Loner - Rokuro the Samurai

Here is the gameplay from one of my runs of the ruleset; Loner, Another Solo RPG 2nd Edition. Where the premise is focused on storytelling that could almost play out as a movie. Please enjoy the notes taken throughout the gameplay.

Scene 1: The Vault

• The lonely samurai Rokuro is in need of an escape from the vault. With the guard currently looking for the katana its only a matter of time before he is caught and sentenced to death.
• He tries finding a window, succeed to find himself on the 3rd floor
• Try to find a staircase to descend safely, succeed and head down
• Now on the ground floor he look for the back door, but there doesn't seem to be one
• Attempt jumping out an open window, successful but is spotted the commanding officer Yukiko
• Commander begins shouting alerting other guards, Rokuro picks himself off the ground to find a way to escape
• Notices horses but protected by a lonely guard
• With an increasing amount of shouting from behind, Rokuro tries throwing a rock into the nearby bushes to distract the guard
• He is successful and the guard jumps into action, searching the rustling bushes
• The lonely samurai is able to steal a horse and rides away, startling the other horses in the process
• The Commander is hot on his tail and mounts a horse, reigning in the startled animal
• A chase pursues in the blossom forest, Rokuro tries throwing something behind to stop the Commander
• He grabs an apple in his bouncing bag and blindly thows it over his shoulder, then another for good luck
• Yukiko's horse is hit square in the nose and slides to a halt, throwing off the commander
• The samurai escapes with the katana on his back

*Twist Counter = 1

Scene 2: The Forest

• The samurai trots to a halt and makes camp for the night, leading the horse to the nearby river for water
• Sit cross legged by his fire and plan his next steps, getting up to get a feel for his newly acquired katana
• THe weapon feels weightless, swings with ease, bringing a smile to Rokuro at his old training
• But the smile turns to a sombre straight lip, bringing tears to his eye at the thought of his son
• He instead focuses on the magic this katana is suppose to possess, he tries willing it into existence but nothing happens
• Stumped at what to do, he returns to a seated position and attempts to summon a form of guidance
• Rokuro prepares from his bag a collection of herbs grinding them into a drink, then begins chanting ancient words of a ritual passes down through generations
• His mind seems to lose grip of his physical body, taking him on a journey to the spirit realm. He stands there in translucent form watching a a ghostly crane fly overhead
• The crane flies to the North towards a temple on a lonely mountain, the temple suddenyl becomes overcast by a towering force of evil in the clouds above
• The shadow grows in size before letting out a shriek, the piercing sound wakes you up and leads you back into reality. The shriek seemed to have made the horse nervous
• Rokuro calms the horse before lying down to watch the stars, thinking of the vision

*Twist Counter = 3

Scene 3: Meanwhile...

• Yukiko arrives in a village, full of deceased laying on the floor
• Her general, Zei Hai turns around, looking at her displeased. He shames her for letting the thief escape with the katana
• Orders her to find the katana, or face the same fate as these poor souls lying in the dirt
• She nods to confirm she understands, as she is leaving she overhears her guards questioning what happened in this village
• Yukiko butts in with the response of the dead returning form the dead, brought back by the one who shrieks
• The guards look pale in the face, they believed the Shrieking Shaman was only a myth
• She snaps at them to keep quiet and barks commands to prepare for departure, they have a thief to find

*Twist Counter = 0

Scene 4: Encounter on the Road

• Rokuro is walking at a steady pace on his horse on the pathway, he hears galloping come racing from behind. Before he has the chance to turn he is nearly knocked off his horse by a lady on a frantic horse
• She shouts behind her apologising to the smaurai, she seems scared. Too scared to slow down
• She races away from the North, he thinks that he should follow and make sure she is alright, but instead he makes an effort to head to the temple in the North
• Rokuro attempts to get the horse to start moving again, but it seems to have had enough been ridden for today. So the samruai dismounts and begins walking alongside the horse
• After an hour of more walking and dragging himself over a steep mound, the smaurai notices a village ahead with large plumes of smoke rising from homes
• He wishes to help the village, but his thoughts of selfless actions is interrupted by the horse being startled
• He atempt to calm it but it sprints off, escaping his grasp. As you turn back around he finds a decaying corpse crawling on the ground coming for him
• Rokuro unveils his katana and prepares for a fight. the crawling corpse is faster than he thought and evades a swinig of his blade
• He tries again, making a clean swing at the undead wrist, slicing t off with a singing sound
• Another slash aginst its shoulder gives off another sizzling sound, revealing the corpse to leak blackened blood. Retreating into the tall grass, growling in pain
• The growling quickly cuts to silence, presuming it is dead
• The samurai looks at the blade with perplexity, then raising his head back to the village
• He makes a cautious stride to the village hoping for some answers

*Twist Counter = 0

Scene 5: The Abandoned Village

• Rokuro slowly wades through the thick tenstion in the air. Searching homes for signs of life
• As he does so, the Commanding Officer Yukiko and her guard come storming into the village
• They search for the thieving samurai, checking the burnt down homes. Only to find a collection of undead waiting to attack their flesh
• The samurai attempts to escape admist the chaos, but is ambushed from behind by another corpse
• Its bony claws dig deep into his back, then again across the chest
• Meanwhile the Commander, still on her horse, makes a valiant effort to place the dead back where they came from. Decapitating 2 heads in quick succession
• Our lonely samurai is able to fend off the undead and stumbles round the corner for a moment of safety. But this is interrupted by a stalking undead
• The corpse is swiftly slashed with his katana and collapsed to the ground
• The guard in the area make good work at pushing back the dead, taking out the groaning beasts. After a minute or so, the air is left with an awkward silence once more
• Yukiko orders her men to fan out and find the thief, all heard by Rokuro who has found a hiding spot behind piles of rice
• He makes an attempt to escape the guard, as he backs up he is caught by an old man to says nothing. Only showing the sign to stay quiet
• The old man then guides the samurai into the fields to evade the Commander and her forces. They wait for nearly an hour before she gives up, taking her men out of the village
• Once they are sure it is safe, the two men start a conversation, Rokuro asks who the man is
• The man responds not with his name but a statement, All will be revealed, we have been expecting you for some time
• This intrigues the samurai who blindly follows the man who saved him. On this new path Rokuro sees in the distance a temple on a lonely mountain

*Twist Counter = 2

Scene 6: The Northern Temple

• The old man and the samurai arrive at the temple, with a gathering of others who bow at the presence of Rokuro
• Finally, the old man gives an explanation to the samurai. Telling him of a prophecy about a darkness that shall consume the land. A ruler that attmepts to cling to life by any means
• The only hope of deafeating this tyrant is a hero born from dispair. Who shall rise from his inner demons to aid those who live
• The gods see this cycle of evil rising and a hero standing to thwart them over generations. Each time the forces of evil growing stronger and stronger
• In an attempt of fairness, they forged a blade worthy of a hero, to assist them on their mission to vanquish evil. A blade that will reveal its true power at the right moment
• The old man and the monks of the temple believe the prophecy speaks of Rokuro and the Shrieking Shaman
• Taking a few moments to accept this prophecy, the smaurai accepts his fate and poses the question of where to find the Shaman
• A look of concern masks their faces, telling him the Shaman is already heading for him

*Twist Counter = 3

Scene 7: Meanwhile...

• Yukiko and her guard are resting. She sits alone, filled with rage and fear of what her General will do if he knew of her failure
• Thoughts interrupted by a masked figure, tall and menacing presence
• All they do is offer her a choice, asks if she wishes to to live or die?
• The Commander is outraged by the question and begins telling the stranger to leave or meet the wrath of her and the guard
• The figure chuckles, before letting out an almighty shriek, deafending Yukiko
• She turns to find all of her guard at the camp dead, only to then be snapping and cracking back into existence
• The masked figure gets cloder to Yukiko's face, and simply offer her life or death?
• Too stubborn to accept defeat, she chooses life and stares the Shrieking Shaman in the eyes. Unwavering confidence
• The shaman simply walks away, heading north toards the temple. Leaving her to deal with the now undead guard.

*Twist Counter = 0

Scene 8: The Showdown

• Rokuro rests before the battle, filling his mind of memories of his son, his wife. The good times, the bad times. Sadness fills his eyes and his blinks back into the present
• The old man notices the samurai and offers some words of comfort, telling him his family will be waiting for him but only when the time is right
• Rise above the pain, the anger, the loss. Instead focus on the inevitable reunion that will ventually come for him
• These wise words are interrupted by shouting outside, the shaman approaches the gates of the temple
• Rokuro takes the katana and steps outside, watching as they prepare extra support to the gates
• The lonely samurai takes a deep breath, and watches a crane fly overhead, followed by the sound of a shriek
• The sound decimates the front gate and battle ensues between the living and the dead
• The monks revealing blades of silver and iron, corpses crawling for their flesh in their masses
• The courtyard is overwhelmes by snarls, clinking of metal and the smell of blood both fresh and stale
• in the middle of the battle, Rokuro spots the shrieking Shaman, they stop and stare into the souls of one another
• But the samurai's focus is lost as he is ambushed by a familiar face, now covered in dust and scars. The face of the Commander Yukiko snarling with a scent of death in her breath
• His quick reflexes evade her claw swipes and pounces, more like fighting a wild creature than a human
• The haste of his blade cuts deep into the limbs of Yukiko, dropping off one by one. Before fianlly muttering under his breath a prayer of forgiveness. Then with one clean swipe, the head of the Commander falls to the ground
• The Shaman standing tall as tree and dark as a shadow spreads a shriek across the courtyard, entering th mind of Rokuro
• His head throbbing with an overbearing weight of sadness and dispair
• Remembering the words of the old man, the samurai resists the urge to dwell and lunges into action
• The samurai and the Shaman clash blades, sparks ignite when metal collides
• The Shaman is brought to one knee, staring into the face of a worthy opponent
• The masked figure does not hesitate and pushes Rokuro into a group of undead behind
• The lonely samurai now stumbles to his feet, watching as he is surrounded by death and his minions
• In a moment of haste, the Shaman leads a blade to the heart of the samurai, but he is quicker impaling the Shaman instead
• A burning flame of magic radiates from the wound, with the Shaman letting out a cry of pain
• His body is infected with light and his body seems to age 100 years in a matter of seconds, turning his robes to rags and skin to bone
• Watching all of this unfold, the samurai watches as the wind picks up to whisp away the ashy remains of the Shaman, sending him to the afterlife
• The undead around him come to a state of peace, collapsinig to the ground, returning to their natural state
• The moment is overwhelming and the samurai is brought to his knees, before looking down and seeing blood leak from his side
• From a wound he had gained in the battle without realising, but it didn't matter now. For he could hear the voices of his family beckoning him

*Twist Counter = 1

Epilogue

• The Old man and the other monks lay to rest their fallen brothers, alongside the lonely samurai, burnt in a ceremony of cleansing
• Then carefully taking the katana, inside the temple to keep it safe. Hidden under lock and key
• The monks of the temple vow to protect the blade until the Shrieking Shaman makes his return
• The final shot is of the sun shining over the temple as the story comes to a close