The Lone Toad Newsletter - August 2023

Hex Crawling All by Yourself and a Preview of Badger + Coyote by Pandion Games

Welcome to the August Newsletter of The Lone Toad. July was a busy month for life but not as much for Croaker RPG, as I took a couple weeks for a family vacation. Still, the newsletter must continue!

In this newsletter, I’ll give some pointers on doing solo hexcrawl, show off my awesome new logo, show off a new duet game by Pandion Games called Badget + Cayote, and more!

Are you enjoying the newsletter? Like it, please! I’m not desperate or anything and my self-worth totally isn’t tied to how many people like this…

New Logo

New logo! So awesome! It was done by good friend Eric of Drakonspyre. I’m really excited about showing it off and including it in all my stuff going forward.

Tips on Hex Crawling Solo

Alright, so you’ve just unfurled the map, created some characters, and dropped them into this world. You have a huge sandbox to explore but just yourself to do it with. You want to get the most out of this awesome hex crawl but aren’t sure how to tackle such an open world in a solo RPG. No worries! I’ve recently been playing a hex crawl, which I’ve shied away from in Solo RPGs. But I’ve found the experience really enjoyable and have created some interesting characters and story plots.

I’ve been playing a solo campaign of Twilight 2000 4th Edition. It’s a game about surviving in a post-World War 3 world. In the game, your characters have to travel a huge map filled with bandits, Soviet patrols, hostile militia, and more. So how do I keep a solo hexcrawl fresh?

Random Encounters - Random encounters are a must for any hex crawls. Luckily for me, Twilight 2000 has a great deck of cards that has 52 random encounters. So whatever setting and system you are using, make sure you have a healthy amount of random encounters to throw into them. But don’t just take the random encounters as written. The key is to adapt and adjust them to what is going on in the campaign at that moment. Sometimes it also doesn’t make sense to pull a random encounter, so consider skipping them when appropriate.

Multiple different characters - The best way to keep a hexcrawl fresh is to run several different characters at once and roleplay the interaction between them. Typically I like only running one character at a time, but with my hexcrawl I’ve found having a small group pays dividends by advancing the story and keeping things interesting. I play each session through the eyes of one of my characters and rotate them.

Creating Stories from Clues and Rumours - Many hex crawl systems and settings have tables for random clues and rumours. Be sure to use these and combine them as best you can into coherent story plots for your small party. Eventually, one thread will make outsized importance and will drive your characters into an epic story.

Good luck hex crawling out there my fellow soloists

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Cool Solo Game I Haven’t Played Yet

Folks, I wish so hard I could play all the solo games I hear about but it just IS NOT POSSIBLE. Still, I like to highlight some really cool ones from solo designers out there. Solo RPGs are like a niche in a niche, so we have to share things around and get visibility or each other.

Do you have a solo-game you’d like to highlight? Message me and let’s chat!

As the Crow Flies

By Chubby Crow Games! As the Crow Flies is an exploration game built on the Carta system that encourages you to put yourself into the feathers of a young crow leaving the nest for the first time. Befriend other animals, search for food, find interesting trinkets, and eventually settle down to create a nest of your own.

Rootin Tootin Spells and Shootin

A one-page RPG where you play a cowboy wizard! By friend Black Dragon Dungeon Company!

Realms

Realms: Etria is a solo (or 2-player) narrative roleplaying game with six pre-made settings to choose from. It combines elements of journalling and dice-based games to create a gm-less system.

Work in Progress

This is a new section where I want to talk about games that are a work in progress. I work in an interesting way and talking to others and sharing my ideas helps me follow through with them. But there is no guarantee I’ll finish these projects. So let’s get into it!

• No True Patriot - A new spy-double life-based game based on Ironsworn. I’m putting a lot of work into it so be sure to keep an eye out.

• Under Ground - No progress on this one sadly.

• Synergy - No progress this month.

That’s it for concrete projects. This may morph into its own newsletter with more information. Let me know if you want to hear more about what I’m working on.

Badger + Coyote by Pandion Games

Launching on the 7th of September on Backerkit, Badger + Coyote by Pandion Games is a cozy duet game where you play as unlikely friends working together to help the people of the forest.

A simple D6 dice pool system, the game plays out asymmetrically, as the two animals don’t communicate in-game but still work together to accomplish your goals of helping the forest.

The art is fantastic and really gives off that cozy feeling. There are so many different adventures in the book also, you’ll have tons of material to work with.

So why a duet game? Similar to solo RPGs, duet games allow you to have a full RPG experience with less than a full gaming group of 3 players plus a GM.

Take a look at some of the images and be sure to head to their backerkit site here

Other RPG Stuff

• Looking for a cool Shadow dark adventure? Check out Crypt of the Mad Alchemist, a beginner funnel!

• A great discussion about the new Star Trek Offical solo game on the Solist newsletter.

• A great one-page RPG from a friend of the newsletter Elritch Gremlin. The Eldritch Hack.

Next Month for Croaker RPGs

Back to everything next month. I’ve started up a new campaign on the blog, Fields of Fire, which is my Twilight 2000 hex crawl campaign. And back to work on some games! Lots of exciting stuff.

Be sure to check out the League of Incredible Soloists. We have just been joined by Steve Morrison of Errant Adventures!

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.