Review - Disciples of Bone Disciples of Bone & Shadow: Conquered Sun Edition

When I first approached solo roleplaying, I found that the internet was full of naysayers, claims that is is a social activity only or that all the positive experience comes from being challenged by a Referee. And yet, several industrious individuals have decided to go against that grain, and now we sit in a gaming environment exploding with variations on the solitaire theme! Surely, the tragedy of the pandemic is in part responsible for this growth, but I also know for a fact that many people a day sit home alone playing RPG video games, and why shouldn’t the less passive, physical nature of the tabletop variant be a ready option, even in times of good health and prosperity? And not the choose your own adventure variety.

One such industrious maker is Alex T., developer of the ever-growing Blackoath Games and creator of Seekers Beyond the Shroud and Disciples of Bone & Shadow. These two solitaire systems, urban-horror and traditional fantasy respectively, are in-depth publications with supplements already out or underway. I asked Alex about his motivations regarding constructing solo systems and it came about before the pandemic due to a lack of a group. This drive to make something personal is evident in the sheer amount of work produced and the depth into which it goes. This new edition of Disciples of Bone & Shadow is 253 pages, which includes numerous tables, worksheets, artwork and expository text, on top of a rich character development system and several oracle tools.

Character Creation

Personally, I have taken to leaner games, with less in the way of character skills and attributes, but when I read through Disciples (after initial intimidation), I became excited with the possibilities. It uses multiple kinds of dice but is predominantly a D20 and D100 roll under system. You begin with pre-established numbers for attributes of the traditional variety, which are then increased with 20 points, distributed as you choose. Modified attribute numbers are then used to calculate beginning skill numbers, which are then further enhanced with a distribution of 250 points. Starter skills include among others Dodge, First Aid, Herb Lore, Melee Weapons, Ranged, Sneaking.

There is a long list of Advanced Skills beyond these, gained by spending Enhancement Points acquired in advancement. However, the game includes several starting archetypes it recommends choosing instead of free-form creation due to their idealized stats and enhanced abilities. Perhaps a good way to go on a first play through, or if there is a specific type you have in mind versus the Franken-model.

Disciples has a good character traits package. You choose a flaw (common enough), but instead of a single word to describe your vice, levels (1-3) of severity are included: Coward, Stubborn, Absent-Minded are some options, and I think this opens up interesting narrative opportunities, though only as good as a player decides to adhere and play up severity. Then roll on d20 Advantage & d20 Disadvantage tables. These are really good. No mechanical changes happen here (excellent) but again the narrative directions posed by these interesting results should offer much creative tinder. Disciples, though rich in mechanics, I believe has a real strength in understanding that narrative fodder is a key aspect for solo gaming, as there is no group to chat up aspects with, so hooks for the imagination such as presented here are vital.

Gaining experience points is generous with its varying opportunities from world exploration, successful actions, combat, certain skill uses, though the reward feels a little slender, granting only 2 Enhancement Points to spread over your desired increases. (1 EP = 10 Skill Points.)

Players of OSR style games, or minimal rules games may find this all a bit daunting at first, as I do. I have grown used to 3d6 down a short line, starting gear and go. However, as a solitaire player, I have found that route can be discouraging too, due to the OSR attitude of imbalance, lean-mean, and easy death. Setting up by yourself, rolling these characters, then dying an hour later can become tedious. Disciples seems to be a more robust offering in terms of wider actions than dungeon delving for loot and usually dying. It does seem to embrace this worry, however, with an extra rule allowing players to modify their encounters to be less deadly. I think rolling and dying too frequently can be discouraging to the player already sitting alone. It becomes less funny than just rolling up another Level 1, because in solo play there is so much investment in the world building component. 

Rules

Being solo play, the rolls are all player facing, and much of the actions are skill based with an equal or under d100 roll. When in combat, numbers are compared to the Offense or Defense of the foe and subtracted from your Skill to give you a target number. Attributes saves are d20 equal or under. There are difficulty modifiers, degrees-of-success options, a small table for calculating ranged into melee combat, rules for numerous conditions, ailments and bonuses.

Magic

Disciples really puts the dark arts in a rare category. Though there are many spells that can be learned and of different types, they cost precious Enhancement Points. Each level advancement only grants 2 EP to spend, which covers skill increase, HP increase or spells, so options and growth are quite narrow. (1 EP = 10 Skill Point increase.) So, magic may not be a prominent feature in your game, and if you want it to be, efficient and smart play are required because your skills may remain low and susceptible to failed rolls. Learning and casting certain spells can also garner your PC Corruption Points, which accumulated too high and they are lost to darkness/madness. Blood magic will require sacrificing Hit Points to cast as well. It is costly stuff, as it likely should be.

Between the “base” primordial spells which have some neat effects sprinkled in with the common healing and light spells, there also exists Death Magic, that of necromancy and darkness. These may cost Hit Points as well, or more likely, permanent reductions in Attribute Stats. I really like this feature. Fictionally, your PC casting Death Magic should begin looking like death if they stay at it. Some weird possibilities here!

World Building      

I was surprised to see 1 hex = 20 miles, in other words, one hex a day. I have not played with such a vast world yet, so not sure how to interpret this, though it certainly makes for a gigantic sandbox. You travel by reaching d8 milestones, an abstraction of markers, which lets you know of your progress. The only indication of progress is if your Orientation Skill check is successful, meaning a milestone is reached. Do this until all the milestones are “reached.” Within this is the first oracle, the Twist die (d6) of which a 1 or less yields a Surprise Event. This result can be modified +/- based on “control” of a scene, much like the Chaos Factor in Mythic. Additionally, the Orientation test calls for a Degree of Success calculation, which may determine if a Travel Complication takes place.

There are six regions within the book’s written world, each of which has a d20 hexploration table and a monster encounter table. My mind has some difficulty blending such a vast hex space with a corresponding Hex Table. If you roll the encounter, ruin, cave, or settlement result, this may offer something to do, but just rolling a campfire or fog or rockslide in 20 miles (1 hex) of exploration seems to falter a little. If there are very few Travel Complications too, then it appears to risk the world being massive and having little to do. (I have yet to go through a session with this system, therefore this impression is based on my reaction to reading vs. application.) And yet there may be little risk of this, because theoretically there is only one hex a day, so it may play out as just an abstract space where something (maybe crazy, maybe mundane) happened. I imagine failed Orientation tests do amplify the tension from increased odds of Surprise Events and Complications.

I really like the Surprise Event table. It is a 2d8 table that offers many combinations of narrative drive, combined with the excellent d100 Action/Theme tables; these tools could offer some genuinely striking and/or challenging direction for players! I see the Event table being a part of my solo play, regardless of system, from now on. You also get two d10 Camping & Hunting Mishap tables.

I also believe a lot of players will enjoy the Settlement generators. They benefit from being few thus quick to produce, while offering problem and event tables to roll on. More than enough to exploit, along with generous NPC tables. And within this section is a d66 pick-pocket table that I think may become a permanent corpse-loot table for me.

Delving

Many players, both solo and group, will appreciate the dungeon generation material. It is simple but clear, will generate a dynamic ruin that can be multiple layers, includes a d10 Traps table, an interesting Artifice table for fountains, shrines, etc. and then the  two d10 Dungeon or Cave Tables. These are nice because they offer a few actual rooms such as Alchemy Lab and Library. As with the hexploration d20 tables, I think these may be slightly limited at d20, excluding good opportunity for wider “dressing” and variations. This of course is easy to expand upon for oneself.

GM Emulators/ The Augur

The crux on which solo systems are built. They are frequently similar, slight variations on the same need, that of impartial judgement for the solo player. Disciples has its own version of a Yes/No oracle, accompanied with a d6 Modifier and Complication table; this is not of such importance (a simple d6 yes/no oracle will do) but it is the Twist that is the significance here. The ability to generate surprises, snags, complications in play is the key to solo play. Roll the Twist die (d6) when setting a scene (or traveling) to see if there is a Surprise Event. When a scene is finished, determine if in control or not and accordingly modify Twist rolls. 1 or less calls for a roll on the 2d8 Surprise Event table mentioned above.

The next highlight of this section is the extensive mission generators. Instead of a long d100 list it uses a specific breakdown by types. A good d10 table for how they discover the mission; d4 for type (location, item, individual, event); these each have their own d10 tables with details; d20 patron; d20 mission complication; d20 rumors! What an awesome resource. Again, simple, quick, diverse.

Other

There is an excellent breakdown of loot tables, based on common, valuable, rare, each d20 plus a d20 Artifacts table, with full written descriptions and illustrations.

Players can collect plants and brew things and some beasts can be harvested for profitable parts.

There is an extensive bestiary.

And if all this were not enough, the book includes several extended scenarios at the end, with random tables, NPCs with stats, and maps of sites!

Final Thoughts

I am impressed by this work (using the pdf, unsure of the physical quality). It combines the gaminess of something like D100 Dungeon and the more loose-leaf elements of traditional roleplaying in a successful way. There are many systems in place to guide a player on a vast journey, but does not stray so far into the scripted, by using the Augur and other random components.

I do find the many gaps in the 2-column text blocks from the formatting annoying, a technical gripe, nothing too detracting. More importantly, I felt that there are some flow issues with the text. I thought the skills tables could have been broken up differently; in the Advanced Skills, some say “Archetype Exclusive” whereas others mention an actual archetype such as Hunter. Interspersed with these are regular Advanced Skills, so I had some confusion here. The dungeon rules section presents the construction tables nicely together, but other crucial content tables are located much later in the text. I would have liked to see all relevant tables together.

I dislike how many d20 tables split up over two pages. I believe this could be addressed with formatting, though recognize space and production costs need be considered. I remain unsure about and wrestled with my feelings concerning the hexploration tables and worry that some of these will become repetitive or uninteresting but again, this is speculation. Thinking of these as Spark Tables vs. Scripture is definitely a solution, and besides, the sheer combined number of tables opens up many options for exploring the hexes.

Alex has done tremendous work here, creating a product with a lot of inspiration for gamers. It is robust, offers some excellent tools, much creativity, and good use of art throughout. Solo players could likely use this as their go-to roleplaying system for years, supplementing it with other resources if they need to, although everything needed to get started is here.

And already, he has produced a 44-page zine supplement that looks awesome, adding a bunch of new material, proving that this system has legs and potential to grow. I see future supplements full of hex encounters and happenings to just plug into your Disciples campaign. I think this is good stuff, and if the skills and system don’t appeal, perhaps you can plug and pull to build around your preference. I am excited to see where Blackoath Games takes this beast. The potential is boundless!

Find information at: https://blackoathgames.com/disciples-of-bone-shadow-1