Solo Play test of "down on Old Mill Road" it gets dark, nasty...

INTRO:

Here is the process I used.

I played the game solo and wrote it as I played just like I narrated it in my head..

It is DARK AS FUCK.. especially in the end when it was clear to me I was going to loose.

Honestly it's slightly disturbing , cause I don't like horror, and I don't write that way (if at all.)

It left me with a bad feeling when I was done, but I felt something , so that's better than a game that leaves you feeling nothing.

In a group it might get more silly , like the goonies.. but as a solo play it was kind of hard to see my character fall apart in front of me. My brain was left to it's own devices to think about what this character must be going through mentally, and it was not a good place to be.

bad rolling was my undoing.

The dice and the cards determined every element of the story. I had not idea what I wanted to do when I started.

So here you go ..

You have been warned.

SOLO PLAY TEST STARTS HERE:

Down on old mill road actual solo play

Character: Kyle Petrie
Schtick 18 year old works at night in the school cleaning.

Skills: Fast, chemicals, box cutter, knows people, clean cut, flash light.

Picked a map (used mill road in red hook why not right ?) rolled 1 : 4 for the starting position, which happened to be relay close to the elementary school

Only going to play 5 turns maximum

Turn 1:

The night started out in the parking lot of the mill road elementary school. The streetlights casting long shadows towards the bus garage and the playground equipment standing silent.

(I draw 3 cards, Jack of Spades an unfriendly NPC)

Something catches Kyle's eye on the edge of the cornfield that stands crossed mill road. Kyle stops for moment about to call out to what he thinks is one of his coworkers. But the call is caught in his throat when he sees two glowing red eyes looking back at him just before the figure fades into the corn.

(I draw another card Queen of diamonds A friendly NPC..better)

Kyle stares into the dark corn for what feels like an eternity when he is shocked back into awareness, by a sudden hand on his shoulder. He jumps and spins around only to see Mary Cuttler his supervisor at work, she is pale and frightened looking.

“Kyle, Kyle , I'm so glad your ok” She's panting, Rich is missing there's blood by the front door Kyle I think something awful has happened.. I tried to call the police but my phone is dead, no signal, I don't know why.”

Kyle, trys to calm her “I think I saw some one walk into the corn field it might have been Rich, I don't know... “

(third card 2 of spades, I'm going to try to defeat the danger with my flashlight which has 1d10 value: I roll a 5 which beats 2 I win)

Mary seems to listen to Kyle for the moment until her eyes go  wide focused on the corn field. A scream forms in her throat, but she hold back steping away from Kyle towards her car.

Kyle turns are round and pulls out his flash light catching a creature just for a fleeting second. It has red eyes and inhumanly long arms that are nearly dragging in the dirt. The creature looks like it was about to cross the street towards them, but the light from the flash light stuns it and it flees back into the corn field.

Kyle: “What the fuck was that!?

Mary “I don't know we have to get to the police, Kyle ditch your bike we'll take my car, lets go...now.”

(Round 1 over I draw 2 more cards roll a location on the map)

Hour 2

Kyle accelerates out of the parking lot and hooks onto Rockefeller lane heading towards 9 and into town.

(draw card Ace of diamonds I find a good thing )

A bout 150 feed down Rockefeller lane, Kyle sees the lights of a police car parked along side the road. Kyle guns his engine and races towards the flashing lights.
The cruiser is parked along side the road, drivers door open, lights on, a path of pushed aside grass can be seen at the side fo the road where it appears the office moved off into the neighboring field. Kyle jumps in the car and cues up the radio, he receives only a wall of static. He looks down under the seat and pops the trunk, running to the back of the car he sees a police issue shot gun, he unstraps the weapon and hands it to marry in his car.

“What the hell are you doing?” she shouts at him.

“Things are getting strange, I'll give beck to the cops when we get to town.. just hold onto it.”

Flip the next card (6 of clubs .. a bad thing I roll this time I use box cutter and roll a 5 a failure I loose a die )

Just as kyle is about to get into the car, Mary screams, “LOOK OUT!”

Kyle feels a huge impact on his back and is suddenly on the ground being thrashed by wiry arms, he tries to draw his box cutter from his coat pocket but the creature is just to strong. Kyle's arms are pinned to the ground, he can see the red glow from the creatures eyes. Just when he is bracing himself, the BOOM of the shot gun forces his eyes open in time to see the creature scurry off into the darkness and tall grass of the field...

Kyle looks back at Mary, she looks as shocked as he feels..

“Did you get it?”

“No”

“Start the car...”

Next turn hour 3

drawing 2 cards again (rolling a new location )

Kyle hits route 9 at full speed , yanks the wheel and head south towards the town.

“I think we'll be fine , we will be in town in a few seconds here.. get the cops” Kyle looks to Mary, he thinks she may be in shock.

Just as he finishes his sentence, Mary says “stop the car look.” About 100 feet away is a tractor trailer flipped over in the road burning, no one near it.

“Kyle looks at Mary, I'll take Feller Newmark, we can get around, it's OK.

(I flip a card Ace of hearts I get all my dice back but realy I only lost one so it's not a good pull)

Kyle spins the car around and drives up Feller Newmark road, he looks over at Mary. “Don't worry We have this , full tank of gas, and 5 more shells, it's alright”

Mary just nods.

Next card flipped (king of Spades ..SHIT... Who shuffled this deck!?!?! the big bad .. end game)

About a quater mile along th4 winding side raod the lights on the car begin to flicker, the car stalls out, Kyle looks at Mary, she's started to quietly sob. A light appears ahead of them, dim at first then bringer, as Kyle's car rolls to a stop, they can clearly see the red eyes of a creature moving down the center of the road towards them.

“I'm not going just die in the car, give me the gun!”

Mary does not move.

“NOW!” Kyle yells as he rips the gun from her hands and gets out of the car, he hears the metallic clicks of Mary locking the doors behind him.

When Kyle turns around the creature is gone.

(I roll two dice on my Quick skill 8 and a 2 total of 10 a win 1 point off 9 left)

Kyle walks into the road figuring having some open space around him might be a good idea.
He does not have to wait long and he hears movement to his left, Kyle shows good reaction time, spins the shot gun around and rips off a round, form the woods he hears a high pitch alien screech.

“God damn my shoulder!” Kyle mutters..

(roll again same tactic 2 dice is better than one. I roll a 3 and a 2 total of 5 under 7 I loose a point off quick)

Before Kyle can steady himself he hears a rustling behind him and turns in time to see the creature charging at him , knuckles dragging like a apes, eyes glaring. Kyle lifts the shot gun as he leaps backwards away from the beast.

Seeing the gun the creature takes one seemingly impossible leap off the road and into the forest, but Kyle's momentum takes him back making him fall as his ankle twists underneath him

“SHIIT!”

Kyle shouts ah he gets to his feat testing his weight on his now tender ankle.

(I roll again 1 die on flashlight. Now I have to get a 7 or over on 1d10 each roll oye. I roll a 5)

Kyle grabs his flashlight and begins to sweep the woods looking for the creature, within seconds the light fades as the batteries drain just like the car. Kyle looks forlornly at the light and the throws it into the woods

“Shit”

(Now I roll on I know people because now I am running out of options, 10 finally a good roll I only need 8 more)

Kyle limps to the car and looks in at Mary.

“I scared it off, come on. I went to school with a kid who lives right there, lets go we'll be safer in a house than in the road we gotta go.”

With that Mary and Kyle move as fast as they can up the dark driveway and to the house.

Kyle goes to the door and rings the bell, Mary pounds the door frame. When there si no answer Kyle takes the but of the shotgun and breaks out the front window, then helps Mary up and into the house.

“Find the phone.” Kyle says quietly.

Mary looks at him blankly “where are all the people? Where is every one?”

“I don't know but some one must be someplace, find the damn phone.

(I'm going to roll on Squeaky clean this time and hope I win ...8 whew <need 7 more>)

Marry finds a phone in the  living room and begins dialing.

“Kyle I have 911 ..”

Kyle grabs the phone.

“Hello Mam, My name is Kyle, and I have a car accident... A ton of calls.. things going nuts... pranks..Ok I'm not pranking you, I sincerely need help , I'm at 123 Feller Newark.. Red hook..... police swamped.. I understand Mam but my friend is hurt, so if you could send anyone I would appreciate it.. thank you.. umm hello ? Hello .. SHIT it's dead”

(I'm going to roll again on I know people Shit a 4)

Kyle starts to look around, “I knew this house when I was in school my buddies Eric and Tom lived here, his old man was a boy scout troop leader, he had a bunch of out doors shit in the garage, I'm going to go look might find something we can use, a lantern or something, we just have to hold on until some one gets here.”

Kyle goes out in the garage, nothing , no tools, no camping equipment, just some paint and a lawn mover, also a huge rip in the garage door.

“Maybe they don't live here any more..Jesus what the hell is going on..”

Kyle is interrupted by Mary's scream.

(I use quick I have one die in it another four :( )

Kyle bursts back into the living room shotgun up, he sees nothing.

No sign of Mary.

Nothing.

“Mary ?!.”

“MARY!”

Kyles mind is swimming his heart pounding .

“What the hell.” he whispers.

(I have to roll on box cutter here I am really running out of skills with dice...I should have started with one at 3 dice make those early rolls easier... I roll a 5 I am fucked.)

Kyle starts upstairs to see if perhaps Marry had run to the second level and is just hiding. When he reaches the top of the stairs he is greeted by a scene of destruction. Windows blown out doors smashed, the bathroom floor smeared with blood, but no bodies, no foot prints, no sign of what happened.

Kyle quiet ly moves into the next room where he finds the master bedroom's door tied off and boarded from this side, as if some one tried to keep something in. Kyle pulls out his box cutter and cuts the ropes on the door then works it under the boards prying them loose, breaking the blade in the process.

Kyle enters the dark master bed room, he can see out of a smashed in dormer window down into the  streent an the car he arrived in,  the glow from the burning truck in the distance.

(I am going to roll “Clean cut” here it is my last die , I have no idea how it applies but here it goes .. 8 holy shit.a good roll..)

The phone rings, Kyle is startled, he catches his breath and looks around. He grabs teh phone from next to the bed.
“Hel... Hello?”

“This is 911 emergency service we received a call from this address?” the woman's voice calmly recites through the receiver.

“Yes mam,” Kyle says “That was me I have an emergency … my umm friends, hurt... please come”

“Ok son” the woman says we have a lot of calls tonight but  emergency services are on their way. How is your friend hurt?”  the voice asks.

(I have to roll again this is getting me no where.. but if I can roll enough to get out of this .. ohhh a 5 I'm done Game over man.)

Kyle continues “I don't know I can't find her.”

Voice: “ What do you mean you can't find her , sir, sir?”

Kyle doesn't reply, he is staring out at the bottom of the driveway he sees a police cruiser with it's lights on slowly working it's way past his car and up the driveway, a spotlight sweeping the house the yard. He, hears the door splinter behind him, a dim red light fills the room.

“I don't think they're going to find me either” Kyle says absently into the phone, the line goes dead.