Dark Valhalla

Hi. My name is Legend (realy). I'm a bit of a closet gamer/geek. Most of my time is spent playing bass guitar, writing music, working, drinking beer, girls, and partying.
Most of my friends and band mates are the same way. But in my down time, I really like designing board/card games. Most of which are adventure themed and solitaire. Anyways, I have 3 games finished so far and one variant of another homebrew game. Here is my latest project though. A pseudo rpg called Dark Valhalla. This is just a skeleton of the game. My design doc. I was hoping to get some feedback. Please let me know what you think. (it's not complete and it's a little scattered.

DARK VALHALLA
Design notes

Main concept: a solitaire paper and pencil game driven by theme, random events, and player choices.
Theme: Earth has been invaded by an unknown entity. Horrific monsters start to enter our dimension and begin slaughtering the inhabitants of a military based archeological dig site. The player is a lone elite soldier in the near future who is transported to a warped dimension similar to that of the old Norse gods, only darker and twisted.
Goal: The player must travel through three levels of the game before time is up and defeat the source of the invasion.
Levels: The first level of the game takes place on a military base/archeological dig site in Europe. The player must travel through the level which is randomly generated and locate the slipgate where the creatures are coming from and enter it.
The second level of the game takes place in the other dimension. It is a dark and twisted place inhabited by warped images of northern folklore like dwarves. Some of the creatures use a type of archaic/modern technology such as nail guns. Modern earth weapons are not available in this level or the next. It is an open area with a large chasm located towards one end of the map. The player may possibly have to transverse a system of underground caves.
The third level is a large castle/tower located in the center of the other world. The player enters the level through an underground entrance located at the end of the second level. The player will face new enemies and find new items. There will also be an abundance of traps within the tower. The tower itself will consist of several smaller levels. At the top of the tower will be a seven headed dragon-like creature which will be the source of the invasion on earth. The final battle with the end level enemy will be a type of mini game based on luck, strategy, and what items the player has collected throughout the adventure.
Tables: Each game level will consist of a series of D6 tables. Each table will have 9 possible events. The player will roll 2D6 at the beginning of each turn. One D6 will determine which table is consulted, and the other will determine the event. As the player finds certain items, or passes certain events, a +1 modifier will be added to either the table roll or the event roll which will result in a feeling of progress making certain events only available later in the game as the player progresses.
Character Creation: The player will start by creating a character. Character creation is not very in depth, but the player will be given a number of points to spend on equipment and attributes at the beginning of the game. There may also be a small number of “classes” to choose from.

Weapons: The player will find both modern weapons and mythical weapons. Modern weapons will be hard to find in the other dimension and vice versa. Weapons take ammo. Ammo is not tracked by the exact number of rounds, but by ammo units. Each weapon has a chance of running out of ammo, when it does, one ammo unit is used to reload.

Dark Valhalla items and events

Items:
1. Empathy Shield – Player takes damage, but so does the enemy.
2. Horn of conjuring – summons a monster to fight for you
3. Potion/ medkit – add health
4. Ammo (shells, rockets, runes, nails, souls) – used to reload weapons
5. Weapons – used in battle
6. Ring of shadows – makes the player invisible, thus allowing the player to sneak up on enemies or escape battle easier (battle bonus or escape bonus). Saves time.
7. Armor – player takes less damage
8. Flechette - random helpful or hurtful effect
9. Banishment Rune – send enemy to another area of the level
10. Rune of repulsion – deflect enemy projectiles
11. Torch – used to light dark areas
12. Death Rune – Saves the player from death once
13. Lightening rune – upgrades the player’s weapons with magical electrical power.
14. Life Rune – Adds to players health
15. Bloodlust rune – Sends the player into a berserker rage that increases the power of melee attacks.
16. Wyrd Rune – randomly acts as one of the other runes
17. Grenades – pull, throw, and run. A single use weapon.
18. Chronos Rune: Adds to time
a. Special items –
b. Severed hand – used to unlock a special area
c. Bomb of the Ancients – Used only in the final battle
d. Wings of Wrath – used to help in the final battle if found
e. Various puzzle items – used to solve puzzles for rewards (still not sure how to implement this one yet.)

Enemies:
1. Dwarf – dark and twisted version of dwarves from old mythology. Caries nail gun (perforator)-attack long range and melee
2. Valkryie- disfigured flying female warrior- attacks with melee attacks but moves from long range to close range quickly
3. Fiend – large bloody beast of muscle, claws, and teeth. Melee attack.
4. Gremlin – hairy with scales. – steals the players weapon if given the chance
5. Voreling – small spider-esque creatures that attack in packs. Special type of combat is used.
6. Berserkers – Large armored berserker warriors. Melee and ranged attack
7. Former soldiers (The infected)(grunts)- zombie infected humans – ranged attack with shotguns
8. Wolves/hounds – large feral beasts. Stronger than normal wolves. Melee attack.
9. The Wolfen – large half man half beast. Stronger than Wolves and often are accompanied by wolves.
10. Dark elves – Dark and twisted versions of elves. Ranged attack with crossbows.
11. Doom Bringer – Large demon generals of the army. Armored with cloven hooves. Melee and ranged attack.
12. Shambler – I giant blood covered behemoth of fur, claws, teeth. Fires lightening attacks.
13. Undead Warriors – ancient warriors who have returned from the dead. Throws axes. Can’t be hurt by shotguns or nail guns.
14. Weredragon – Large dragons without wings. Powerful claws and spits fire.
15. The Korvus – Raven like creatures. Uses a bone shard attack as a ranged attack.
16. Trolls – large hairy beasts that managed to Figure out how to use grenades stolen from the earth realm
17. Grendal – A gruesome feral beast with a chainsaw attached to its once missing arm. Very dangerous.
18. Ettin – a two-headed monstrosity that wields a fire mace.

Weapons:
1. Earth Weapons

a. Combat Shotgun – uses shells and is the starting weapon (+2 Damage/ Out of Ammo: 1 - 2)
b. Double Barreled Shotgun – uses shells , more powerful and runs out of ammo quicker (+4 Damage/Out of Ammo: 1-3)
c. Rocket Launcher – hell delivered at 100mph- uses rockets and causes splash damage at close to mid range. (+6 Damage/ Out of Ammo: Automatically)
d. Chainsaw – limited use but very powerful melee weapon (+5 Damage/Out of Gas: 1-2)
e. Blaster – a prototype weapon. Doesn’t need ammo, since it recharges after each use, but not quite as powerful as a shotgun. (+1 Damage/ Out of Ammo: NA)

2. Other world Weapons:

a. Perforator (nail gun) – Made by the dark dwarves. Fires metal spikes at fast rate. Uses nails (+5 Damage/Out of Ammo: 1-2, 6 )
b. Battle Axe – a strong melee weapon to have as a backup. (+4 Damage)
c. Mjolnir – Avery powerful melee weapon that can also be thrown as a ranged attack. Uses Runes for ranged attacks.
d. BloodScourge – an extremely powerful ranged weapon that uses the souls of slain enemies as ammo. Souls can only be collected if they are slain using any other weapon besides the Bloodscourge.
e. Fire Mace – uses runes. Looks like an ordinary mace but fires flaming spiked projectiles at the enemy.

Traps:
1. Earth traps
a. Ceiling cave in – the player may become trapped or find another way to get out
b. Auto turret – a malfunctioning security gun that will try to rip you apart with lead
c. Ambush – a small group of monsters surprise the player
d. Explosion – player takes damage
e. Teleport trap – sends player into a different room
2. Other Dimension Traps:
a. Slime pool – a pool of slime the player must avoid or take damage (lvl 2)
b. Trap door – the player may avoid or fall into a pit of spikes or lava (lvl 3)
c. Guillotine- a hanging swinging blade that drops from the ceiling. (lvl 3)
d. Shooting spikes – similar to auto turret (lvl 3)
e. Fire wall – player must find another way, or take damage (lvl 3)
f. Sink hole – player falls beneath the ground and must find a way out of a cave system to return to the surface. (lvl 2)
g. Quake – The ground shakes and a fissure opens under the player. Loses items. (lvl 2)
h. Ambush – same as Earth trap (lvl 2)

Events:
Earth Events
(1-2)
1. Empty room.
2. Corpse: search to find items
3. Former Human Soldier (THREAT: 2)
4. Auto Turret Trap – Test Agility to avoid. (THREAT 3)
5. Empty Room
6. Dwarf (THREAT: 3)
7. You found a severed hand.
8. Corpse: Search to find items
9. Fiend (THREAT: 4)
(3-4)
1. Corpse: Search for items
2. Explosion Trap: -1d6 Health
3. A large room with many enemies. Choose: Find Cover (-1d6 Time, Weapon runs out of ammo) OR Rush in firing (-1d6 Health, Weapon out of ammo, +1 Time)
4. Empty Room
5. Dwarf (THREAT: 3)
6. A secret chamber opens. (Gain 1 Key)
7. Ettin (THREAT: 5)
8. Corpse: Search for items
9. You found an Item
(5-6)
1. You found an Item
2. Former Human Soldier (THREAT: 2)
3. Fiend (THREAT: 4)
4. Ambush: (-1d6 Health/ Weapon out of ammo) Gain 1 Item
5. Ettin: (THREAT: 5)
6. You found Ammo
7. Ceiling collapses: (-1d6 Health/ you must leave this room the way you came in and cannot enter it again)
8. Dwarf (THREAT: 3)
9. Storage area: If you have the severed hand, you may enter the storage room and gain 1 Weapon, Flack Armor, and 2 units of Ammo (-2 Time)

LEVEL II EVENTS:

(1-2)
1. Clear Area
2. Corpse: Search for Item
3. Dwarf (THREAT: 3)
4. Valkyrie (THREAT: 6)
5. Korvus (THREAT: 7)
6. You found a Rune
7. Slime Pool: You may Choose to Go around (-2 Time) or Run through it (Test Agility: Win (-1d6 Health), Lose (-1d6+3 Health)
8. Clear Area
9. You found an Item

(3-4)
1. Corpse: Search for Item
2. Quake: Test Agility: Win (lose 1 item of your choice), Lose (lose 3 items of your choice)
3. Gremlin (THREAT: 4)
4. Fiend (THREAT: 4)
5. Weredragon: (THREAT: 8)
6. Wolf (THREAT: 3)
7. Poison Gas Spores: (-1d6+1 Health) You may not enter this area again, You must leave in the same direction you came.
8. Wolfen (THREAT: 4)
9. Vorelings

(5-6)

1. You found an Item
2. Former Human Soldier (THREAT: 2)
3. Clear Area
4. Sink Hole: Test Agility – Win (You avoid the trap), Lose (you fall into an underground cavern and must find a way out. Roll 2d6 twice to determine where you surface. The first value is your vertical position, The second number is your horizontal position. (-2d6 Time) )
5. Valkyrie (THREAT: 6)
6. Weredragon (THREAT: 8)
7. Dwarf (THREAT: 3)
8. Corpse: Search for Item
9. Korvus (THREAT: 7)

LEVEL III EVENTS:

(1-2)
1. Vorelings
2. Corpse: Search for Item
3. Guillotine: Test Agility – Win (you avoid the Trap), Lose (-2d6 Health)
4. Flame Wall: You may choose to turn around (-2 Time) or Run through the flames (-1d6+3 Health)
5. Shambler (THREAT: 9)
6. Undead Warrior (THREAT: 5)
7. Grendal (THREAT: 10)
8. Doom Bringer (THREAT: 11)
9. You found an Item

(3-4)
1. Berserker (THREAT: 6)
2. Shooting Spikes: Test Agility to avoid (THREAT: 5)
3. You Found the Key
4. Empty Room
5. Weredragon (THREAT: 8)
6. Trap Door: Test agility – Win (you avoid the trap) Lose (you fall down one tower level (-3 Health)
7. You found an Item
8. Gremlin (THREAT: 4)
9. Dwarf (THREAT: 4)

(5-6)
1. Empty Room
2. Doom Bringer (THREAT: 11)
3. Shambler (THREAT: 9)
4. Vorelings
5. You found an Item
6. Dwarf (THREAT: 4)
7. Armory: If you have the key then Choose 1 item – Fire Mace or Chain Armor
8. Doom Bringer (THREAT: 11)
9. You Found an Item

Dark Valhalla Mechanics

Level 1 mapping:
Close off a 20x20 square grid on graph paper. Staring in the bottom left corner, roll 3 dice and consult the mapping table. Draw each room or corridor in any order you like, but you must place the rooms from the bottom left side going up towards the top of the grid. Once you reach the top, start again from the leftmost bottom square that has not already had a room or corridor placed on it. Continue placing rooms in this fashion until the whole grid is filled up. You can rotate rooms and corridors anyway you like when mapping the level to make them fit. Darken any empty spaces between rooms and corridors with a pencil or pen.
Next, mark off the top and bottom edge of the grid in sections of 3 squares staring at the second square from the end. Number each section consecutively from 1 to 6. Do this for both the top and bottom. Then roll 1d6. Find the corresponding number on the bottom edge of the grid and draw a 3x3 square on the edge of the map. This is your starting room. Do the same for the top edge of the grid. That one will be the portal room.

Entering a room:
Each time you enter a new section of the map, you must roll on the event table then resolve the event. (or possibly draw an event card). If the section you enter is a room, you must also roll on the exit table to determine how many, if any, exits are in the room besides the one you came through. Exits are determined by according to the direction the player is facing (the way you came in). If the new section is a corridor, you do not have to roll for exits. Corridors always have the same number of exits depending on the corridor type. Although you can search for a hidden door in a corridor. Each section of the map can only be searched once.

Player setup:
Roll 6d6 and add 6. These are your creation points. You divide these points up between your health and time stats. You may also use them to purchase a special skill or extra equipment. Keep the 6d6 you rolled as is and set them aside. These are your skill dice. They are used to perform actions in the game. Roll 1d6 for each Skill die to determine what kind of skill they represent. Place each die in the corresponding Skill pool. (Combat, Time, or Agility). If your Health, Time, or Skill dice ever reach 0, the game is over and you have lost.

Special skills:
The player may choose one special skill at the beginning of the game and may choose one more at the end of each game level.
Ironman (Player gets +10 health to start and for every point of this skill gained)
Hellrunner (Player adds +1 to all Agility Tests)
Brute (Player gets +1 to each roll when using Melee weapons) –
Eagle Eye (Player gets +1 to each roll when firing a ranged weapon)
Arcane knowledge (add +1 bonus when using weapons from the other dimension)
Shadowman (the player may attempt to hide from enemies when they are encountered at long range.

Combat:
Discard 1 skill die, roll 1d6, and add your current weapon’s damage. If the number is higher than the monster’s Threat score +1d6, then you win. If it is lower, then you take damage equal to the monster’s Threat score, then start another round of combat. If the skill die you use is a combat skill die, then you may roll a new skill die and add it to the corresponding skill pool.
(skill die+1d6+weapon damage= attack score)
Example: Winning a battle: You use a skill die with a value of 2. You roll 1d6 and get a result of 3. Your combat shotgun has a damage score of 2, so your attack score is 7. The monster’s threat score is 3. You roll 1d6 for the monster and get a result of 2. The monster’s attack score is 5. Your 7 beats the monster’s 5, so the monster is defeated.
Example: Losing a battle: You use a skill die with a value of 3. You roll 1d6 and get a result of 1. Your combat shotgun has a damage score of 2, so your attack score is 6. The monster’s threat score is 4. You roll 1d6 for the monster and get a result of 6. The monster’s attack score is 10. The monster’s 10 beats your 6, so you take damage equal to the difference (10-6=4) plus the monster’s Threat score (4), so you take 8 damage (4+4=8). Then start another round of combat.

Player Actions:
1. Rest: only in empty rooms. (– 1 Time), (+5 Health), replenish skill dice.
2. Search: search a room for hidden items or doors. (-1 Time). Each room can only be searched once and only after all initial events are resolved for that room.
3. Move: Move to a new room on the map. (-1 Time).
4. Flee: (combat only) You may run from combat if you choose. To flee from combat, use 1 skill die and roll 1d6. If the number rolled is equal to or lower than the skill die you used, then you successfully escape from combat. (-1 Time). If the monster you are escaping from has a ranged attack, then you must also take damage equal to the monster’s Threat score – 1d6. You cannot flee from monsters at close range. If the skill die you discard is an Agility skill die, then you may roll a new skill die. (+1 Time)
5. Use item: You may use one of the items in your inventory.
6. Run: You may choose to run through your current room to the next to avoid losing time, but any monsters you encounter will appear at close range and any traps encountered will not be avoided. To run, you must discard one Skill die. If it is a Time Skill die, then you may roll for a new skill die.
7. Reload/switch weapons: You may reload your current weapon or switch weapons. (-1 Time)
8. Special Action: Various actions that are specific to certain room events.
9. Gain time: Discard 1 Skill die and gain that much time. If you discard a Time skill die, then you may roll a new skill die.