Hiyas!

1st post here - yay!

I only have one player. How can this be handled? (The Adventurer's Book promises a cool playing experience even w/ just one player but I find no modifications/additions to the rules, et al., in it, nor the Loremaster's Book)

Please, kindly lend a hand!


Thanks!
Ñ

I'd give them a few advancement and XP points to add to the character, for survivability, and then send them out. Playing with a single player is harder work for both you as GM and them as a player, as you're carrying the story with just the two of you batting ideas around. It can be rewarding though, so go for it. Hope will be the big campaign issue, travelling alone means the fellowship pool is 1 (2 if they're a hobbit). The loss of hope and staving off despair could be a strong theme.

In addition , you could give the player a NPC partner/side-kick.

HN

Direct your player to be a good storyteller. When facing adversaries, have them enter combat with only one or two at a time and give them opportunities to escape. Consider making up special battle events that are triggered by the player's rolls or choices. For example, stealing an idea from Words of the Wise, have your player only face one or two enemies, but every time the player rolls an EYE result, an additional enemy could join the fight or shoot at him from afar. Put a limit on how many times this can happen. Then, every time he or an enemy rolls a Gandalf Rune, something good happens, e.g. if the roll was made by the player, the enemy is automatically killed; if it was made by the enemy, he drops his weapon and flees. You could end the fight in a creative way after so many Runes have been rolled. You will need to tell a good story as to why all of this is possible, but that is what makes the game so fun!

I would just forget about the Travel Roles(Guide, Lookout etc). Just plot the unfolding of the tale and decide what happens on the journey yourself. It's these roles that give the false impression that there have to be at least four members of a fellowship for the game to work.

Just bear in mind that a couple of Goblins or even a single Attercop or Wild Wolf are quite a challenge to a single character and it should work fine.

Four possibilities exist:
1) Run the game as written, being very careful to keep combat encounters reasonable. Either by decreasing the number and strength of opponents, or by sending opponents in waves rather than all at once. (You may have to do this no matter which option you choose.)
2) Additional AP/XP and an immediate Fellowship Phase. Basically give them some freebies to buff themselves and run adventures that are slightly "below level".
3) NPC Company Members: Add a few (2 at most) NPCs to the company.
4) Sidekick. Allow the player to run a 2nd character, effectively a sidekick.

Each of these answers poses problems for you and for your player.

Hi all.

I live in an area where there are few other folk around who are into roleplay and so have often been forced down the road of single player games.

How I run it varies depending on who I do it with Used to do run them with a good friend with a good knowledge of RPG's and so by tailoring the adventures more to his character could create some interesting tails with his character as acentral element.

Now I run games for my son who has less experiance and I've altered play style a little for him.

In both versions I normally have had an NPC character accompany the PC, mainly so I can add some guidance and direction 'in-game' ifits required rather than being obvious and tellng him stuff - this can also be used to misdirect players if you want that also. It helps if the NPC is a gruff, speak-only-when-required type.

What Garn says is quite true about watching combat encounters and giving a few freebies to boost their abilities does help a little.

I've only just started playing TOR so still have to see how it works with this particular game.

I think one of the biggest issues is the lack of a Fellowship Focus so it might be worth using tagalong NPCs also for that reason.

To further clarify, as Hope is already quite sparse and there will be few Fellowship Points available, I think losing the possibility of a Fellowship Focus would exacerbate the situation.

Hi Nino,

I've run a handful of adventures for one-player without any issue. Apart from eliminating the four roles during the journey, the rules work quite well as written.

Many here seem to make a lot of not being able to regain Hope quickly or effectively without a group and a fellowship focus, but there is a wonderful example of how this might happen at the very top of page 28 of the Loremaster's Book - and it doesn't require a formal fellowship. Middle-Earth is an inspiring place! The example suggests that we, as Loremasters, should present scenes that act like the opposite of a corruption test (corruption tests are also described on page 28). Lets call them Inspiration Tests. I use them regularly.

And it's easy enough to shift the fellowship focus to someone or something that matters deeply to the player-hero within the adventure.

Anyway, just wanted to say you should dive right in (if you haven't already). Having only one player with you to share in the enjoyment of the game is no disadvantage. It just makes for a different style of story.

Cheers,
Dankers

Dankers,

Thanks for jumping on and adding your LM experience in running single player adventures! Your suggestion sounds spot on for the feeling of Middle-earth. I can imagine Gimli stumbling out of the Gliterring Caves filled with wonder and awe, and renewed in his determination and Hope for the future.

"Caves, they say, Caves! Holes to fly to in time of war, to store fodder in! My good Legolas, do you know that the caverns of Helm's Deep are vast and beautiful? There would be an endless pilgrimage of Dwarves, merely to gaze at them, if such things were known to be....Happy was the chance that drove me there! It makes me weep to leave them" (The LotR Book Three, The Road to Isengard).

Oh, yes, I can imagine what you describe as a means for a lone player-hero to regain hope!

Regards,
E

I also might suggest that unless you give them an NPC sidekick, dispense with Fellowship Points.

Just give them the extra point of Hope or two that would normally be in the Fellowship pool.

If you want, you can always justify it by giving them something that brings them Hope, such as a phial of starlight, an ancestral ring, or a book of verse written by their true love.

That is an excellent idea forgottenking! Special comfort or magical items (less in power than a Reward) could be the equivalent of having friends with you, bringing you hope. This might even be something that Francesco could think about and develop further. It is very Tolkien. The item would supply 1 Fellowship point per session and could possibly be chosen as their Fellowship focus using the normal rules. This means that the Loremaster should put the item in danger at least once during the adventure, forcing the hero to protect it from being stolen, lost, or destroyed.

Hiyas!

Hey - thanks for all the wonderful input, guys/gals!


Ñ