Hail and well met Explorers!
As we near the end of 2023, and the beginning of our journey in the strange world of Folly, I thought it important to provide some more details about the system I’ll be using as well as my intended publishing plan for the project. So let’s jump in.
The System
Explore24 will be using my own OSR-inspired Folly. The game has undergone a plethora of alterations and changes since its inception over a year and a half ago. I have always enjoyed survival-crafting games like Valheim, Minecraft, Raft, the Long Dark, and others. I remember the excitement I had when I discovered the realism mods for Skyrim way back in the bright years of the late 2010s.
When I began seriously contemplating TTRPG design, Folly was my first concept. But I wasn’t capable of crafting a functioning crafting and survival TTRPG just then. My only experience with tabletop games was Ironsworn and 5e. In the intervening time, I’ve consumed dozens of TTRPGs from indie games to the OSR. It was there that I discovered what I needed to make Folly work.
It is not an OSR game per se. There is a bit more survivability (but not much!), and I make use of a 2d6+mod resolution system with target numbers (called Check Targets, or CTs). You roll for almost everything (I like dice, and rolling them most of all, what can I say?). Folly is most similar to OSR games in its Advancement system. Treasure as Experience Points (xp) is the quickest way to advance levels in Folly. It is not, however, the only way. I’m all about rewarding players (in this case myself) for successfully navigating the world, engaging with it and its ornery denizens. Adventurers gain xp for defeating foes, exploring new Areas, finding Points of Interest, foraging (and also hunting, fishing, and trapping), harvesting components, and crafting items.
All that said, Folly is still an ever-developing game that I’m still actively testing before releasing a playtest version. Perhaps after a few weeks of Explore24, I’ll have enough confidence in the game to put it on my itch page.
Playing the Game
I will be beginning Explore24 with two Adventuring PCs. They haven’t been built yet, and I’ll have a post about the PCs on my blog and include a link to their character sheets in the first weekly Explore24 newsletter.
In Folly, Adventurers have three Skills: Vigor, Finesse, and Acumen. These roughly coincide with the familiar Strength and Constitution, Dexterity and Charisma, and Intelligence and Wisdom respectively. At character creation, you have 2 Skill Points to apply to these three Skills. You can spread them out, or dump them into one Skill. My current playtest PC, Len, has a +1 Vigor, and a +2 Finesse (I’ll explain that extra Finesse point momentarily). She’s an explorer and hunter and is currently following a treasure map west of her coastal village.
Adventurers also select one of three Kits at the beginning of the game. The Stalwart kit focuses on combat and provides an automatic +1 Vigor. Take the Expert kit if you want to play the roguish jack-of-all trades, and gain an automatic +1 Finesse (my PC Len took the Expert kit). Finally, there’s the Adept kit. Adepts are the magic-users of Folly. They gain access to a Rune Pouch and a Basic Rune at the beginning of their careers. Rune-casting is Folly’s version of magic. I’m still expanding on the magic system but the basics work, at least.
Once you’ve picked a kit and loaded up your inventory with the kit’s gear, you’re ready to start your exploration in Folly. As I mentioned in a previous post, Wilderness Exploration is the central component to the game. As such, there’s a very clear game-play loop:
Determine Climate (this sets the Travel Check Target)
Determine Weather (this modifies the Travel Check Target)
Roll the Travel Check (roll 2D6 + FIN or 2D6 + ACU vs the Climate CT)
Check for Point of Interest (roll D6: on a 1-3 you find a POI; this can be modified by weather)
Check for Wandering Encounter (roll D6: on a 1-2 an encounter is indicated; this can be modified by weather).
Camp (consume a ration. If in the open, move to 7.)
Night Encounter (roll D6: on a 1, your rest is interrupted.)
Publishing Plan
I plan to play each day on Substack Notes as I did with my Kal-Arath adventure. At the end of each week, I’ll compile all seven days of exploration into a post on my blog and post it at 10am EST on Tuesdays. I’ll share links to that in Notes, as well as on my Instagram, Threads, and (maybe, we’ll see) Twitter. Every two weeks, I’ll send out a Newsletter containing links to each week’s post (after the first month, I’ll begin including a Table of Contents both in the Newsletter and at the end of each Weekly update).
Thank You
Thank you to all who have subscribed since I started here a few weeks ago. You are all amazing. A special thank you to
and for the inspiration to use Notes for daily posts. And especially to Castle Grief for Kal-Arath, to which Folly owes a great debt.The League of Incredible Soloists
For over a year now, I’ve been a part of an amazing group of solo role-players and game designers we’ve affectionately called the League of Incredible Soloists. These folks see most of my game design first and always provide epic feedback. Be sure to check out their links!
Errant Adventures by Steve Morrison
Croaker's RPG Corner by Croaker
Until we meet again upon the Road,
Eric
The Road goes ever on and on,
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can...
-JRR Tolkien