I’ve decided to run a new fantasy game with the intention of exploring the Imagine Roleplaying System. To get started, I’m going to try out Mythic GME Second Edition and see what arises from the experience.

I am very nervous about playing solo and have decided that uncertainty is the point: we need to play to find out and that includes the question of whether playing solo with a game system I’ve only played a little can work.

I’ve decided to record the game as a narrative in third-person but present tense as I hope this will aid with the Otherworld-immersion I am seeking. I have already generated two initial player characters – Brother Delbyth and his friend Benath the Pale – so it’s time to begin… somewhere.

I am taken with the idea of trying out the Undead in the game and so the initial scenario begins outside an old ruin. The words “Omen’s Claw” popped into mind. This post is essentially the (largely) unedited transcript of my play notes – you are forewarned!

Brother Delbyth turns to his companion as they stand below the ruin on the hillside ahead of them, looking up. Benath is staring up the worn stone steps that ascend towards this ancient place, his spear in hand and his studded leather headgear shielding his expression.

“Why did we come here again?”

Benath turns to look at his friend and smiles, “You said there would be treasure and wealth enough that I could buy myself a decent shield and perhaps even a sword.”

Delbyth smiles and then looks up the stepway at the arching stone form that seems to reach out of the earth and grasp at the air, its five sharp talon-like points meeting at the centre.

“We’d better go and see what lies under that stone structure,” Delbyth says and begins to trudge up the steps, his boots crunching under the snow as it begins to lay. It seems that winter is coming earlier than expected. Or perhaps it is simply a poor omen.

We test the expected scene, rolling a 10 which means it’s as expected: a ruined courtyard.

Reaching the top of the steps, Delbyth notes the circular form of the stone courtyard with the five arching fingers of stone rising to meet high above the centre. He perceives the courtyard as forming the palm of a mighty hand although it’s much more elegant and not nearly so literally a hand. It’s more as though the architects had formed five equally placed arches to coincide over the middle of the circular stone platform they now stood upon.

“Doesn’t look much like there’s abundant treasure,” says Benath wryly.

“Of course not,” replies Delbyth, “this is just the outer courtyard. We need to find the way into the structure that lies beneath. The old Dwarvish tome spoke of a stairway that led into the temple beneath.”

Benath moves off towards the left while Delbyth circles to the right, each intent upon the stone courtyard and searching for any sign of a hidden way into the depths.

This seems like a time to employ the Perception characteristic which is doubled when the characters are actively searching: Delbyth has 15% and Benath 13%. The rolls… Delbyth rolls 98 and Benath 42. Both fail.

“Looks like old stone to me,” says Benath. Delbyth sighs in agreement and looks around forlornly to see what else might give him a clue as to the meaning of this site.

I don’t know what’s here so I decide to roll on the Meaning Tables. First, a roll on the Locations table… Storage; second, a roll on the Descriptions tables… Softly Petite. This stuff always makes me smile.

“Hey, Delbyth,” cries Benath, “What’s that over there? It looks like something on the ground.”

I am picturing a small leather pouch on the ground – I decide to test that idea with the Fate Chart: “Is Benath seeing a pouch on the ground?” Seems unlikely to me but the Chaos Factor is 5, so who knows… 32 is a Yes.

Benath moves northward a little to the edge of the circular stone courtyard and bends down. He brushes snow off the object revealing a leather pouch, perhaps 8 inches long and 6 wide. It has a buckle on the front and appears quite old but certainly not ancient. Delbyth walks closer and nods as his friend looks back for permission to pick it up.

What’s inside? Warm Healing. Interesting. I decide against a magical item and have a different idea.

Opening the pouch, Benath pulls out a silver flask with a cork stopper. Pulling the cork, he sniffs at the contents and nods approvingly.

“Smells like some kind of whiskey,” he says. He takes a small sip and makes an appreciative noise as the warming liquid slides down his throat.

“Good, eh?”

“This is fine stuff, Delbyth. I’d wager it’s Dwarven brew if tales of their craft are to be believed. I once had a taste of something similar as a lad back in Linash. The tavern owner said it was Dwarvish.”

“Why would any self-respecting traveller leave a pouch with a flask of Dwarven whiskey out here?”

Benath shrugged and then remembered he’d not searched the rest of the pouch.

Is there anything else in the pouch? This seems like a 50/50… 85 is a no.

“It’s the only thing in the pouch,” says Benath. He decides to unbuckle his belt and slides the pouch onto his waistband. He places the silver flask back inside and buckles it closed.

Is there anything on the ground where the pouch was placed? Seems 50/50… 04 is an Exceptional Yes.

“Hey, there’s an indentation in the ground where you lifted that pouch,” says Delbyth. Kneeling, he clears away the light dusting of snow that has fallen and notes there something in the hole.

Is it a means to open the way? Seems likely… 05 is another Exceptional Yes. I fancy some descriptive details here… Partially Familiar.

Embedded in the stonework is a latch-like structure which has a vertical line carved into a recessed smooth tile-like surface. Delbyth looks at the design quizzically for a moment.

I decide to test his Intelligence by rolling a saving throw to realise how this is used. Delbyth has 75%… 66 is a success.

“I think…”

Delbyth places his fingers on the vertical line of stone and then pulls it towards his left. The tile slides slowly under the pressure and then there is a click. With a hissing noise, the stone courtyard vibrates and then there’s the sound of sliding stone. Turning around, they see the centre of the courtyard begin to depress as a stone column in the middle of the circle appears and sections of stone begin to drop away around it. As they watch, the stones dropping down begin to form a spiralling stone staircase down into the depths.

“I imagine that’s the way in to the temple,” says Benath.

***

Add “Explore Temple” to the threads list and “Dwarves” to the characters list. I also decide to add “Tombs” to the characters list because the idea keeps popping into my head. Chaos Factor -1 = 4.

Expected Scene: Descent into an ancient temple beneath the courtyard. Let’s test the expectation… 7 is the expectation. Let’s generate some description for the temple: Unusual, creepy, increase.

Delbyth leads the way down the stone stairs, slowly and carefully stepping so as not to slip. The stairs spiral down into the surface of the courtyard and appear in the ceiling of a large stone chamber. Light from above falls as a narrow shaft around the central stairway, becoming increasingly dim as they descend.

“You didn’t bring a torch with you, by any chance,” whispers Benath as they creep down.

I’ve not really prepared an equipment list, so I’ll put this to the Fate Chart. It seems likely that they would have a kit bag with some basics… 46 is a Yes. I’ll give them 1d6+1 torches and the means to light them = 7.

Pausing about two-thirds of the way down, Delbyth unhitches the small backpack and pulls out one of the torches. Pausing, he decides to call upon the power of his Goddess and summon light to the torch’s end without lighting it.

This is the Light divine magical skill and although Delbyth hasn’t mastered the skill, he is allowed to use it as a non-acquired skill. His base chance is 25%… 04 is a success, in fact it’s 20% less than his chance so it’s a critical success. If he repeats this on the same object, he’ll gain a +20% bonus next time. Reading the skill description, I am stunned by the parameters of the light: 3’ radius per Will Force point and normal vision out to 5’ per Piety rating = 45’ radius and vision out to 85 feet. The skill will last an hour.

Soft light glows from the end of the torch even though Delbyth hasn’t lit it. He mutters a brief thanks to the Goddess as he focuses his attention back on the stairs. The light emanates outward far further than torch light, showing the chamber to be 60 feet by 80 feet and built from stone.

I’m not quite sure what makes the place creepy or unusual, so I’ll generate some words: Weather Control. Hmm. Is this place cold? Seems likely… 12 is a Yes. Let’s go with that.

The air is perceptively colder in here. Frost rimes the surfaces of the chamber and the supporting pillars than run in two lines along the long axis. As Delbyth steps off the bottom of the stairway, he can smell the coolness and senses the dampness around him. He feels a chill creep into his body. Closing his eyes as he takes a few steps away from the stairs, Delbyth stops and invokes the Goddess’ name again, “Lady, grant us the warmth of your presence.” He breathes in and then out slowly, calming himself and invoking the gift of warmth which begins to emanate from the torch.

Opening his eyes, Delbyth says, “Stay within three paces of me and you’ll feel the warmth.” Belnath nods and smiles knowingly.

For the benefit of learning, I’ve used the Warm divine magic invocation which gives Delbyth a 10 degree increase of ambient temperature within a 10 foot radius. It’ll last 30 minutes. Which means we’d better start tracking time a little more closely. I’ll apply the standard 10-minute dungeon turn procedure and track time in the depths thus.

Is there anything of interest in this chamber? 50/50… 83 is a No. I decide to have a single visible exit in the north wall for no reason other than its seems appropriate.

“Just plain stone walls and pillars,” says Benath, “but an unearthly chill and frost to boot. What on earth is this place? Some kind of temple to a frost demon?”

Delbyth doesn’t know so he stays quiet and walks slowly, carefully northward towards the open archway in the wall ahead. It’s a square-shaped arch with a simple lintel across the opening in the stone wall. For some reason, he feels uneasy about the lack of ornament in a place supposed to be for worship to another deity. And the cold, yes, that is an unnatural reality within this place.

***

No threads to add but I do note, “Frost Demon” on the characters list given that Benath has invoked the idea. The situation is very much in their control, so Chaos Factor -1 = 3.

Expected Scene is a passageway. Roll… 3 is an Altered Scene. I don’t have a clear idea of a tweak, so I roll on the Scene Adjustment Table… Add a Character. The most logical item on the character list is “Tombs” so I’ll use that. Are the tombs for humanoids? Seems likely… 34 is a Yes. Dwarves? Seems likely… 98 is an Exceptional No. Interesting.

They enter a passageway with ledges along both sides for the whole length of the 80-foot section ahead. Upon the ledges are the remains of… something very large. Raising his light and turning to look at the first ledge, Delbyth is struck by the size of the being that is wrapped in what looks like a leathery shroud. The body is, what, eighteen feet long? He paces out the length of the ledge to confirm his estimation.

Benath looks at his friend with incredulity. They move slowly deeper along the passageway, counting the ledges. They are stacked three high and there are four such stacks on each side, meaning there must be some two dozen giant corpses here. The stone is cold and rimed with frost too. Another archway marks the end of the passageway at the north end, the dark beyond inviting.

“Let’s have a look at one of these corpses,” says Benath, moving towards the nearest on the lowest ledge about three-quarters of the way down. Delbyth puts his hand on the man’s arm, as if to stop him.

“Are you sure it’s wise to desecrate the tomb of such as these?”

“Well, it depends. Are these… beings? Are they going to rise up and stop us, or are they truly dead?”

“I think it depends on more than whether they are dead or merely sleeping, Benath, but your point is well made. This place is cold and the bodies seem well-preserved beyond what might be expected.”

“Let’s unwrap one a little and see what’s what, eh?”

Delbyth nodded and muttered a quick prayer to the Goddess, invoking her to help him sense the presence of evil. Reaching out with his inner awareness…

Delbyth is using his Detect Evil divine magical skill. It takes 5 seconds of focus to use and he needs 60% or less… 21 is a critical success. This raises an important secondary question: Are the corpses in suspended animation? Seems like a 50/50 to me… 47 is a No. I reckon these beings were once evil but are dead, so what does he sense?

With a sharp intake of breath, Delbyth opens his eyes and says, “They were evil, Benath. There is a great deal of evil in their bones.” Benath looks at him with not a little surprise and then, slowly uses the end of his spear to slide the blade under the cold surface of the leather shroud. He tries to lift it but the stiffness of the leather is firm. He shakes his head.

“I’m not sure I want to go digging through that just yet.”

They turn back towards the archway at the north end of the passageway and slowly Delbyth leads the way forward, his light blazing forth from the torch in his right hand…

Game on!