Puzzle Design – is it possible to try to make a (semi) rigorous system?

TLDR – skip to the “Proforma Questions”

– – –

Kinds of Puzzles

I will start off by saying, I do not claim to be the best puzzle designer out there. I just like trying to make them.

I recently read this about puzzle dungeons in RPGs, and it made me wonder if having some structure (at least to start with) could help in making individual puzzles.

Before getting into this, I think it is important to recognise that ‘puzzles’ can be broken down into two main categories:

• Class 1 – Pure inspiration – for example I saw an Arrhenius screw and thought that would be a neat stair case; or noticing that cannon balls float in mercury, and realizing that perhaps a large vat of mercury could be used to make a liquid bridge over a dangerous surface. But, other than a mind looking for D&D connections, there is nothing you can do to harvest pure inspiration.

• Class 2 – Active designed – like this moon door puzzle, or secret chimney (pic below) or this rotating flooding corridor puzzle. These were constructed almost from the ground up. No raw inspiration. So, I began to think about my thought process in how I built these puzzles, and began to think – could I codify my thought process and would this be useful?

Secret Chimney Puzzle

My thought process for Class 2 Puzzle (for what it is worth):

For example, my main thought process when making the Sun/Moon door puzzle was along the lines of: (1) I want a door that is not easy to get through (2) I’ll make a puzzle that needs to be solved to open the door (3) things need to be put in the correct place on the door to solve the puzzle (4) I’ll make the puzzle be related to the position of the Sun and the phase of the Moon, so I can give visual hints related to these positions in the current sky. Hopefully this will not be too hard, too easy is way worse than too hard.

• So, in designing: Need an objective –> a ‘stopper’ that prevents getting to the objective easily –> a reasoned solution based on information –> hints that provide this information

I then went through a process of deciding if this puzzle was fun, dobale and not a game ending problem.

• So, in checking the puzzle: Is this an engaging problem? –> Is it logical enough and not arbitrary, not too hard or too easy? –> Is it putative to the overall game?

I will say none of this was done in a premeditative way, it just sort of rolled out, using more of less those steps, but probably in a bit of a mind jumble. This is just me trying to retro-derive my thought process.

– IF – we put aside raw inspiration (i.e. Class 1 Puzzles) as an untamable beast, is there a way of coming up with a semi-rigorous method of designing simple puzzles for RPGs?

Let’s try:

— Proforma Questions —

1.OBJECTIVE – What objective will the PCs want/need (it can be a simple one)
2. STOPPER – What stops/frustrates obtaining the objective in 1. easily
3. RESOLUTION – What do the PCs need to do to resolve/overcome the frustration in 2.
4. HINTS – (using the Alexandrian 3 clue rule probably makes sense here)
(a) what hint/clue is there in getting to a solution
(b) perhaps add a second hint/clue
(c) perhaps add a third hint/clue, perhaps make this more of a thematic clue

— Check/Validation Questions —

5.ENGAGING – Is the solution engaging/fun (or at least not a mechanical drudge) – if not change something in steps 1‑4, probably in steps 2 or 3, and work back through the steps
6. LOGIC – Does the solution require some basic logic or common-sense reasoning – if not, change something in 1-4, probably in steps 3 or 4, and work back through the steps
7. PUNITIVE – If failure to obtain the objective in 1. is overly punitive and/or prevents/ends the game from progressing in a meaningful way – then change something, probably the objective

— Worked Examples —

:: Let’s try it out – DOORWAY 1

1. OBJECTIVE – get through the doorway
2. STOPPER – the door is rusted shut
3. RESOLUTION – oil the hinges, the oil is in another room (if the players have no oil on them)
4. HINTS –
   (a) mention that the hinges are covered in rust
   (b) there are greasy spots below the hinges (i.e. hint: they have been oiled before)
   (c) PCs have passed through another door in the complex that could only just be opened on screeching hinges (i.e. hint: oil would have helped open the door)
5. ENGAGING – seems OK, perhaps it’s a bit on the mundane side …
6. LOGIC – seems OK, no massive leaps of logic needed
7. PUNITIVE – this door just leads to a non-essential part of the complex, so it’s OK if they fail to get past the door

Overall this puzzle seems OK, the main problem is that 5. is not especially interesting, so we could have another try or tweak things a bit.

So, we could make getting the oil more interesting, like perhaps the PCs should encounter a broken engine or robot/automitant and it is dripping oil, or they find a bowl where rusted metal items are soaking in oil etc.

OR change something in 1 to 4 above to try to make it more engaging. OK, let’s try that:

:: Let’s tweak it – DOORWAY 2:

1. OBJECTIVE – get through the METAL doorway
2. STOPPER – it’s rusted shut
3. RESOLUTION – get a RUST MONSTER to eat the metal door
4. HINTS –
   (a) PCs can encounter a rust monster eating its way through a giant metal chain like a row of sausages. Perhaps change the door in 1. to a portcullis, and it is the operational chains that have rusted solid on the portcullis
   (b) there is an abandoned reel of chain left near the door, or the door is also chained shut (i.e. hint: trying to link the door, chains and rust monster together).
   (c) perhaps there are lots of chains left in this complex, and some show strange signs of being eaten by something.
5. ENGAGING – Perhaps a more interesting solution than above – the PCs can drag the metal chain to the door leading the Rust Monster to the door/portcullis, and then the PCs can come back when the Rust Monster has eaten the door?
6. LOGIC – think this is a pass
7. PUNITIVE – Again, the door just leads to a non-essential part of the complex, so OK

Of course, if the PCs come up with a better way of getting past the door, all well and good, as long as there is at least one way of doing this in your puzzle (but also see also PIT 2 example were there is no bespoke solution just an open problem)

:: For the fun of it, let’s make another – DOORWAY 3

1. OBJECTIVE – get through the doorway (sticking with a theme)
2. STOPPER – it requires a code/puzzle solution
3. RESOLUTION – align 7 pegs in the correct holes
4. HINTS –
   (a) perhaps the pegs are rainbow coloured and they have to be put in rainbow coloured order e.g.: ROYGBIV
   (b) there is a room with a giant rainbow mural with open doors at each end of the rainbow
   (c) the cult members in the complex all wear rainbow coloured robes (e.g. theming rainbows)
5. ENGAGING – think this is a pass
6. LOGIC – yes, hopefully not too obtuse. Added hint, maybe have a prism near the door, and when light is shown through the prism the split light shows the placement of the pegs in the holes on the door
7. PUNITIVE – again, this door just leads to a non-essential part of the complex

:: OR – DOORWAY 4

1. OBJECTIVE – get through the doorway
2. STOPPER – it requires a code/puzzle solution
3. RESOLUTION – align the 4 levers in the door in a(n): up, down or middle position
4. HINTS –
   (a) There is a room in the complex where the up, down or middle positions are indicated – maybe horizontal bars on a tapestry e.g. _ — _ ^— perhaps there is an open door printed above the bars.
   Or a painting of the door with 4 prominent markings on it, maybe knots in the wood, or physical holes showing the position of the levers; or carpet with a door with 4 branches growing out of it, each branch position equating to the position of the 4 levers
   (b) Maybe there are some wear marks (or greasy finger marks) on the door indicating the positions the lever should be in
   (c) Maybe the PCs can find a torn cloth that show a smudge drawing showing the level positions, but disguised as musical notes (maybe too obtuse); or they find a diagram on a dead thief, the diagram showing someone blowing dust on a door (the dust sticking to the greasy marks described above)
5. ENGAGING – seems OK, but maybe the players will get fixated on just guessing the positions; a 1 in 81 chance. To discourage simple mechanical guessing, perhaps once the levers are moved, and a failed result is obtained, the door makes a loud “gong” noise, to discourage too many random guesses. Or, stress that the levers are old and look like the will break if messed with too much
6. LOGIC – yes, think some is required
7. PUNITIVE – again, this door just leads to a non-essential part of the complex

:: Sticking with doors just to see – DOORWAY 5

1. OBJECTIVE – get through the doorway
2. STOPPER – protected by a magical barrier
3. RESOLUTION – walk backwards through the doorway
4. HINTS –
   (a) perhaps a close look at the dusty footprints shows a person appearing to pivot just before going throught the door i.e. weird broad semicircular heel marks
   (b) maybe there is some sort of riddle in the dungeon giving a hint e.g.: “To go back is to go forward, to go forward is the way back”
   (c) maybe there is a magical hoop in the complex where things can only pass through in one direction. Maybe the hoop is positioned to control the flow of water through a pipe? Perhaps the archway and the hoop share a copper frame.
5. ENGAGING – think this is a pass
6. LOGIC – think this is a pass
7. PUNITIVE – again, this door just leads to a non-essential part of the complex

:: Let’s try one more doorway – DOORWAY 6

1. OBJECTIVE – get through a tunnel archway
2. STOPPER – protected by circular chopping blades
3. RESOLUTION – turn the mechanism off
4. HINTS –
   (a) in the complex there is a switch, perhaps a large bowl of water on a pressure plate – solution empty or move the bowl.
   Hint, the bowl has level line markings in it which indicate which trap is operational when the water is between line X and Y. A picture of the circular chopping blades are shown between those X and Y lines. Between other lines on the bowl there are other traps that turn on, or portcullis that locks (again a hint of what happens is between the lines on the bowl, e.g. a portcullis symbol or picture of a lowered draw bridge etc.)
   (b) There is a jug near the bowl it is damp but empty – hint: it has been used recently. Perhaps someone has used the jug since the PC’s last visit?
   (c) If the PCs mess with the water level in the bowl they hear loud clanking and grinding noises somewhere in the complex. A more complex puzzle might require the PCs to find the bowl and place it on the pressure plate first, but perhaps the pressure plate needs a symbol of the needed bowl on it as a hint. Maybe the bowl has a unique identifying shape e.g. like a large clam or dolphin.
5. ENGAGING – think this is a pass
6. LOGIC – think this is a pass
7. PUNITIVE – again, this archway just leads to a non-essential part of the complex

:: Something new – PIT 1

1. OBJECTIVE – get out of a deep pit or chasm
2. STOPPER – the chasm/deep pit is rapidly filling with water, and there is little or no time to remove heavy armor
3. RESOLUTION – float up on buoyant giant mushrooms that a growing in the base of the chasm
4. HINTS –
   (a) PCs encounter these giant mushrooms before in the complex – if they decide to mess with the mushrooms they will discover that they are very light and strong for their size. They are easy to knock over as they have shallow footings
   (b) perhaps the PCs will cross a stream where the mushrooms were strapped together to form an improvised but buoyant bridge
   (c) the giant mushroom caps are used as seats by some of the inhabitants of the complex, or perhaps some inhabitants use the mushroom caps as coracles (boats) to move about on an underground lake.
5. ENGAGING – think this is a pass
6. LOGIC – think this is a pass
7. PUNITIVE – a bit (but there are some pretty heavy hints above), but perhaps at worse the PCs might need to lose armor rather than drown.

:: Something new – PIT 2

1. OBJECTIVE – a golden crown hovers over a wide bottomless pit, the edge/circumference of the pit is mobile, it shifts and oscillates like a writhing snake biting its own tail
2. STOPPER – falling down the pit means death, and because the edge of the pit is always moving it is difficult to place a fixed structure like a plank across the pit.
   Hitting the crown knocks it down the pit. But, it will reappear again in the same position in about 10 minutes.
3. RESOLUTION – in this case, the solution can be up to the players. Anything reasonable will be acceptable. Perhaps they try to hook the crown with a grappling hook on a rope?
4. HINTS –
   (a) I think no hints are really needed here, as long as the crown is not vital to solving the mystery of the complex and reasonable solutions the players come up with should be allowed
   (b) perhaps there are some stones they can use to throw into the pit of no return
   (c) maybe they hear a rumor about the crown and pit in the tavern; or there is a
5. ENGAGING – think this is a pass
6. LOGIC – think this is a pass
7. PUNITIVE – getting the crown is just a bonus

:: Let’s try it again (maybe you are not happy with the “any solution will do” concept) – PIT 3

1. OBJECTIVE – a gold crown hovers over a wide bottomless pit, the edge/circumference of the pit is mobile, it shifts and oscillates like a writhing snake biting its own tail
2. STOPPER – falling down the pit means death, and because the edge of the pit is always moving it is difficult to place a fixed structure like a plank across the pit.
   Hitting the crown knocks it down the pit. But, it will reappear again in about 10 minutes.
3. RESOLUTION – the pit is in fact a living inter-dimensional creature/being and it is attracted and yet repulsed by the crown. It is doomed to circle the crown forever – spitting the crown out again if it falls into the belly of the pit. The pit is released if the crown is physically damaged or a portable hole is thrown into the pit
4. HINTS –
   (a) PCs can find a broken portable hole, it is interdimensional, but only holds about a gallon worth of stuff. Unusually the edge of the portable hole is mobile and moves exactly like the edge of the bottomless pit. Hopefully the PCs will see a link and decide the throw the near worthless portable hole into the big interdimensional pit. Perhaps, better, the hole and the pit are connected, and when near to each other, the PCs can see the crown in the hole and reach in and grab the crown
   (b) both the portable hole and the pit share some other property, e.g. both impossibly black, have arcing sparks around their edge, or look like they contain the night sky
   (c) PCs can find a partly destroyed book about these interdimensional beings and how they are unstable if they are in the vicinity of interdimensional spaces or other interdimensional beings.
5. ENGAGING – think this is a pass
6. LOGIC – think this is a pass
7. PUNITIVE – getting the crown is just a bonus

:: One more for luck – LAVA RIVER

1. OBJECTIVE – a long dead monarch sits on a throne in decaying raiments of their office
2. STOPPER – a river of lava bisects the chamber; the PCs are on the wrong side of the lava river. The heat is so fierce that it is nearly impossible to approach the lava river and any sort of normal bridge will be incinerated, or if metal, it will be white hot in seconds.
3. RESOLUTION – there is a safe magical conduit over the lava stream covered by an illusion, or it is invisible
4. HINTS –
   (a) Exploration of the cavern may reveal that there is one area in the cavern that seems less hot, following the somewhat cooler area allows them to approach the lava stream, and if bold simply walk over the lava
   (b) Maybe the air around the conduit is different, less heat haze, or perhaps some (heat resistant) dark purple moss shows a path to the conduit
   (c) Maybe there is a painting (or legend about the same) showing the great monarch walking over the lava, feet wrapped in purple moss, their sword held aloft (the sword is a red herring). Maybe they find a fireplace where the heat resistant dark purple moss grows, the moss being largely unaffected by the heat of a normal fire.
5. ENGAGING – think this is a pass
6. LOGIC – think this is a pass
7. PUNITIVE – not solving the puzzle only means they get less treasure

Final thoughts

So, these are just some ideas I came up with on the fly. Give it a try, maybe it will work for you (no promises).

Overall, maybe having some initial structure is a good idea. The concept you get can then be iterated until you get something you like. Perhaps throw some random tables in to help spark more ideas especially when designing a solution e.g. how the heck is a ladle going to be used to open a secret alternative doorway to the dungeon.

Again, I’m not expert, just thinking about how I’ve done this in the past.

Further Reading:

I’ll try add to this as I go along (hopefully):

• https://directsungames.blogspot.com/2022/12/designing-osr-style-puzzles.html

• https://gnomestew.com/four-key-elements-of-a-good-rpg-puzzle/

• https://gnomestew.com/four-types-of-rpg-puzzle/

Advent(ure) Calendar | 24 Days of Festive Dungeoneering

A (hopefully) fun festive idea – an Advent Calendar Dungeon (‘Advent(ure) Calendar’).

Open a door each day to see what’s behind the door.

See if you survive to Christmas.

Simply scan the QR code on each door to see what lies behind … 

Spoiler – I’ve not written all the rooms yet!!! See if I survive to Christmas too …
:O\

>> PDF <<

Idea inspired by the good works of Atelier Clandestin.

Just want the links not this infernal QR rubbish? 

• Day 1     Giant Putrid Gravy-Spewing Undead Turkey
• Day 2     Candy Cane Golem
• Day 3     Wrapping Monster
• Day 4     White Wight Mr Frosty
• Day 5     Punch Bowl – Secret Chimney
• Day 6     Not a creature was stirring, not even a … T-Rex mouse
• Day 7     Advent Calendar Spider  
• Day 8     Slay Puzzle
• Day 9     Spinning Candy Cane Bridge
• Day 10   Were-reindeer Cultist
• Day 11   Brother Olf
• Day 12   Polar Cat
• Day 13   A Fireplace
• Day 14   Tree Ent(hrallment) 
• Day 15   Neurotic (not Necrotic) Gnomes
• Day 16   Yule Log out
• Day 17   Gnome Alone
• Day 18   Ghost of X-Mas that Uncle Past
• Day 19   Torpid TV & Tricky Tinsel
  
• Day 20   Elevator Pitch
• Day 21   Just Des(s)erts
• Day 22   Ransacked
• Day 23   Grinch Slime 
• Day 24   Naughty or Nice

– – –

Me on DriveThru; at the moment I’m mainly pimping my procedural:
:: High Seas ‘Hex Crawl’ – In the Heart of the Sea,
:: Wilderness Hex Crawl – In the Heart of the Unknown,
:: Dungeon/network generator – In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous

Functional Entries in Random Tables | more scope but comes with more user load

Recently I been thinking about functional entries in random tables.

In my ‘In the Heart of Oz’ (a system neutral) sandbox, based in the land of Oz, I wanted to add some random tables but wanted these to “work hard” for the limited space available.

So, I wondered about replacing single entry random tables with functional entry random tables. For example instead of ‘sword’ you use ‘bladed weapon’ and let the user decide if it is a sword or an axe or a ‘bec de corbin’. 

This is a pretty trite example but of course you can take this further (see below).

I’m sure this idea/concept has happened in the past, but when I have done this (at least), it’s been more an unconscious design choice rather than a conscious design choice. I’d like to hold this idea up as a conscious design choice for the DM’s toolbox.

Benefit – gives a much bigger spectrum of outcomes

Downside – require the user to bring more of themselves to the table (which might be the very thing they are trying to avoid by using random tables!). 

Some might like the idea, but might displease others … I’m not the RPG police so please feel free to ignore this idea. 

– – – 

To see something I’m tinkering with this idea – Link: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1UjKpTc0yvn0A0LjBJiu4cRy-XuX_gqxp?usp=sharing

The idea is to do this on the fly (or pre-prepare some), but also source the table – throw this at players – Tell me what item you find based on these 3 constraints … etc

Below is an text only extract from the above linked PDF: 

Random Creature Builder

Roll once on each of the two tables below:

Base Creature

1                 Apex predator

2                 Large herbivore or domestic animal

3                 Monkey, ape or lemur

4                 Rodent or marsupial

5                 Amphibian or reptile

6                 Bird or dinosaur

7                 Insect or arachnid

8                 Crustacean or echinoderm

9                 Gastropod or cephalopod

10              Human(oid) – or you decide

Creatures are normally at least man-sized

Twist

1                 Roll on table above – hybrid of both e.g. a Human(oid)-crustacean

2                 Unusual locomotion: Fly, hover, burrow, crawl, creep, jump etc.

3                 Oversized/mutantous body part or extra parts – limbs, mouth, eyes etc.

4                 Unusual sized e.g. giant, long etc.

5                 Exotic colouring or display

6                 Made of artificial material

7                 Mushroom, vegetable creature, or made of natural material

8                 Roll on ‘Terrain descriptor’ table 

9                 Roll on this table twice – has both

10              Roll again on this and on the below table 

Special

1                 Offensive: looks, smell, charisma etc

2                 Insubstantial: ghostly, ethereal etc.

3                 Resembles man-made object, can mimic things, or is a doppelganger

4                 Spits fire, acid, ice, stones, spines, bile, eels, buttons, rainbows etc.

5                 Unusual strength or speed

6                 Contradictory property of a typical creature of the ‘Base’ creature class

7                 Teleport locally, or is transparent

8                 Ability to petrify – gaze, touch etc.

9                 Ability to cast magic or illusions

10              Roll on this table again – has both

– – – 

More info: 

In the Heart of (the Land of the Wizard of) Oz is a system-neutral procedural sandbox setting which draws inspiration from the books of L. Frank Baum and with artwork by the wonderful Nate Treme (Highland Paranormal Society)

In the Heart of Oz contains procedural Encounter, Terrain and Weather Engines for Wilderness Hex Crawling across the fairy-tale like land of Oz. There is also a procedural ‘dungeon’ to take on the Wicked Witch of the West in her Yellow Castle.

Preview image

Hex Flowers … what?
A Hex Flower is a bit like a random table, but with an inbuilt ‘memory’ (because the last turn affects the next outcome). Each time you enter a new HEX, you procedurally determine what is going on. 

Hex Flower procedural products you might be interested in
:: In the Heart of the Unknown –  procedural wilderness (Hex) exploration
:: In the Heart of the Sea – procedural High Seas exploration
:: In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous  – procedural ‘dungeon’ exploration
:: Carapace – adventure exploring a giant insect colony
:: Planar Compass 2 – procedurally explore the Astral Sea 

More on Hex Flower Theory
You can read more about Hex Flower Game Engines in my Hex Flower Cookbook

and on my Blog: https://goblinshenchman.wordpress.com/2018/10/25/2d6-hex-power-flower

Printing
This document can be conveniently printed using the ‘booklet’ option on printers that can print on both sides of the paper. Folding gives an A5 booklet.

Solo RPG idea | Sticky labels with QR codes

Recently I have been wondering if this idea might be fun – just a slight extension of an idea I had before.

Solo adventure kit

1. Sticky labels with some QR codes, the QR codes lead to pages that describe an encounter
2. Dungeon map, or page with lots of interconnected tunnels but no rooms

Play

Solo player peels some of the labels off the sticky sheet and adds them to the map page to create a random dungeon. This can be as you go, or beforehand. Hopefully, with this set up, the encounters will be surprising to the wouldbe DM-Solo-Player.

Perhaps in a journal type game, these QR codes lead to blank google pages where the solo player can make a record of what happens.

A more dungeon-y embodiment:

Solo players could build up a database of encounters/rooms. Want to help build a QR Living Dungeon, then please go to: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/2/folders/1alkSwiib2kAHhJdb2PAj3sRjBuJHTNav

But, to see what’s there already (or just want some free stuff to vibe off), here are the (first?) 20 random room encounters I made:

Get a better quality PWYW PDF version. Or, just want 20 unexpected rooms without the QR codes (20 Unexpected Rooms)

:O)

– – –

Me on DriveThru; at the moment I’m mainly pimping my procedural:
:: High Seas ‘Hex Crawl’ – In the Heart of the Sea,
:: Wilderness Hex Crawl – In the Heart of the Unknown,
:: Dungeon/network generator – In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous

Collaboration: ‘In the Heart of the Sea’ (+) ‘When Sea Is Calling’

I’ve collaborated with ATELIER CLANDESTIN who are blasting out great random table supplements.

We’ve brought together my ‘In the Heart of the Sea’ Hex Flowers with their ‘When Sea Is Calling’ – so this gives my one page ItHotS more depth.

Read more about the collaboration here: https://atelierclandestin.wixsite.com/home/post/announcement-when-sea-is-calling-extended-version  

Direct link – please check it out: 
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/397826/When-Sea-Is-Calling 

Background of Hex Flowers – what’s a Hex Flower anywho? A Hex Flower (HF) is like a random table, but with a memory.

Hex Flower Cookbook – where I discuss Hex Flower Game Engines and some background and possible uses

– – –

Me on DriveThru; at the moment I’m mainly pimping my procedural:
:: High Seas ‘Hex Crawl’ – In the Heart of the Sea,
:: Wilderness Hex Crawl – In the Heart of the Unknown,
:: Dungeon/network generator – In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous

Field Guide to Random Table Design in RPGs | Video walk through

Just a video walkthrough of my ‘Field Guide to Random Table Design in RPGs’ (which recently turned Copper Metal Best Seller on DriveThruRPG):

Background: 

I saw this post by the well-known blogger, podcaster and RPG great Judd Karlman.

It got me thinking about random table structures, and so I wrote this:

The idea here is to consider how to make/tweak random table structures to suit your RPG needs. It probably overeggs the pudding. However, if this might be of interest, please check it out.

Snap shot:

– – –

Me on DriveThru; at the moment I’m mainly pimping my procedural:
:: High Seas ‘Hex Crawl’ – In the Heart of the Sea,
:: Wilderness Hex Crawl – In the Heart of the Unknown,
:: Dungeon/network generator – In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous

Field Guide to Random Table Design in RPGs

I saw this post by the well-known blogger, podcaster and RPG great Judd Karlman.

It got me thinking about random table structures, and so I wrote this:

The idea here is to consider how to make/tweak random table structures to suit your RPG needs. It probably overeggs the pudding. However, if this might be of interest, please check it out.

Snap shot:

– – –

Me on DriveThru; at the moment I’m mainly pimping my procedural:
:: High Seas ‘Hex Crawl’ – In the Heart of the Sea,
:: Wilderness Hex Crawl – In the Heart of the Unknown,
:: Dungeon/network generator – In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous

Ramp, Flat Ramp, Hill & Lone Mountain Type Random Table Formats

I saw this post by the well-known blogger, podcaster and RPG great Judd Karlman.

It had a table type I had not seen (or at least noticed) before, a D6 (well D3 really) x 2D6 table (reproduced below with Judd’s permission – see link above to see more):

This table is like three 2D6 tables next to each other, so instead of being a peak (‘bell’) curve with a 2D6 probability structure, it sort of has a “ramp-like” probability structure:

1. Ramp Type; Dx × 2Dy (in this case D3 × 2D6)

This led me to think about related formats:

2. Flat-Topped Ramp Type; Dx × Dy+Dz (replacing the 2D6 with D4+D8 to flatten the ‘peak’ out):

3. Lonely-Mountain Type; 2Dx × 2Dy (in this case 2D6 on one axis and 2D6 on the other):

4. Rounded Hill Type; 3Dx × 3Dy (in this case 3D6 on one axis and 3D6 on the other):

Applications?
There are lots of ways these random table formats could be used, but of course it can be seen with the last two examples, even with just D6s the number of outcomes increase massively, and the edges will be very rare (in the Rounded Hill example a centre roll is 729 times more likely than a ‘corner’ roll and you have (theoretically) 256 possible options. But of course, you can band the results together a bit like Judd did with their example to reduce the outcomes. So, with reference to the heat map you could have 3 or so zones (red, white and blue etc.) equating to probable, rare and very rare outcomes etc.

Not got much more to say, just putting this out there as a possible tool, and I’m sure I’m not the first to think of these other examples, but I’ll post anyway!!

:O)

– – –

Me on DriveThru; at the moment I’m mainly pimping my procedural:
:: High Seas ‘Hex Crawl’ – In the Heart of the Sea,
:: Wilderness Hex Crawl – In the Heart of the Unknown,
:: Dungeon/network generator – In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous

DxDy dice mechanic | … e.g. D4D6

Math(s) warning: If you are a mathematician the words I use below may well be formally inaccurate, sorry!

Trad-game warning: I can imagine that rolling a die to see how many dice you roll will be an unwelcome idea in some circles – it’s OK, I’m not the D&D police, please feel free to ignore this idea.

I stumbled onto this recently (it may be well known to others) and hopefully I’m not just inadvertently regurgitating something I’ve read elsewhere.

If for example you roll D6D6s (i.e. you roll a D6 to see how many D6s you are going to roll and sum) you get a weird probability profile that has a weird leading spike:

For some strange reason it reminds me of a sleeping triceratops …

It certainly looks nothing like a standard 6D6 roll (flatter and pushed leftwards as well as having the leading spike):

The ‘at least’ number is almost linear for most of the graph as compared to 6D6:

Here’s the idea again, but where some other combinations have been done (again weird leading spike):

Here’s a mismatched pair  D4D10 and D10D4 (spike more pronounced when fewer dice are in the mix – perhaps not too unexpected):

Application in gaming?  I’ve got nothing! But …  perhaps one day it might find a place!

You’d need a probability structure that runs from 1 to the end number, has a leading spike, a flattish mid-section and then tails off as you approach the highest numbers.

OK – with that in mind and shooting from the hip here as I’m typing this up – a new way to roll stats (where we invert the thing to favour high not low numbers):

So compared to 4D6 drop the lowest, 19-D2D8 is more likely to give 17s and 18s.

Here it is again but vs 3D6:

Here’s also 19-D3D5 (no 3’s and the chance of a 14 to 18 is much higher than 4D6 drop the lowest):

I guess I’m not seriously advancing this as a replacement mechanic for rolling stats, but that said, statistically it’s not completely ludicrous (unless I’ve made a mistake) …

Perhaps you can think of a better use case?
No? OK, not to worry!

:O\

– – –

Me on DriveThru; at the moment I’m mainly pimping my procedural:
:: High Seas ‘Hex Crawl’ – In the Heart of the Sea,
:: Wilderness Hex Crawl – In the Heart of the Unknown,
:: Dungeon/network generator – In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous

Portuguese Translation – Hex Flower Cookbook

I’m extremely grateful to Tito B.A. for translating my ‘Hex Flower Cookbook’ (Manual do “Hex Flower”) into Portuguese and so making it more accessible to more gamers!

Thank you Tito!!

Please check out Tito’s blog (https://titorpg.wordpress.com) and their DriveThruRPG page (https://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse/pub/13161/Tito-BA).  Tito is arguably best known for his excellent ‘Sacrebleu!’ island setting with goblins equipped with WW1 weaponry as reviewed on the Fear of a Black Dragon Podcast!

Background – what’s a Hex Flower anywho? A Hex Flower (HF) is like a random table, but with a memory.

Hex Flower Cookbook – where I discuss Hex Flower Game Engines and some background and possible uses

– – –

Me on DriveThruRPG

Two new Hex Flowers | Forest & Death Star attack

This is just a quick Hex Flower update.

:: In the Heart of the Eternal Forest  – procedurally explore an Eternal forest

:: Attack on the Death Star – Procedural attack on the Death Moon, Planet or Star – procedurally attack the Empire/s evil planet sized weapon 

 

Background – what’s a Hex Flower anywho? A Hex Flower (HF) is like a random table, but with a memory.

Hex Flower Cookbook – where I discuss Hex Flower Game Engines and some background and possible uses

– – –

Me on DriveThru; at the moment I’m mainly pimping my procedural:
:: High Seas ‘Hex Crawl’ – In the Heart of the Sea,
:: Wilderness Hex Crawl – In the Heart of the Unknown,
:: Dungeon/network generator – In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous

In the Heart of Oz | Ukraine Code

I can’t do a lot to help Ukraine, but here’s a promo code for my ‘In the Heart of Oz’.
The code expires at the end of this month. 

Link: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/browse.php?discount=991b9d46b9

I will donate all money to help Ukrainian resist Putin.  
I’ll will also personally match the amount donated.

– – – 

More info: 

In the Heart of (the Land of the Wizard of) Oz is a system-neutral procedural sandbox setting which draws inspiration from the books of L. Frank Baum and with artwork by the wonderful Nate Treme (Highland Paranormal Society)

In the Heart of Oz contains procedural Encounter, Terrain and Weather Engines for Wilderness Hex Crawling across the fairy-tale like land of Oz. There is also a procedural ‘dungeon’ to take on the Wicked Witch of the West in her Yellow Castle.

Preview image

Hex Flowers … what?
A Hex Flower is a bit like a random table, but with an inbuilt ‘memory’ (because the last turn affects the next outcome). Each time you enter a new HEX, you procedurally determine what is going on. 

Hex Flower procedural products you might be interested in
:: In the Heart of the Unknown –  procedural wilderness (Hex) exploration
:: In the Heart of the Sea – procedural High Seas exploration
:: In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous  – procedural ‘dungeon’ exploration
:: Carapace – adventure exploring a giant insect colony
:: Planar Compass 2 – procedurally explore the Astral Sea 

More on Hex Flower Theory
You can read more about Hex Flower Game Engines in my Hex Flower Cookbook

and on my Blog: https://goblinshenchman.wordpress.com/2018/10/25/2d6-hex-power-flower

Printing
This document can be conveniently printed using the ‘booklet’ option on printers that can print on both sides of the paper. Folding gives an A5 booklet.

Wolfram’s 4 colour theorem | Relationship mapping?

I was listening to Ray Otus’s podcast (which I like). He was talking about Wolfram’s Four colour theorem, which states (perhaps paraphrased as):

“Any map in a plane can be colored using four-colors in such a way that regions sharing a common boundary (other than a single point) do not share the same color”

I wondered if this could be used to map out relationships where each colour represents a certain intensity in that relationship from high to low. The idea being to design a relationship map that is random, but with some “design” to it.

Let’s try it out …

Example 1 – D&D starting characters – using Wolfram’s Four colour theorem

Maybe this design concept could be applied to D&D stats, where certain stats tend to go together … :

Rules:

1. Populate a 7 hex Hex Flower with each stat and one for wealth, so STR, INT, WIS, DEX, CON, CHAR & wealth
2. Using up to 4 pencils colour/outline the Hexes using Wolfram’s Four colour theorem, starting from the middle
3. Randomly assign each colour a different value from 1 to 4 using a D4 where: 

1 = low (6-9),
2 = medium-low (9-12),
3= medium-high (12-15)
4 = high (15-18):

Let’s try two examples:

Step 0 – Blank Hex Flower

Step 1 – populate the Hex Flower with the 6 stats and wealth:

Step 2 – colour according to Wolfram’s Four colour theorem (in this case using all 4 colours)

Step 3 – randomly assign each colour a different value from 1 to 4:

Red                     2  (- ) e.g. 5 days’ living wage 
Orange              4 (++) i.e. 15-18
Green                1 (- -) i.e. 6-9
Blue                   3 (+) i.e. 12-15

So the result is:

So the new PC is strong and tough (15-18), quite wise and personable (12-15), clumsy and dumb (6-9) and has modest wealth. So perhaps an fighter then from a poor background.

Let’s try it again (using the same stat placement), but with fewer colours more of a-go-for-broke min-max arrangement) and re-rolling:

Red                     3 (+) e.g. 3 months’ living wage
Orange              1 (- -) i.e. 6-9
Blue                   4 (++) i.e. 15-19
(no green)

            

So the new PC is very smart, wise, personable (15-18), but very weak, fragile and clumsy (6-9). But quite wealthy. Hrmmm, perhaps a Magic-user then for an affluent family.  

If this sort of min-max 3-colour-option option does not appeal, then you could get rid of the central hex (and get rid of wealth slot) and insist that all four colours are used.

Example 2 – Random NPC’s personality

Rules:

1. Populate a 7 hex Hex Flower with a personality trait, one from each group (you can make your own traits)
2. Using up to 4 pencils colour/outline the Hexes using Wolfram’s Four colour theorem, starting from the middle
3. Randomly assign each colour a different value from 1 to 4 using a D4 where:

1 = low (- -)
2 = medium-low (-)
3= medium-high (+)
4 = high (+ +)

7 NPC Traits:

1. wealth, resources, influence
2. status, reputation, level
3. cynical, duplicity, prejudice
4. Personable, warmth, empathic
5. wit, intelligent, charming
6. greed, selfish, evil
7. desperate, needs, desire

Let try two examples:

Step 0 – Blank Hex Flower

Step 1 – populate the Hex Flower with the 7 traits:

Step 2 – colour according to Wolfram’s Four colour theorem (in this case using all 4 colours)

Step 3 – randomly assign each colour a different value from 1 to 4:

Red                     4  (++)
Orange              3 (+)
Green                1 (- -)
Blue                   2 (-)

So the result is:

So, they really desire something from the PCs, they are quite wealthy and greedy, they are not especially smart or personable, they are of low social status but at least not very treacherous.  A quest giver, perhaps a merchant, who desperately wants something to (further) enrich themselves and is happy to pay the PCs to get it. 

What happens if we had coloured the hex’s differently, using just 3 colours e.g.:

 

Now they would have some desire to get something from the PCs, they would be smart, greedy and treacherous with no money, status and quite cold. Doesn’t sound like a nice chap. Perhaps a street thief full of animal cunning and wants the PCs’ coin. 

Again, three colours gives a more polarized outcome. 

Some initial conclusions – I think you can try and set this up so coloured pairs go together, perhaps wealth & status, greed & duplicity and wit & warmth.

That said, I wonder if we should scrap the middle hex and insist that 4 colours must be used to introduce less homogeneity. Perhaps.  

Is this useful (?)– not sure, just brainstorming here. Perhaps if you planning a session and want some inspiration about an NPC, or have a bunch of templates ready to pull out of a hat??

More
Clearly, these are not just the two ways this idea could be used. 

– – –

Me on DriveThruRPG

Thinking outside the Hex | ‘Hex Flower’ theory stuff

As many people following this blog will know, I’ve been making Hex Flowers with a navigation mechanic based on summing 2D6 (corresponding % probabilities shown on the right side) i.e.:

This ‘Navigation Hex’ being (part of) the rules for moving around a Hex Flower like this one:

I had a discussion with Jake Eldritch  (I will try and find the link) online about this idea, and concluded that 2D6 with a ‘disadvantage’ mechanic (i.e. roll 2 x D6 and take the lowest roll, e.g. a roll of 3 and 5 gives a 3 as the result) could give you this kind of ‘ Navigation Hex’ with fewer numbers around the edge:

Rather amazingly (to me anyway), it appears to have the same probability structure as above when I sum 2D6. You could argue that the ‘maths’ is simpler with the ‘disadvantage’ method, although not massively so. Here’s the ‘Anydice’ stats: 

But … recently it did make me wonder about other shapes, like an octagonal array with an octagonal ‘Navigation Oct’ or square array with a ‘Navigation Square?’ (or larger tiling shapes) – where the ‘disadvantage’ method might be simpler and more intuitive than summing two polygonal dice.

Here’s an example of an octagonal ‘flower’ with an octagonal “Navigation Hex”:

Summing 2D8 would give 16 at the top of the ‘Navigation Oct’,  then working clockwise around the ‘Navigation Oct’: 2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9, 10-11, 12-13 and 14-15. That’s surely got to be harder than using the ‘disadvantage’ mechanic shown above. And, unless I’ve made an error gives the same probability structure.  

Just ‘noodling’ about the associated edge rules with the coloured arrows. Of course an ‘advantage’ mechanic could be used (instead of a disadvantage mechanic) to invert the probability structure.

For good form sake, here’s a 16 grid ‘flower’ using a 2D4 with a disadvantage mechanic (if you like a tip on your ‘flower’, perhaps use diamonds not squares):

… or even a square grid but with 8 possible directions of travel (including diagonals):

This post is more theoretical than anything, but does make using other shapes (other  than hexagons) to make flowers more accessible (I think). I have not worked out how strong the probability bias is (yet) for the octagonal and square “Navigation Hexes”, but intuition tells me, the more faces there are the less severe the probability bias.

Ok, that’s it.

Background

To read up of Hex Flowers (there may be a pop quiz) please see my Hex Flower Cookbook where I discuss Hex Flower Game Engines and some background and possible uses 

– – –

Me on DriveThruRPG

Hex Ed | Hex Flower online talk

Are you Hex Curious?

Is your poly gone?

Uncertain if hexagons are the bestygons?

Want to get off-the-grid but don’t know how?

Told that Hex with Flowers is unnatural?

Do you have questions about Hex Flowers but where too scared to ask ??

I’m giving a online talk on Sunday 30 January at 8pm (UK time) at BSer Con 2022 (https://tabletop.events/conventions/bs-er-con-2022) about Hex Flower design. Most of the gaming events at the con are now booked out, but there are still places for some online seminars including mine. I can’t promise you’ll get your 5 bucks worth, but you can turn up and see …  

Money raised goes to running the con and Leukemia Lymphoma Society.

Be there or be square …. 

Background

To read up of Hex Flowers (there may be a pop quiz) please see my Hex Flower Cookbook where I discuss Hex Flower Game Engines and some background and possible uses 

– – –

Me on DriveThruRPG

Analogue ‘Fog of War’ hack … | Jigsaw over map

Place an upside-down jigsaw over the map and remove the pieces as necessary to reveal the map:

That’s it

EDIT: Reddit feedback (i) number the backs of the jigsaw pieces for easy re-assembly;
(ii) don’t use this idea if you don’t like it

– – –

Me on DriveThruRPG

In the Heart of Oz | Hex Flower based system-neutral procedural sandbox setting

In the Heart of (the Land of the Wizard of) Oz is a system-neutral procedural sandbox setting which draws inspiration from the books of L. Frank Baum and with artwork by the wonderful Nate Treme (Highland Paranormal Society)

In the Heart of Oz contains procedural Encounter, Terrain and Weather Engines for Wilderness Hex Crawling across the fairy-tale like land of Oz. There is also a procedural ‘dungeon’ to take on the Wicked Witch of the West in her Yellow Castle.

Download PDF

Preview image

Hex Flowers … what?
A Hex Flower is a bit like a random table, but with an inbuilt ‘memory’ (because the last turn affects the next outcome). Each time you enter a new HEX, you procedurally determine what is going on. 

Hex Flower procedural products you might be interested in
:: In the Heart of the Unknown –  procedural wilderness (Hex) exploration
:: In the Heart of the Sea – procedural High Seas exploration
:: In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous  – procedural ‘dungeon’ exploration
:: Carapace – adventure exploring a giant insect colony
:: Planar Compass 2 – procedurally explore the Astral Sea 

More on Hex Flower Theory
You can read more about Hex Flower Game Engines in my Hex Flower Cookbook

and on my Blog: https://goblinshenchman.wordpress.com/2018/10/25/2d6-hex-power-flower

Printing
This document can be conveniently printed using the ‘booklet’ option on printers that can print on both sides of the paper. Folding gives an A5 booklet.

Making Hex Flower Game Engines? Tell me about them?

I’m always interested to see what people are doing with Hex Flowers (HF).

Please tell me what you’re up to!
:O)

Recently the blogger from Tev’s Next Idea  showed me this:

:: WAmazon

Which is a neat idea about exploring a post-apocalyptic warehouse “manned” by killer robots. I think the idea is to make the full version (with an interesting depletion mechanic) available on DriveThru.

:: Map

And, on the Danger is Real blog, there is a program that uses In the ‘Heart of the Unknown’ to generate a terrain map (cool):

:: Limited access zones

On Redditor ‘iceandstorm’ showed me this neat idea where only parts of a(n extended) HF become available seasonally (I might try something like this at some point with a standard HF but with an extra 6 hexes, 3 on the upper left and 3 on the lower right ‘corners’ of the HF – maybe accessible when you have the magic key etc … dunno yet):

:: Monopoly

Speaking of new ways, I like my ‘non-return mechanic’ in my Monopoly HF:

The idea is you cannot simply go backwards in one turn. I had an idea for using this kind of idea for the start flooding sequence in Deep Carbon Observatory.

Background – what’s a Hex Flower anywho? A Hex Flower (HF) is like a random table, but with a memory.

Hex Flower Cookbook – where I discuss Hex Flower Game Engines and some background and possible uses

– – –

Me on DriveThru; at the moment I’m mainly pimping my procedural:
:: Weather generator – Weather Hex Flower
:: High Seas ‘Hex Crawl’ – In the Heart of the Sea,
:: Wilderness Hex Crawl – In the Heart of the Unknown,
:: Dungeon/network generator – In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous

D6(6)6 table | … D66 table with probability gradient

Content warning: If you are a mathematician the words I use below are bound to be formally inaccurate, sorry!

Origins:
I saw this post by Sofinho, which I thought was interesting (you should check it out). To cut a long story short, it led me here:

A D66 table with a probability gradient:

So the chance of rolling 1,1 is 0.5% and the chance of rolling 1,6 is 6.9%.

D6(6)6 Rules

• Roll 3D6
• Keep the highest & lowest rolls to make a D66 style dice
• Order these two dice how you like; or if that bothers you (perhaps you worry about an unconscious bias), order the two dice low to high if the removed middle roll is odd, else the other way round

Examples

• 6,5,1 becomes –> 1, 6
• 2,5,2 becomes –> 5,2
• 4,2,3 becomes –> 2,4

Below is the same table as above, but normalized so the lowest value is 1:

So rolling a 1,6 is 15 times more likely than rolling a 1,1.

Below is basically the same as above but where each cell is given with reference to % above/below a (standard homogeneous) D66 table, which is about 2.8% per cell:

So cell 1,1 is 2.3% lower in probability than if this was  a standard D66 cell.

Conclusions

• The diagonal ‘spine’ is disfavoured
• The top right and bottom left directions are more favoured (so, a 1,6 or 6,1 roll is 15 times more likely than any double)
• For probability, moving up/down gives the same result as moving right/left (so moving downward from 1,1 to 1,6 is the same as moving left to right from 1,1 to 6,1.
• Moving diagonally does not change the % odds, so rolling a  1,1 is the same % as rolling a 2,2 or 3,3 etc.

With this probability structure understood, you can create D66 random tables that are less homogeneous.

– – –

>> This is where you should stop reading, as I go (more) tangential below << 

• For now if you ignore half the table (in this case ignoring the results above the diagonal spine) there appears to be a series of tiers (e.g. 1,1 to 1,6; 2,2 to 2,6; 3,3 to 3,6 etc.):

These tiers are not equal in size, each starts with a low % and increases as you move along the tier away from the diagonal spine. So the tier 1,1 to 1,6 is bigger than the tier 3,3 to 3,6 – I suppose there are also diagonal tiers, again not of equal size but in that case each step in the tier has the same %.

These sort of tiers made we wonder – can we use this method to make a series of tiered random tables?

City encounter/reaction tables
Examples are always best, so I’m going to consider a way this method could be used to generate random reaction encounters in a D&D type city.

In this case, I’m going to link the tiers to social class in the city, using this colour code:

So the above tiers would be:

Again, for now I’m only considering the lower half of the table (so not the greyed out area).

In this case the beggars/riffraff/lowest class tier interact most often with the PCs (21.3% of the time, i.e. whenever the first roll is a 1), whereas nobles rarely interact with the PCs i.e. only on a roll of 6,6 (0.5% of the time).

As for reactions, the nobles  only have 1 reaction state, which in this case is probably indifference (at best).

However, the beggars/riffraff tier have 6 reactions states i.e. 1,1 (0.5% of the 21.3%) to 1,6 (6.9% of the 21.3%).  So while there are 6 reaction states, 1,6 is the most probable reaction and so this should be the most common reaction state (e.g. asking for money) and 1,1, should be quite unusual (e.g. giving the PCs a gift or perhaps attacking them).

So perhaps the above structure makes sense in a dodgy market bazaar area (or slums), where beggars/riffraff are going to be out and about, and where other people including nobles might be out looking for something unusual/special (but on their guard, i.e. with 1 reaction state).

If you inverted the social structure (so the nobles have the 6 reaction states and are common), perhaps this makes sense in an upmarket retail area (or in the royal court) , where beggars/riffraff are going to be circumspect. Perhaps in the royal court the single riffraff state is a person intent on the redistribution of wealth.

Now if we bring in the rest of the table we blanked off earlier, you get the same tiers but in this case they also move left to right not just up/down. Perhaps the portion above the diagonal spine could be negative reaction states and below the diagonal spine could be positive reactions states e.g.:

42%                  28.2%              17%                 8.8%                   3.2%              0.5%

OK, looking at this – that’s a lot of beggars/riffraff approaching the PCS in this city area, so perhaps swap town’s person for either beggars or for the merchants … ? That said, perhaps town’s folk are the decent kind of folk that stays well away from disreputable freebooters like the PCs.

Another option is to keep the greyed off area as a “no significant encounter” option.

Other uses …
The above is the first idea that sprang to mind. There must be other uses – tiers/kinds of random wilderness encounters,  etc … or (probably for the best) just ignore tiers and populate the D6(6)6 table in a manner that takes account of where there probabilities are high/low.

I’m still not the RPG police …
If you don’t like this idea (and I’m just thinking this through) you don’t have to use it …

– – –

Me on DriveThru; at the moment I’m mainly pimping my procedural:
:: High Seas ‘Hex Crawl’ – In the Heart of the Sea,
:: Wilderness Hex Crawl – In the Heart of the Unknown,
:: Dungeon/network generator – In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous

Story Synth | making online customizable Hex Flowers

If you are interested in Hex Flower design, this neat on-line tool to make customizable Hex Flowers may be of interest to you:

 

Check it out.

Background – what’s a Hex Flower anywho? A Hex Flower (HF) is like a random table, but with a memory.

Hex Flower Cookbook – where I discuss Hex Flower Game Engines and some background and possible uses

– – –

Me on DriveThru; at the moment I’m mainly pimping my procedural:
:: High Seas ‘Hex Crawl’ – In the Heart of the Sea,
:: Wilderness Hex Crawl – In the Heart of the Unknown,
:: Dungeon/network generator – In the Heart of the Delve & Dangerous