#apawthecaria
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APAWTHECARIA by Stout Stoat Press
some of the illustrations I contributed to my friends’ solo-journaling game, Apawthecaria. you can pre-order the Ist printing now for fullfillment in June!
#art#animal#apawthecaria#ttrpg#system#game#woodland#creatures#mouse#pigeon#polecat#hedgehog#lizard#poultice#healer#apothecary#beasts#stout stoat#illustration
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Discovered this solo journaling RPG called Apawthecaria (also available in PDF format) where you play as a small woodland creature, and travel and help remedy any ailments you come across, and I am loving it so far!
It's a very relaxing game where you can easily pick up and put down anytime. The journaling prompts are broad enough that it allows you to write about the events however you want. My favourite part is coming up with a recipe after gathering the ingredients for the cure haha
If you're interested but don't want to write traditionally, I've seen people play by just typing their notes up in a word doc! I'm just using this as another outlet to doodle and use up my fountain pen inks 😋
#apawthecaria#journaling rpg#solo rpg#rpg#journaling#fountain pens#doodles#sketches#art#watercolor#journals#kt journals#kt draws
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Apawthecaria character, she's on a caravan with three other beasts <3
He is a gray squirrel, which judging by like every other country in Europe (mine included </3) means he is an invasive species. Sadge.
But they're a good poulticier though!!!
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a simple ref for my character Effie! she’s a lovely little slow worm and I play her in the solo RPG Apawthecaria 🌿 she’s a fearful old lady and travels across the vast forest to cure sick and injured animals :)
#apawthecaria#rpg#solo rpg#oc#reptile#slow worm#Effie#i really really recommend apawthecaria it's currently my fav solo rpg!#i'll draw show her companion too one day but he doesn't have a solid design yet#cw snakes#not actually a snake but just in case!#jenecoart
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Foraging for apples.
(from Apawthecaria, drawn by Brian Tyrrell)
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A little drawing I drew for Stout Stoat Press's new RPG book Apawthecaria, which I think is out soon and available to preorder through their website. I got to look at lots of pictures of toads for this, a dream come true 🐸🍓
#illustration#apawthecaria#toad#mouse#anine boesenberg#oh to be a little mouse apprentice#strawberries
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Illustratrions for Stout Stoat's Apawthecaria.
These were great fun to work on, check out Stout Stoat Press' webiste if you'd like to give the game a go!
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motherly merchant, mir
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Here's my character for a DnD-esc game! It's called Apawthecaria and I'm really enjoying it so far :)
Poor Chester is not getting any good luck- I haven't even finished my first journey and he's already lost some of the starting equipment twice in a row
#he's only a poultice pounder because of obligation he feels towards his dead friend#plus pygmy shrews only live for about a year so he's basically going to spend the rest of his life doing work he never planned on doing#eurasian pygmy shrew#apawthecaria#ocs#art
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My first character in Apawthecaria.
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Some illustrations I did for the amazing Stout Stoat Press’s Apawthecaria book! It’s a GORGEOUS chunky solo-journaling RPG book full of beautiful art - you should get it if you’re into that kinda thing! I had so much fun doing these.
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It would be awesome if you could recommend some solo ttrpgs! I've been getting into them a lot lately and want to know more of what's out there. Especially journalling ones, as I enjoy creative writing. So far I've looked into (and will probably buy soon) Firelights, Apawthecaria, and Fox Curio's Floating Bookshop.
Also, I love this blog a ton. Already there have been some awesome games I've learned about from you, including the one you're currently working on. Excited to give it a try sometime! Keep being amazing 💜.
Theme: Solo Journalling Games
Thank you so much for your kind words! I'm certainly excited to run Protect the Child for folks, play-testing it so far has been really fun!
As for your ask, solo games and journalling go hand in hand. These next few games are just a sampling of what I've added recently to my Solo Games folder on Itch.
Cats Know Things, by Mushroom Witch Games.
CATS KNOW THINGS is a light-hearted game meant to tell a humorous story of intrigue, all while pretending to be a very nosy cat.
But you are no ordinary cat.
You are a very special feline who, through some magic you cannot explain, can communicate with your human, an individual who wishes to make their mark in society by any means necessary. The two of you decide to start a society page, (a very fancy type of tabloid newspaper dedicated to a particular location) revealing the glitz, glamour, and inner turmoil of the town’s most notable individuals.
Use a d6 and a d10 to generate numbers, and sneak into places to listen into secret or private conversations. Then bring this news to your human companion, so that they may relay this gossip in the local society page. You need to find 6-8 scintillating stories before the week is up, so that your human has enough to print.
If you want a game full of scandal and cute furry little rumour-mongers, this might be the game for you!
Lingering, by Meghan Cross.
The last thing you remember, you were dying.
Now, breath fills your lungs once more and your eyes open, slowly shifting side to side as you attempt to regain your bearings. You are alive. But you are…changed. Your human form is gone, and in its place is one that is different, foreign, animal…
In Lingering, you play as a person who has died, only to find yourself alive again in an animal form, unable to move on to your eternal rest until you settle business left unsettled from your life.
Throughout the course of a game, you will make several attempts to communicate with a chosen human, hoping to convey a message to them so they can assist you and help you move on once and for all.
This game uses a deck of cards and some guiding adjectives to determine how your attempts at communication will go. Over eight rounds, you’ll flip cards while guessing as to whether each card will be higher or lower than the previous one, and a successful guess means a successful interaction. The details of those attempts are what you’ll be journalling, and Lingering provides a number of questions that you might try to answer with each attempt.
This game takes place over eight rounds, so it’s excellent if you want a short, contained game. It also has a two-player option if you want to try this game out with a loved one.
Dragon Dowser, by HatchlingDM.
Dragon Dowser is a solo journaling RPG using the Carta SRD by Peach Garden Games. You play a mysterious character known as a 'Dowser'. Your aim is to locate abandoned dragon eggs and return them to your Sanctuary. If you succeed before expending your resources, the hatchling you rescue will be reared to change the kingdom forever!
This is a lovingly crafted game that uses card suits to represent four different kinds of ways your character will be tested, as they interact with different cultures, explore new landscapes, and dea with various conflicts, both human and nature-made.
You’ll travel across a grid of cards that provide you with journaling prompts as you travel. You’ll expend resources to overcome obstacles, looking for a dragon egg, represented by an Ace! Once you return this egg to a sanctuary, you’ll journal about your experience of raising the hatchling. Based on the games you’ve mentioned so far, I think Dragon Dowser is right up your alley.
EDEN, by blasez-faire.
You are Judaiah Clark, the Head Botanical Researcher at the Southern Sector of Eden. You are here for exactly 10 days, and were a last minute choice after the sudden disappearance of ■■■■■■ ■■■■■, the last person to hold this position. You are not here for work. Investigate.
EDEN is a single-page game that takes place over the course of 10 in-game days, with two questions that you will have to answer in your journal for every day. You are expected to write up a report with detailed notes, so much of the extrapolation taken from each pair of questions is going to come from your own imagination. To help with this you might want to come up with names for other characters, draw a map of the Southern Sector, or go into detail about the plants that this research station grows.
One thing is for sure - this is going to be a horror story. If you like games that give you a lot of room to stretch your creative wings, and you also like writing terrible endings for your characters, you might like this game.
Black Mountain Numbers Station, by Simon de Vet.
You wake one morning to the sound of a voice on the radio reading a series of numbers. On impulse, you jot them down. These numbers will become your life.
Black Mountain Numbers Station is a one-page, solo-journaling game about a mysterious broadcast, and about finding patterns in randomness. Using a unique dice mechanic to prompt you to describe your journey, you will tell a short story of obsession, frustration, and discovery.
This game is uses a 6x6 grid with boxes that you’ll need to fill when you roll a pair of dice. You’ll trigger evens when you roll doubles or find a certain pattern on the grid as you fill it, and in both of these cases, you’ll write special journal entries. The game ends when you fill your Frustration track, which symbolizes listening for too long without learning anything new. What exactly you learn, however, is up to you.
Bound, by K Ramstack.
Bound is a single player setting agnostic game about the connection between two people as they travel to a destination through the destruction of the world on a journey they will most likely not complete.
You will create two characters, their relationship to one another, the destruction that haunts them, and the motive for them to move forward.
During the game, you will be asked to write scenes in first person, switching perspectives between characters, and using their personality traits and subjective conceptualizations of each other to answer prompts.
Bound has a single and two-player version, and uses two decks of playing cards, one for each character. Each card will relate to a prompt on the prompt table, but only the highest ranked prompt will be answered. Each prompt will ask a question about the relationship, and how it changes.
If you want a deeply emotional game with a beautiful layout and lovely art, this is the game for you.
The Narrator Paradox, by psychound.
The Narrator Paradox is a one page solo-narrating game where you try to tell a story … if your protagonist will let you. In it, you determine the five acts of your story based on an oracle, then make rolls for your plot beats to see if you can wrangle your protagonist into the prescribed narrative. If you can't, they defy you and take the story into their own hands. Wrestle the story into shape against a rebellious hero, or lose them forever and have to finish the story without them in it.
Using the Major Arcana of a tarot deck, two six-sided dice and a coin, The Narrator Paradox has a number of different ways that you’ll try to keep your story on track. However, with so much randomness, your protagonist is sure to have a mind of their own. This feels very much in tune with how many writers talk about their characters as if those characters have their own desires, so if you’ve ever related to that you might enjoy this game.
Also Check Out...
My Solo Games tag! I use this tag for every recommendation post specifically for solo games.
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So you're looking for a system other than D&D...
Have you tried solo RPGs? Because it's not just "how can I play D&D alone" there's a whole world of cool stuff out there….And I want to tell you about it.
(I'm quite sick today so please forgive any incoherence or typos.)
First off, it's totally fine if you're more of a party person over a solo person. I just know a lot of people aren't aware of solo games, how they work, or the breadth of diversity you find among them.
If you ask about solo games, the first one mentioned is almost always Ironsworn. It's freeeee and comes with a lot of resources. The PDF is over 200 pages, so I understand if you don't want to dive in with Ironsworn quite yet.
Ironsworn has a large community, including support for Foundry and Roll20, along with many derivative works. It offers a gritty default fantasy setting, but encourages you to ignore that if you prefer another world… maybe one from another RPG you enjoy the lore from…?
BUT maybe you want something that isn't as much of a commitment (and maybe a little sad)?
Many Wretched and Alone games use a tumbling block tower to simulate a random ticking clock. It might represent your failing mental health, the barricade crumbling, the ship sinking…
One of the creators of the system has a great thread highlighting their favorite games. Just search Wretched an Alone on Itch.io to find even more.
And if you don't want to go buy a Jenga tower, there are some great random simulators out there. I've been able to play W&A games on road trips, using a deck simulator, a dice simulator, and a tumbling tower simulator. Here's tower replacement I like. It replicates the odds of a tumbling tower falling without being too complicated.
Carta is another cool system where you use a standard deck of playing cards to create a map that you explore. As you explore, you usually have to manage resourses to avoid something bad, but not always.
Here's a collection of several games made using Carta.
Dead Belt takes this concept and RUNS with it. You have a few things to track as you explore abandoned randomized ship decks, searching for a good payload. Upgrade your gear and do it again.
Does the thought of managing your character sound exciting? Do you enjoy soulslike games, like Elden Ring and Bloodborne?
Rune is a fresh release with a lot of third-party support already. It's pretty easy to pick up and play too.
Apothecaria and Apawthecaria have you making potions for the local village. Go out exploring, collect ingredients, and see if you can solve the greater mysteries of the land.
Interested in horror, but want a more narrative-driven experience? In Dwelling, you'll spend the night sleepless and alone in a haunted house. This is a very neat game.
Songs of the City is a delightful tarot game that you play once a day for a week. It's another narrative-driven game where you draw cards and cast magic to see small neat changes in the city you reside in.
Anamnesis, Anamnesis, Anamnesis. I talk about this game a lot because it's magical in its simplicity. There's nothing to track and it's an incredible way to generate character ideas or tell a story.
And now there are more Anamnesis games coming out (including mine) You don't need the original games to play any of the games you see here.
There are so many more games I want to talk about, but alas, this cold is making me stop there.
If you've written a solo game, streamed one, reviewed one, or have one you really like, I invite you to share it!
#solo rpg#solo journaling game#solo tabletop roleplaying games#writing#writing community#ttrpg#I hate being sick#dnd
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hello! I saw your apawthecaria oc effie while scrolling through the solo rpg tag and i love her design so so much. so much in fact that i felt the need to tell you this haha my heart is melting for her
gosh thank you so much!! I'm glad you like my lil noodle! Effie doesn't handle compliments well, but she's also grateful for your kind words 💚
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my friend told me about apawthecaria and i want to get it so bad now. all he had to say was this
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✒ Solo RPGs
About a month ago I went down a rabbit hole and came out the other side absolutely obsessed.
A singular post on r/fountainpens notified me to the existence of Solo Journaling RPGs- literally, tabletop experiences that you play by yourself. Some of these games have physical components, but many are played entirely with a pen and a piece of paper.
Needless to say, I was absolutely thrilled at the concept of being able to scratch that TTRPG itch without the social drain, impossible scheduling, AND with the bonus of using up my enormous stores of fountain pen inks. Since the middle of November I have tried three separate Solo RPGs, with one being a longer experience with a physical book with rules and tables...with the other two finished experiences being short, one-to-two page PDF's that can be played out in several hours.
✒ Experiences so far...
During my first attempt I tackled a larger-than-anticipated RPG called Apothecaria. In this game, you are sent a letter by a witch who wishes for you to take her place making potions in the town of High Rannock. You gather reagents, explore, make potions, and develop your reputation and relationships with characters in town. Very Stardew Valley inspired, but with a fun, witchy twist. There is also a cute animal version called Apawthecaria, as well as a few expansions for the main game, which I have yet to look at.
I was excited to start but otherwise clueless about the typical pacing and play of journaling RPGs, and soon found that I was writing way too much information!! My hand got tired, and I put it aside for the time being. I will have to revisit it soon, as it is DISGUSTINGLY cute and fun, but for now I have focused my sights on smaller experiences.
During my second, I played a cute little experience called Last Tea Shop. The game has since released a "full" version with more mechanics, but I found the classic version to be exactly what I was looking for on a lazy saturday night. It took me about 4.5 hours to complete thanks to several distractions, but the playtime was probably closer to 3.
I found this to be a strangely emotional little experience, which probably should have been expected since you are playing as a shopkeep at the edge between life and death. I will admit to shedding a few tears by the end of my journey- but they were happy ones. I will be returning for the full version sometime after I have let the experience settle.
My most recent experience-- as of maybe 30 minutes ago, to be precise-- is a lesser-known RPG called Axe Wielding Priest. This was a wonderful switch up from the cozy games I have tried so far, and as a person who adores a good (but understandably controversial) "sanity" mechanic in a game, it scratched my itch for madness.
There are some warnings in the description for blood, self-harm (flagellation), violence, and paranoia, but I thoroughly enjoyed the 2 hours I spent exploring the mind and history of my character.
✒ Conclusion
I am absolutely obsessed. I'm always itching to come up with stories, but have burned many a role-playing partner by being flaky or losing interest. These offer a few overarching mechanics and rules and otherwise let your mind run free. That sense of loose structure is exactly what I need as someone who struggles with ADHD, but also enjoys coming up with solutions within a set boundary.
There are "old-school" solo RPGs out there, as well as others that aren't just acting as a tool for creative writing. I will be trying some of those out as well as the time comes, as well as the games that use physical maps and movement around a grid.
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