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Motif Story Engine (Solo and GM-Lite Roleplaying Toolkit)

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Now a DriveThruRPG Platinum Best Seller!!! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your support! <3

  • This Engine is a system I would describe as a true "Ask the GM" system. --- DTRPG Review
  • [I]f this is what the future of solo looks like, it is very promising indeed. --- /r/Solo_Roleplaying comment
  • Motif Story Engine is a solo play oracle, an add-on solo RPG system.
    • It provides a dice system and guidance for playing most existing RPGs alone and in small groups without a formal game moderator.
  • Enjoy your favorite roleplaying games alone! 
    • Play RPGs without the need for game moderator to handle the rules and generate the world. The dice oracle answers questions you would normally ask your GM.
  • Skip the heavy lifting of prep and jump right in! 
    • Whether you are playing alone or in a small "GM-lite" group, MSE helps minimize the setup. The world and plotlines organically evolve as the oracle reveals the world.

This is a complete ashcan release. 

Patches and play guidance will be expanded over time. 
MSE was originally designed to enable quick pickup play games and fast evolving stories. 

The Motif Story Engine is a modular GM and narrator emulator:

  • Use a simple backbone of 3d6 rolls.
  • Mix and match options to tailor your experience and add depth to results.
    • Use as many or as few as suits you. All options are optional.
  • Ask questions just as you would ask a game moderator or storyteller.
  • Simple results and lists that drive your story without getting in the way.
  • Extensible, easily hacked and reskinned for a variety of genres and play styles.

Motif Story Engine provides a robust engine that includes:

  • The use of three standard six-sided dice for the main oracle
  • Guidance for adding twists & turns to your games, bringing an element of surprise
  • A patch for introducing escalating tension in your adventure
  • A patch for bringing increasing chaos and weirdness to the tale

Additional features:

  • Options for different third die effects & results ("flavor die")
  • A mission clock system, representing the limited time and high pressure of sensitive quests
  • A momentum system patch, providing a boost or greater obstacles as your momentum waxes and wanes
  • A prompt system for NPCs, using thought and behavior guidelines to make them easier to emulate in solo and quick play games
  • A prompt system for world events, to generate random events and challenges to provide new hooks and story inspiration

Prior Update:

  • Several expansions of advice and guidance
  • Updated Twists & Turns Patch
  • Assorted clarifications
  • Brand new Mysteries Patch.

Latest Update:

  • HUGE update with 50% more new content! (Page count jumping from 77 to 109!)
  • New flavor examples.
  • Brand new patch for generating rumor seeds.
  • Greatly expanded guidance and examples.
  • General revisions and tuning.

Part of the Motif Game Framework

A series of toolkits that enable GM-less, GM-lite "no prep", and solo roleplaying. They are modular and easily hackable. They are also game agnostic! Use them to enable GM-less and solo play with your favorite games. 

Highlighted Runs On Motif releases:

This is a "backer" type edition.
Purchasers of this version will receive
all future PDF updates to this title
at no additional cost. 

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Reviews (4)
Discussions (18)
Customer avatar
Stacey R October 26, 2023 1:35 am UTC
PURCHASER
Any chance of a print version please? There’s such great info here that I would love a printed copy. Thank you.
Customer avatar
Nicolette W November 11, 2022 6:52 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Are there still plans for a print version? Love the system so much!
Customer avatar
Ned B October 01, 2022 3:11 pm UTC
Any chance of a print version, or are the changes and updates too fast and furious?
Customer avatar
Laimonas P November 04, 2021 6:13 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Loving the system, but when is the new update coming? Any estimate?
Customer avatar
Ned B August 30, 2021 3:11 pm UTC
I would like to purchase Motif, but I prefer print. I see below that you plan to publish a POD in the near future. How far out are you from this? Thanks.
Customer avatar
Valdus C July 13, 2021 5:26 am UTC
PURCHASER
I recall the story engine having quick reference sheets. Is this still part of the new edition?
Reply
Customer avatar
Valdus C July 27, 2021 3:01 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Where is the edition with the reference sheets in the back?
Reply
Customer avatar
Valdus C December 13, 2022 1:51 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Still searching the crevices of the internet for that very useful reference sheet that was included in the first issue. Any chance of seeing it again?
Customer avatar
Kevin M June 23, 2021 4:53 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Loving it so far! Any chance for a POD?
Reply
Customer avatar
Peter C June 24, 2021 6:15 am UTC
PUBLISHER
Our current schedule is to work through one more major revision, revise a bit of the layout and add a little suggestive art to break the text up a bit, and then finalize that edition as the first ashcan print edition. So say give us a month or so to work on that revision and then another month or so to order our proof copy and hammer out any printing bugs.

tl;dr: Not just a chance, an upcoming certainty.
Reply
Customer avatar
Ned B September 22, 2021 6:10 am UTC
How close are you to a print version at this time?
Customer avatar
Alvin G June 05, 2021 7:15 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Do you have a change log? I absolutely love how much more content you’ve added, but I just want to read what has been added or changed.
Reply
Customer avatar
Peter C June 24, 2021 6:14 am UTC
PUBLISHER
Unfortunately, we did not maintain a clean change log for the updates. However, we added comparing the old versions to create a revision summary to our action list. We should get that up in a week or so.
Customer avatar
Alvin G April 23, 2021 3:13 pm UTC
PURCHASER
The latest update filled a lot of holes that made the previous version seem lacking. Thank you for putting in more examples and the addition to the simplified second die.
Reply
Customer avatar
Peter C April 24, 2021 2:48 am UTC
PUBLISHER
Thank you! We are doing our best to listen to feedback. This major update is directly based on what we heard were requests and needs. We are working on similar updates for the rest of the Motif engines. If there is anything else missing or another title you'd like to see updated, visit our website at thoughtpolice.games and go to Bugs & Requests under Products.
Customer avatar
Robert H March 28, 2021 6:59 pm UTC
PURCHASER
I really like this system,but the rules seem so open ended, that I am not sure which way to go yet.
I know this may be a feature to some,not a bug, but as I am new to the solo rpg thing,some solid, actual, in- use examples in the book would go such a long way to help a newbie to better understand how to incorporate them into an enjoyable experience.
I have also purchased the World engine and Character engine, but these both seem like outlines, with very little direction.
I have searched all around, looking for discussions, videos, or any other guidance on how to better utilize what is there, and only found a couple of really short examples, written by individuals who are obviously well versed in solo play, but not meant for beginners.
If you update these rules,please think about adding some play examples,especially with the modules.
I love what I have read, and it seems better than other oracles I have tried, but I am having trouble interpreting the rolls into anything useful or...See more
Reply
Customer avatar
Peter C April 24, 2021 2:42 am UTC
PUBLISHER
The newest update with expanded guidance and examples may help!
Customer avatar
Alex N March 23, 2021 5:40 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Excellent work on this!

(Hey I wonder if version 0.3 and 0.4 is not just a typo in the update. The cover art for 0.4 is also seemingly a mockup prototype looking thing and not the nice art cover that is the thumbnail for this listing here at DTRPG.)
Customer avatar
van C February 18, 2021 8:43 pm UTC
PURCHASER
how many pages in motif story engine?
Reply
Customer avatar
Peter C April 24, 2021 2:42 am UTC
PUBLISHER
It was 77, but now with the latest update it is 109!
Customer avatar
Kai Z January 17, 2021 10:52 pm UTC
The full size preview isn't working.
Reply
Customer avatar
Lee S February 14, 2021 6:02 pm UTC
PURCHASER
Still not working.
Reply
Customer avatar
Peter C April 24, 2021 2:41 am UTC
PUBLISHER
Should be functional now.
Customer avatar
Piotr S January 04, 2021 11:27 am UTC
PURCHASER
in files v4 is the same as v3? can you update it?
Reply
Customer avatar
Ria O February 27, 2021 5:42 pm UTC
PURCHASER
0.4 says 0.3 on the cover but it has more pages, so I think that they have updated it.
Customer avatar
Peter C August 31, 2020 11:15 pm UTC
PUBLISHER
New revision! Twists & Turns Patch retuned. All new complete Mysteries Patch.
Reply
Customer avatar
Dawid N September 05, 2020 1:45 pm UTC
PURCHASER
New version still has v0.3 on front cover
Just letting you know :)
Reply
Customer avatar
Alvin G October 18, 2020 7:32 am UTC
PURCHASER
Just noticed that too. Has it been updated or is that a typo?
Reply
Customer avatar
Davy L December 12, 2020 12:39 am UTC
PURCHASER
That's definitely a typo, the document has been correctly updated as per the mention here above in the description (under section "Latest Update")
Customer avatar
Valdus C August 03, 2020 9:32 pm UTC
PURCHASER
How would one patch the system so that the character can influence a roll, via abilities or actions?
Reply
Customer avatar
Peter C August 06, 2020 5:08 am UTC
PUBLISHER
Generally, this would be handled using your RPG system, as it handles actions. However, there is a companion game engine being released soon.
Reply
Customer avatar
Valdus C August 06, 2020 1:59 pm UTC
PURCHASER
You have one gorgeous thing there, Peter. As you can see from my review. I ask about mechanics because I am currently running a Tunnels and Trolls game online (you are most welcome to join). My adventurers are in this blasted crater that's messing with their minds. So I proposed to your oracle "Are there encounters about?" I get a (meh) 4. So I wanted to nudge the oracle a bit. Would this be solved by twists and turns?
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Product Information
Platinum seller
Author(s)
Rule System(s)
Pages
109
Publisher Stock #
TPI-MSE011
File Size:
2.22 MB
Format
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File Last Updated:
April 22, 2021
This title was added to our catalog on June 01, 2020.