now have to gather “treasures” and find their way back to their home world). The rogue notices that a woman is wearing an attractive wig. He wants it. He tries to steal it with the help of the others, but fails. They are forced to disappear into the crowd of people. Later, they are able to steal a giant teddy bear and a bunch of candy bars from vendors. This time they are chased into the fun house by a security guard. He “thumps” them and they end up in a cage in a tent with other caged animals. The priest prays to be rescued, and a human woman drinking kale juice comes up to them, talks, finds the key, and lets them out. She does know the way out of this carnival – it is in the maze of mirrors in the fun house. They enter the maze and encounter an elf rogue. He forces them to answer his riddle. They figure out the answer and then explore the maze. One of the mirrors does not show a reflection, only images from the past of the goblin in front of it. They go through this mirror and find themselves back at their home world. They did not get enough “treasures” to win, but they did get home. Maybe you will have better luck.

So, I did change the adventure. I also took out the skill trench coat and replaced it with the skill of my choice. The rogue used the thievery skill. He was “feral” and had the urge that comes with it. The warrior had athletics with the urge – get physical. The warlock had occultism with the urge – read spellbook. The priest had religion with the urge to pray. The hunter had nature and the urge to commune with nature. This RPG system is not perfect. It would work well with cartoon characters. It is fun. Give it a try!