The Culture: A Hobby Game Must Have Solo Play Elements

Jon Mollison demonstrates another key element of proper hobby play is the solo play element.

Typically, this is something done by those that sit in the Referee's chair.

This is also something done away from the table. During a campaign, this is done during downtime to respond to player actions (such as going beyond the edge of the map). Before a campaign, this is done to set up an initial operational area.

This need not take much time. You can do all that is required for a new operational area in an evening's Prime Time TV watching (i.e. about three hours), and that can include a sketch of a nearby dungeon or lair for characters to delve into. You may need another couple of hours to draw up a small dungeon map and a key to go with it.

But that is it- and any viable Brand that wants to be in this hobby has to have the same capacity inherent in it as well as the mechanical support to realize that capacity. "LOL make it up!" is not competent game design. If '70s era TSR and GDW could do this (AD&D1e, Gamma World, Traveller, etc.) and some of the best games since then (e.g. Pendragon) could do this then you folks can do it too- and you had better do so, as you have no excuses not to.