Breathless for solo exploration
Nomadic Preface
Nomadic is a tragic solo tabletop role-playing game focused on exploration and survival. In this game, you play as a pilot exploring the depths of the universe in search of humanity’s new home after the Primordials retook Earth. Inspired by No Man’s Sky and the eponymous song by Ben Prunty, this game is simultaneously harsh, hopeless, and beautiful.
Nomadic was the first time I felt comfortable enough with the Breathless engine make major changes to it in the hope of fitting a drastically different type of game.
Mechanically, this game diverges from Breathless in the following ways:
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There are two oracles used by the player throughout the game. The question oracle is used to answer questions about the world where the player character may not be involved. The risk oracle is used to answer whether the player should or should not perform a check as they attempt to do something risky in the fiction.
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Instead of a single stress track, there are four (body, mind, gear, ship) and the game tells you exactly when and how many boxes should be marked. On top of this, each resource track is linked to a table full of possible complications.
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There’s a strong gameplay loop that forces the solo player to go through the same steps over and over again, guiding them both mechanically and in the narrative.
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There’s an event that gets triggered when all four resource tracks are filled, which offers a choice to the player and prompts them to choose whether they want to abandon the game or continue.
Website: /nomadic
Nomadic SRD
Nomadic is a solo tabletop role-playing game of exploration and survival. You study dangerous worlds in a quest to find a new home for humankind. During the game, you use oracles when there are uncertainties, perform dangerous actions, and try to keep your body, mind, equipment, and spaceship in good shape.
Nomadic explores themes of isolation, despair, futility, and mental/physical health. Your safety is more important than anything. Don’t hesitate to rewind, rewrite, pause, or take a break as you see fit.
To play, you will need:
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A set of polyhedral dice
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A pencil
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Something to write on or a recording device to use during journaling phases of the game.
Leaving Earth
Humanity abandoned Earth as it was destroyed and retaken by the Primordials. The Earth United Front sent hundreds of pilots into the depths of space to explore, document, and survive the harshness of the void in the hope of finding a new planet where humans could prosper again. During that time, what’s left of humanity is waiting in giant cryo ships for a new planet to be discovered.
Your Gear
You are a nomad , one of the pilots sent to look for inhabitable worlds. You are equipped with a high-tech exo-suit that lets you survive some of the harshest environments. You carry with you a blaster, a portable drone, scanners, and various sensors. Furthermore, you pilot a NOD class starship equipped with a light engine and an astro-droid.
Intro
Start your adventure on your ship. You’ve been navigating in the void for weeks and are about to enter a new solar system. This system has planets that are worth exploring, either because of their resources or their potential to become humanity’s new home.
Your Nomad
On the character sheet located on the back, write down your character’s name and pronouns. There are six skills you can use to perform risky tasks in the fiction.
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Muscle : overcome, wreck, force.
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Skulk : hide, sneak, lurk.
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Dash : run, jump, climb.
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Learn : analyze, investigate, grasp.
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Tinker : repair, revamp, restore.
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Finesse : gather, befriend, pilot.
Assign a d10 , a d8 , and a d6 to three skills you think you’re particularly good at. The rest are set to a d4.
Question Oracle
To disclaim decision-making over something, ask a yes/no question imagining the outcome, and roll a die based on the odds of it being positive.
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If it is very unlikely : roll a d4.
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If it is unlikely : roll a d6.
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If it is likely : roll a d8.
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If it is very likely : roll a d10.
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If it is almost certain : roll a d12.
Then, interpret the result.
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On a 1-2 , the answer is “ No, and… ”.
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On a 3-4 , the answer is “ Yes, but… ”.
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On a 5+ , the answer is “ Yes, and… ”.
Risk Oracle
When you attempt something challenging, roll a die based on your level of control over the current situation. When in doubt, use a d6.
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If the situation is chaotic , roll a d4.
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If the situation is precarious , roll a d6.
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If the situation is manageable , roll a d8.
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If the situation is predictable , roll a d10.
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If the situation is stable , roll a d12.
Then, interpret the result.
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On a 1-2 , the situation is very risky. Make a perilous check.
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On a 3-4 , the situation is risky. Make a check.
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On a 5+ , the situation is not risky. You simply do it.
Check
When you use the risk oracle and the situation is risky or perilous , you make a check to see how it plays out. Pick the skill that best matches what you are trying to accomplish, roll the die that matches its rating, and interpret the result.
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On a 1-2 , you fail , and there’s an additional complication. Mark one box on a resource track of your choice. Two boxes if the situation was perilous.
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On a 3-4 , you succeed , but there’s a complication. Mark one box on a resource track of your choice. Two boxes if the situation was perilous.
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On a 5+ , you succeed. The higher the result, the better the effect.
Then, step down the rating of the skill you used by one step ( d12 » d10 » d8 » d6 » d4 ). Skills cannot go lower than a d4.
Determination
Your skills aren’t all you have to survive the harshness of space. You can also rely on your sheer determination to push forward and to make the mission a success. When you use your determination , you use a d12 instead of a skill rating to do a check. Once used, you’ll need to focus to use it again.
Focus
When you focus , you quickly take the time to assess the situation, calculate all the variables, and recenter yourself for what’s to come. You can do this at any time, even during highly dramatic moments.
When you focus , reset all your skills to their initial rating. Then, you have to introduce a new complication in the story. When that happens, mark one box on a resource track.
Look at the “complications” section for a list of possible options to use depending on which track you marked.If all your resource tracks are filled, you need to make a choice.
Will you abandon the mission, or will you push forward into the unknown?
Resource Tracks
You have four resources tracks : body , mind , gear , and ship. When a complication arises, either as a result of you focusing or from a check , you mark boxes on one of the tracks. Look at the fiction to decide which track to mark. You can also pick a random one and link it with the fiction later.
If there are no more boxes to mark, you have to make a choice.
Make A Choice
When you need to mark a box, and all your resource tracks are filled, you have to make a choice.
Abandon : You can’t go on, and must abandon the mission. As a result, you will die in the coming hours/days. The cause of your death is directly related to the last resource track you marked. Make a last log entry to describe what happened, and beam it. The game is over.
Push Forward : You knew this wasn’t going to be easy, and you aren’t about to give up. Leave the current system, and fast forwards weeks/months in time. Then, clear all your resource tracks. You are now in a new system. Make a new log entry, and continue your journey.
Resource Checks
Resources are an abstract value that represents what you scavenge as you explore the cosmos. When you leave a planet, roll a d20 to know how many resources you scavenged.
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On a 1-2 , you find 0 resources.
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On a 3-4 , you find 1 resource.
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On a 5-6 , you find 2 resources.
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On a 7-8 , you find 3 resources.
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On a 9-10 , you find 5 resources.
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On a 11-12 , you find 8 resources.
At anytime, you can consume as many resources as you want to clear the same number of boxes on any resource track.
When you do this, you take the time to heal yourself, and repair your equipment so that you can continue the mission.
Planet Scanner
Scan: Roll a d10 and interpret the result.
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On a 1-5, t he planet shows signs of life. Roll for region, wild life, and flora.
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On a 6-10, t he planet shows no signs of life. The planet is either dead (6), frozen (7), volcanic (8), irradiated (9), or noxious (10). It may still be worth exploring for its resources.
Region Scanner
Biome (d10)
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Freshwater (pond, river, lake)
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Marine (ocean, coral reef, estuary)
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Grassland (prairie, steppe)
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Tropical Grassland (savanna)
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Tropical Forest
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Temperate Forest
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Boreal Forest
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Hot Desert
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Cold Desert
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Tundra
Weather (d10)
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Clear
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Cloudy
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Drizzle
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Rainy
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Storm
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Fog
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Snow
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Storm
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Blizzard
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Sandstorm
Terrain (d4)
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Mountains
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Hills
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Plateaus
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Plains
Advanced Analysis
Gravity (d6)
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Minimal gravity
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Low gravity
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Earth-like gravity
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High gravity
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Crushing gravity
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Unstable
Gravity (d6)
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Minimal gravity
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Low gravity
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Earth-like gravity
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High gravity
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Crushing gravity
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Unstable
Average Temperature (d6)
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Frigid
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Cold
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Temperate
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Hot
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Scorched
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Unstable
Wild Life Monitor
Size (d6)
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Tiny
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Small
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Normal
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Large
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Very Large
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Gigantic
Diet (d6)
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Herbivore
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Carnivore
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Omnivore
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Fungivore
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Photosynthetic
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Saprotrophic
Behavior (d6)
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Calm
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Curious
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Territorial
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Aggressive
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Scared
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Hunting
Type (d6)
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Mammal-like
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Bird-like
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Reptile-like
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Amphibian-like
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Invertebrate-like
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Fish-like
Trait (d4)
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With Fur
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With Scales
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With Feathers
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With Slimy Skin
Flora Detector
Biome (d6)
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Tiny
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Small
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Normal
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Large
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Very Large
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Gigantic
Weather (d8)
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Mushrooms
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Herbs
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Flowers
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Trees
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Shrubs
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Climbers
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Creepers
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Trees
Body
When traveling through space or exploring new worlds, one certainty remains: everything out there is trying to kill you. The work is dangerous and takes a toll on your body.
Body (d8)
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You realize you haven’t eaten anything in the last three days, and your stomach growls in pain.
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You made a bad move and sprained your ankle.
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You feel a huge pressure on your lungs that makes it extremely hard to breathe.
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Your vision becomes dizzy, and you feel nauseous.
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You feel like you are on fire as numerous parts of your body start itching.
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You feel a huge pain across your back.
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Your ears are constantly ringing, causing a huge feeling of vertigo.
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You can’t feel your hands and feet anymore.
Mind
You sacrificed so much to start this journey, and there are moments where remembering your old life does you more harm than good.
Mind (d6)
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You’re struck by a memory about a hobby you used to love while on Earth. What was it? Did you do this hobby with someone else?
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You’re thinking about a person you will probably never see again in your lifetime. Who is it?
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Someone dear to you wasn’t able to board the last cryo-ship leaving Earth. Who is it? Why couldn’t they leave?
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A long time ago, you met another nomad on your journey. What news did they bring to you?
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Many people wanted to become nomad, but you did something that made them choose you over many others. What was it?
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You were allowed to bring one personal object with you. What is it?
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You’re remembering a place you used to visit a lot when you were on Earth. Where is it? Why did you go there that often?
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You’ve received a strange transmission from a nearby planet. What does it say? Did you hallucinate it?
Gear
Nothing lasts forever, and your equipment is the ultimate shield against the harshness of space. It is essential you keep your gear in good shape. If damaged, fix it ASAP.
Gear (d10)
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Your suit’s radioactive shield is degrading. You only have a couple of hours of protection left.
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A crack has formed in the outer layer of your helmet’s visor, making it harder to see and weakening its protection.
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The air quality inside your suit has just gotten a lot worse.
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The heat/cold protections of the suit are failing.
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A part of your suit is showing signs of wear and tear.
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There’s an oxygen leak in the breathing system, cutting your oxygen supply in half.
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Your suit’s numerous sensors aren’t sending any signals to your HUD anymore.
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Your blaster’s battery is drained.
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There are interferences rendering your suit’s scanners useless.
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Your drone’s controls are fried and need to be replaced.
Ship
Traveling across the stars would be impossible without your ship, and you never know if the next planet is going to be the last one you ever visit.
Ship (d10)
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You are almost out of fuel and will need resources to fill up the ship.
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There are interferences causing the ship’s scanners to malfunction.
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The ship’s light engine travel calculator is uncalibrated.
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Toxic gas has damaged the ship’s outer frame.
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Something is blocking the ventilation system in the ship.
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Numerous systems have started to overheat as of late.
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The water filtering systems seem to be having issues.
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The astro-droid’s battery drains awfully quickly. It will need to be replaced.
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Something has entered the docking bay and is hidden in the storage room.
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The electrical systems are acting up, and half of the ship has lost power.
Nomadic Design Points
Your Oracles
The oracles are one of the main components that make Nomadic a truly enjoyable solo experience. The question oracle allows the player to disclaim the decision-making process over basically anything, while the risk oracle helps guide the player as to whether or not they should make checks. Their goal is to help remove indecisiveness as much as possible.
For your game, consider these two oracles and think about whether you may need other tools to help the player make decisions. Are the odds of your oracles decided by the player, or are they tied to the location in which they are used?
Your Resource Tracks
Nomadic is part solo experience, part resource management. The resource tracks help pace the different phases and narrative triggers of the game over time. Additionally, these tracks are amazing at guiding the types of consequences you get from trying to perform a dangerous asking.
For your game, consider the types of tracks you want to have. What are the core aspects that the character can sacrifice to pursue their journey? Are all tracks the same length, or are some shorter or longer? What happens when a track is filled? Are there ways to clear the tracks over time, or is marking a box a permanent action until all of them are filled?