I DM my husband in a solo game, where he plays a uniquely brilliant white wyrmling named Frigidus Horribilus. I won't go into extensive homebrew backstory; suffice to say, Frigidus has allied with a human wizard who acts as a sort of guardian to people who pay him a yearly fee (more like an insurance agent than a mafia 'protection' agent). Frigidus acts as the wizard's right-hand man and often goes on dangerous missions to help the wizard's policy holders.
I've found it easy to adapt a number of Dungeon/Compleat adventures to the campaign, and in return, they shaped the geography of the world. I uploaded a map, and this is the key to the adventures I used.
1. Merzeth's Tower. The home of Merzeth the Magician, who (in an attempt to gain a familiar) accidentally summoned the hero of our story, the white wyrmling Frigidus Horribilus.
2. The village of Seacove sent word to Merzeth that they required aid. Frigidus arrived and rescued the contents of a lost cargo ship. ("Salvage Operation", Mearls, #123).
3. Vultania Gorge, home to a clan of dwarves also allied with Merzeth, also in need of aid. Here Frigidus got in touch with his inner beetle herder to help a group of dwarves. ("Home Under the Range", Kortes, #134).
4. The sometimes-home of a group of elf nomads Frigidus befriended. When the elves were raided, Frigidus offered to track down their attackers (particularly since said raiders stole several stuffed monster heads the elves had preserved for Frigidus).
5. Frigidus tracked the miscreants to these underground tunnels, and slew their leader. ("Dark Elf Sanctum" Compleat Adventure, Mearls). He found the dark elves had attacked out of the belief that their surface cousins had orchestrated the appearance of a haunted cathedral, into which several dark elves had disappeared.
6. This led Frigidus to the haunted cathedral, where he wreaked much havoc and spoke to the spirit of a mad torturer ("Terror in the Chamber of Pain" Compleat Adventure, Strohm). The torturer's ghost told Frigidus he was doomed to suffer in the haunted church until his wife's murder was avenged.
7. Frigidus sought out the aforementioned murderer in a mysterious nearby grove. He slew the insane druid responsible and set the ghost's spirit to rest ("Grove of the Mad Druid" Compleat Adventure, Jacobs).
8. Merzeth then sent Frigidus to speak to an old colleague of his, a wizard named Tealpeck. Frigidus arrived in the middle of a deluge and found dangerous monsters and great treasure waiting for him in the castle ("Tealpeck's Flood", Vinogradov, #137).
That's all I got so far, but I'm sure I'll add more adventures over time. They are so convenient and adaptable. Thanks!
Very cool. Very creative. How much do you have to tone things down for a solo monster class character?
It depends. I tailor the different encounters depending on if I think he can handle them or not, but it's not a lot of work. Sometimes he has NPCs traveling with him, too.
Thanks!
Medisha, could you please post a link to the Complete Adventures set? It sounds interesting. Thanks in advance!
Sure thing, they're right here:
~wistles~ Nice. I will have to try one out sometime. Thanks again, Medesha !!!
edited for improper name spelling. ~looks for nearest wall to bang head at~
Hex map ... you are sooooooo old school, Medesha.
I too sing the praises of Compleat Encounters ... but then, I love to paint the little metal men.
Tee hee. Liquidation World near our city had a sale on a bunch of 2E and older game products they'd somehow aquired. They had packs of hex maps for, like, $1.50 each.
I also got some old Planescape stuff. *so happy*
-Amber S.
That is so neat. I'd love to see how others out there piece together their world by using Dungeon.