Croaker's Favourite Solo Actual Plays
The Lone Toad Newsletter - July 2024
Welcome to the July 2024 Lone Toad Newsletter! I’d like to take a second to thank everyone who subscribed and reads this newsletter. We’ve recently blasted past the 500 subscriber milestone and are already zooming to 1,000!
In recognition of your amazing support, I’m making Night Terror and Sea Beast free, for now and forever!
Check them out below, play them, enjoy them, and love them!
But now to what we’ve all come here for! Lots and lots of Solo Actual Play recommendations.
Solo Actual Plays
What about Solo RPGs that are conducive to creating actual plays? It’s hard to say but when I was playing my first solo games I thought ‘Hey I’m writing these amazing stories, I reckon other people would like to read them!’ And yeah, people actually read them, which was a bit you know, fun.
Below is just a small sampling of those Actual Plays I read, listen to or watch.
Written
Play to Find Out (PTFO) written by SGH
Hey fun fact, PTFO was the first solo actual play I read and I instantly fell in love with the whole concept. In fact it was reading PTFO that inspired me to get into writing actual plays, which led to my first blog, which led to this newsletter! So thanks
!PTFO is currently going through an engaging Blades in the Dark campaign. SGH is fantastic at weaving plotlines and different characters, so you should check it out!
The Dragon’s Den by Eric Dill
Eric is a fantastic writer and artist and I’m always excited to read his stories and see his art. He’s written a few campaigns across his substack and his blog. He recently announced a new campaign using OSRIC and an AD&D module.
Thunderfang by Tavon Gatling
A combination of Blade Runner, Sherlock Holmes and a whole bunch of other inspirations, Thunderfang is a Starforged actual play where Locke Holmes uncovers dark conspiracies.
Playing with Myself by Write Firster
Write Firster has just started a Sundered Isles campaign and you never really know what to expect. But it will always be a great story!
Eynowd’s Substack
Eynowd is another excellent author and well worth checking out. He is currently working through an Electric State playthrough and I’m quite enjoying reading along. He is open with this writing process, and how he develops the story and characters.
Castle Grief
Great storytelling and ever greater art, Castle Grief continues to impress with his most recent adventure into Arthurian myth!
Audio
Errant Adventures by Steve Morrison
I’ve been listening to Errant Adventures by Steve Morrison for a while now and it has been great to see his epic stories unfold. His campaigns include dozens of episodes and each one is packed with excellent storytelling.
I personally liked his Season 2 the best, where it had a fun swashbuckling feel. Steve also dips into other systems when it makes sense to do it.
You can check out his website here.
Tales of the Manticore
Tales of the Manticore is a dark and grim fantasy solo podcast where the dice tell the tail. The audio and production quality of TotM is fantastic, as is the storytelling. The creator John also posts thoughts and reflections on the campaign on his blog. Currently in a second city which is focusing on a city-wide conflict and thieves’ guilds.
You can check out the website here.
Legend of the Bones
Another dark fantasy Solo Actual Play. Legend of the Bones combines deep storytelling with high audio production and the brutality of random dice rolls.
Video
Me, Myself and Die by Trevor Devall
Take a professional voice actor, a whole bunch of cameras and even more minis, and what do you get? Me, Myself and Die by Trevor Devall. Trevor has been making solo actual plays on YouTube for a few years now. He goes through many different systems and story plots but I still love his Season 2 Ironsworn campaign.
Trevor is gearing up to crowd fund his own system so keep a look out for that!
Lonley TTRPG. by Black Dragon Dungeon Company
Steel Stash plays a ton of different Solo RPGs, so you’ll always have something interesting to watch. You should check out his Queenless episode!
Have a favourite solo actual play I didn’t mention here? Or maybe you have an Actual Play you create? Feel free to leave a comment to tell the world about it.
Crowdfunding or releasing a solo game soon? Hit me up! The Lone Toad is here to boost fellow Solo RPG designers. Leave a comment, respond to this email, use Substack’s new messaging thing, write a note into your solo notebook and cast it into the sea and I will grab it when I’m at the beach next.
Also can’t get enough of me? I can’t blame you. Follow me on Threads here!
Croaker RPGs WIP
I’m working on a few projects here at Croaker RPGs with Identity getting a playtest release and set to be released to you all for free in August!
My goal is to release 3 games a year that subscribers to the The Lone Toad can download and play months before they go on sale to the masses.
Identity
Work on Identity continues and I’m really happy with where it is going. It’s ready for playtesting, so if you want to play test look below!
Playtesters will get their name in Identity, free copies of every version of Identity even when it goes on sale in the future, AND a free copy of Queenless. It’s a good deal I reckon.
You can grab the files to play test Identity and provide feedback here!
But I’m excited to talk about the story in Identity. The story is inspired by Mistaken Identity, the starting adventure in The Enemy Within campaign for Warhammer RPG.
*Spoilers for an almost 40 year old campaign*
In Mistaken Identity, the party discovers a stagecoach that has been attacked. Further investigation shows one of the murdered passengers looks exactly like a member of the party. From there things get crazy.
In Identity, you come across a car crash and discover the dead body of an exact copy of yourself. In horror and confusion, you head home but this is only the start of your tragic tale as more and more terrible things happen to you. It’s up to you to discover the secrets behind this all.
The Lost City of Cargoth (FREE GAME)
Pick it up while it’s still free to Lone Toad readers! Once Identity is out, The Lost City of Cargoth will go up for sale on my itch page.
The Lost City of Cargoth has big changes and additional features as I get it ready for a release. Firstly I’m dropping the Lost City from the name and renaming it Cargoth: Ruinious Edition.
I’m also adding about 20 to 25% more content to the game that will hopefully flesh it out as I give it a full release. Some of the new content is:
A new Challenges mechanic for your adventurer. Natural and unnatural events will put your character in danger. Will you be able to escape unharmed?
New assets for your character to achieve in the great defeated city. Weild the Orb of Cargoth to destroy cities, or be known across the Ironlands as the person who destroyed that evil.
Story hooks for you to continue adventures in the lost city. A lost expedition, magical herbs and a trapped spirit all await you.
But you can still grab the Lost City of Cargoth for free here. Check it out before it sinks into the depths of the forest and reemerges as some swamp beast, larger and stronger.
Please don’t share this link, instead share this Lone Toad post which will help grow the community!
Be sure to check out my other games here!
Other RPG Stuff
I’ve been playing Final Girl, a solo board game where you try to defeat a horrific killer. It’s super thematic and really fun, even if I keep dying. You should check it out
Congrats to
for a successful Kickstarter! I can’t wait to get my hands on Studded Leather. (the game Studded Leather, not actual studded leather although I’d probably look good in it).Ever want to experience the fun, drama and heartbreak of being an Olympic athlete? Check out Go For Gold by Kaylan! A duet/solo micro RPG.
This is a great article about a struggling Game Shop trying to make it work! Good luck to the Dragons Concord.
Talking about solo actual plays,
of the soloist is dipping into Solo APs. Well worth checking out.
Up Next for The Lone Toad
Have you ever thought about creating your own Solo Actual Play? Well, next month I will be bringing you tips and tricks from several Solo AP creators that will hopefully convince you to throw your hat in the ring!
Thank you for Reading!
As always I write this because you all read it. Please like this newsletter and share it with others who may be interested.
Thanks for the list!!!
Great list! I make Science Fantasy Awesome, a video solo actual play: www.youtube.com/@scifanawe