Can You Play DnD By Yourself?
You’ve got everything you need to play D&D…except a group. What do you do?
One of the great strengths of Dungeons & Dragons is getting to play with others: going on adventures as a team, interacting in-character, and getting to spend time with geek-minded friends. But this strength can also be a weakness. Many a well-intentioned campaign has fizzled out due to scheduling mishaps, interpersonal conflicts, or difficulty finding a Dungeons Master - and that's if you can get a party together in the first place! This struggle has many D&D enthusiasts asking if it’s possible to play the game alone. With a little bit of creativity, the answer is yes! Here are a few different options if you want to play D&D by yourself.
Play A Solo D&D Adventure
Get out your dice and get ready to play a solo adventure in D&D!
There are many excellent pre-made D&D adventures - in fact, we have a few favorites ourselves. A Dungeon Master reads through adventures like these and runs them for their friends. But some very clever writers have crafted adventures where the book is the Dungeon Master and the player is you! These are a little bit like choose-your-own-adventure books, but more complex, as they follow all of the rules of D&D. Here are a few you could try:
In The Secret of Oki Island, by Obvious Mimic Press, you play a level-1 to level-4 character joining a pirate crew. They sail the great ship The Rapier Wit to carry mysterious cargo to the fabled Oki Island. It has plenty of combat encounters and interesting NPCs, so you can pick what paths you’d like your swashbuckling adventure to follow!
In Eight Petals Argent, by Wraith Wright Productions, you play a level-1 character on a not-so-noble quest to steal a magical item from the catacombs of a cemetery, navigating ambushes, rival factions, and the city watch along the way.
In To Hell & Back Again, by Donathin Frye and Kienna Shaw, you play a level-1 to level-3 character on a mission for an oddball wizard. Along the way, you’ll end up meeting strange fey, hollyphant, archdevils, war machines, and more that will try to stop you on a dangerous journey to Avernus.
Play A Video Game Set In D&D
Video games are a way to get the experience of playing D&D on your own
For those who like game mechanics, keeping track of monster hit points, target rolls, and ability scores can be a fun part of solo D&D adventures. But for others, especially beginners, all that stuff can be a headache and a frustration that gets in the way of the game. If that's you, why not leave that work up to a game console or PC? Several video games use D&D's world, rules, and/or flavor to create a single- player adventure. Here are a few to consider:
In Solasta: Crown of the Magister, by Tactical Adventures, you explore the world of Solasta, a custom fantasy setting where political tensions run high and danger lurks in the Badlands. You control a party of four custom adventurers as they investigate a garrison that’s mysteriously lost contact. This game uses the D&D 5th edition ruleset, a three-dimensional landscape, and dynamic environments so you can travel, explore, and fight the same way you would in a tabletop game of Dungeons & Dragons.
In Travellers Road, by Qkayoo Studio, your character is assigned to protect a cart of treasure alongside a whimsical sorcerer and serious fighter. The game focuses on the roleplay and relational elements of Dungeons & Dragons, allowing you to pursue relationships with your party members and endure the trials of the journey together.
In Icewind Dale, an official D&D game by Black Isle Studios, you create a party of six heroes in the world of The Forgotten Realms. They travel north to icy lands filled with terrifying monsters and a great evil which threatens to destroy the world. It’s great for those who enjoy crafting the perfect party composition for fighting monsters and exploring dungeons - the classic D&D experience!
Play A Tabletop Roleplaying Game Designed For One Player
Some games tell a story through a series of journal entries you can write on your own
Dungeons & Dragons is actually just one game in a sea of others like it. These are called tabletop roleplaying games, or TTRPGs. Most of these games are designed to run with a Game Master controlling the world and multiple players controlling characters. But some of them are designed differently; they’re meant to be played with one player and no Game Master - perfect for playing by yourself! Here's a few we recommend for young gamers:
In Brambletrek, by Crossed Path, you play as a tiny mouse going on an adventure. As you play, you manage resources like Health, Supplies, and Morale and draw from a deck of cards to encounter challenges. As you play, you use special abilities, play out combat, and build your adventure through consecutive journal entries.
In Dragon Dowser, by Hatchling Games, you play a strange adventurer out to quest for powerful dragon eggs, bring them to your sanctuary, and raise the dragon hatchling to save the kingdom. You play with a standard deck of cards and a preset pool of resources; it plays a bit like a game of Solitaire, but instead of a card just being a single number in a stack, each one is something in the story: a dragon egg, a mighty storm, your sanctuary, a sudden war, a ruler, a secret, or a cave.
In The Librarian’s Apprentice, by Daniel Bronson-Lowe, you play, as the title suggests, an apprentice to a librarian. But this library stretches to infinity - and you must somehow travel through it and retrieve important documents! It uses both cards and dice to tell the story and randomly generates books in the library, people you meet, and beasts you encounter along the way.
Make Friends Playing D&D
Solo D&D adventures let you act as both the player character and Dungeon Master using the rules of D&D. D&D-inspired video games can simulate a Dungeon Master in a virtual world that looks, works, and feels like the world of D&D. And single-player TTRPGs create whole new systems of rules specifically to play by yourself.
But sometimes, you really do want to be able to play with a real Dungeon Master - and other players, too! If that's you, we may be able to help. We will do all the work to find other tween and teen players with your preferred play style, coordinate your schedules, and set up all the tools you need to play D&D online. Then, we match you up with one of our awesome Dungeon Masters to bring you together, teach you to play, and set you off on your own epic adventure. Whether you end up playing on your own, with friends, or with people who will become friends, we hope you have a great time with this awesome game!
