Want to play a tabletop RPG, but don’t want to learn a ton of rules? Maybe you’re new to the genre, or maybe you’re just looking for a light hearted one shot while your DND campaign is on an “indefinite break”. Regardless of your reason for needing them, here are 5 of the best one-page RPGs around!
5. Dungeons and Business Cards
Dungeon crawling at its finest. Art from Dungeoneer by Atlas Games.
Game Source: https://arispen.itch.io/dnbc
Dungeons and Business Cards is a cute little portable RPG - literally played on a business card! All you need is a pencil and a d6, and you’re ready to delve deep into the dungeons. You’ll kill monsters, gather treasure, and win - if you find the amulet of Yendor.
Start by rolling your character - roll a d6 to determine if you’re a halfling, dwarf, or elf. Each race has monsters they’re good at killing. Then write your name in the spot for it and you’re good to start!
The dungeon is simple - the same layout for each floor, and infinite floors. Then you move through each room, rolling a d6 to see what’s in it.
If there’s a monster, roll 4 or above to hit it. If you roll 1-3, you get hit instead, and lose 1 health. Reference the card to see how many times you have to hit the monster to defeat it.
If there’s a trap, roll 4 or above to avoid getting hit! Same deal - if you get hit by the trap, you lose 1 health.
If there’s an item, roll to see what the item is. You can get coins, which you spend at the potion shop at each level to regain health. You can get armor or a sword, each of which gives you +1 die to use in battle or against traps (roll a second d6 and pick which result to use).
Or, if you roll a 6, re-roll. If you then roll 1-3, you get a regular amulet, which gives you +1 die. If you roll a 4-6, you get the amulet of Yendor, and you win the game!
Play This If You Like...
- Simplicity: this is a very simple and easy game to learn and play. Even for one-page rpgs! This makes it perfect for a quick game on the fly, or for teaching people who are new to the genre.
- Classic Dungeon Diving: Fight monsters! Gather loot! Dodge traps! It’s the epitome of the dungeon crawling genre.
- Short-term games: This is not a game designed to be played for a very long time. You’ll spend an hour at most - which is perfect for people who don’t have 3-5 hours to spare on their weekends!
- Solo adventures: Yes, this can be played with more than 1 person, but it’s best as a solo game! Plus, not many tabletop rpgs are solo-capable. But this one is!
4. Colonial Space Grunts
Badass suits of armor rule the stars. Art from Warhammer 40,000 by Focus Entertainment.
Game Source: https://docs.google.com/document/d/13IWa0JCZ_5z8L3q-iVn0FCw46-CqBaFQAUkOyCpBl04/edit
Colonial Space Grunts is a deck-of-cards-based combat RPG! You (and up to 3 of your friends) are “Space Grunts” fighting off invading “Xenobugs”. You’ll need a standard 52-card deck of playing cards, a d20, a pencil, and paper.
To make your characters, split 15 points between “RUN” and “GUN” stats. Each stat must have a minimum of 5 points. Lower scores are better. Also, each grunt starts with 1 armor and 3 health.
To play, simply shuffle the deck and draw a card. The card drawn determines if you’re fighting a xenobug swarm (3-10), a trap (2), a boss (ace), or rescuing a civilian (face cards).
For xenobug swarms, their number determines their run score. Then you compare it to your own run scores, and whoever has the lowest one goes first.
On the swarm’s turn, each player rolls a d20. If they roll above their own RUN score, they avoid getting hit! Otherwise, they take one point of damage. This hits their armor first, and if there is no more armor, it hits their health. If you run out of health, you die.
On the grunt’s turn, each grunt rolls a d20 - roll above your own GUN score, and you hit the xenobugs! The swarm has an amount of health equal to the number of players. Whoever lands the killing blow takes the swarm card as loot, which they can redeem later by discarding that card.
The loot is determined by the suit of the card. It provides options like temporarily boosting a roll, or refilling health or armor.
Civilian cards permanently boost your character, also determined by suit. They also boost rolls, and refill health and armor.
When a trap is drawn, all players roll, and must roll above their RUN score or take 1 damage.
Bosses are particularly fun - they are just like swarms, except they always go first, and they have special attacks that simultaneously deal extra damage, buff the boss, or nerf the grunts.
The game ends when you’ve beaten a number of bosses equal to the number of players!
Play This If You Like...
- Space warfare: You’re fighting off swarms of aliens, saving civilians, dodging traps. Yes it’s all imaginary, but that’s RPGs for ya!
- RNG-based gaming: This game is pretty heavy on the randomness of the encounter generation. You’re basically trying your luck and hoping for the best as you make your way through the alien hordes.
- The satisfaction of upgrades: Between the temporary buffs you get from defeated xenobugs, and the permanent ones from rescued civilians, this is a game that the longer you play, the more powerful you’ll feel.
3. Sexy Battle Wizards
It doesn't get much sexier than this. Or much battleier. Or much wizardier. Art made with AI by juicy-badger720 on Prompt Hunt.
Game Source: https://gshowitt.itch.io/sexy-battle-wizards
Sexy Battle Wizards is about as fun and chaotic as the name suggests. It’s a game designed around the typical “1 GM, multiple players” format, but could theoretically be played by yourself. It’s pretty wild west, both in the sense of being loose on specifics, and in the sense of being loose in morals and vibes.
The game is pretty straightforward. Players play as sexy battle wizards, roaming the land and solving problems with their three stats - SEXY, BATTLE, and WIZARD.
Character creation consists of ranking each of these three stats as 1, 2, or 3. Then, you roll and refer to the provided tables to determine: why you’re so sexy; what’s your signature weapon; and what’s your school of magic. These things don’t do anything mechanically, but are crucial for the role playing aspect of the game.
For example, you could have sculpted muscles, fight with a cannon, and study the way of ten thousand mirrors.
Then, the GM tells you what the disaster is, and you take over! The instructions give tables for the GM to roll to determine what’s wrong, what the place is like, and who’s trying to stop the wizards this time.
For example, the undead are rising in the catacombs of a big palace full of moppish nobles, and the sexy librarian guards the information you need.
Players will then try to solve the issues through role play, until dice are needed. Then they roll 1, 2, or 3 d6, depending on which ability they’re using. (If you’re seducing the librarian, and SEXY is ranked 2, then roll 2d6). Then pick the highest result.
The difficulty of the task is 4, 5, or 6. It’s determined by the GM, and is based on the impact of success. Rolling higher than the difficulty is a flat success. Matching it gives you success and +1 stress, and failing it gives +1 stress and +1 determination, but you fail to do what you’re trying to do.
Determination is an expendable resource, which you expend to roll extra dice on a one-off basis.
If you fail a roll, and the highest number you rolled is less than the amount of stress you have, you - and I quote - “explode in a burst of magic”. Optionally, you reform a few in-game days later with stress and determination reset to zero.
Play This If You Like...
- Creative thinking: This game is wide open on encounters, both for the GM and the players. Other than the rolling mechanics, it’s basically a “here’s what happens, what do you do” kind of game. Which can be great, if you’re willing to get creative!
- Animalistic Impulsiveness: It’s in the title, but this game is all about going wild. In the rules, everything is sexy. It literally tells the GM: “if an NPC isn’t kissable, think: “Could I make them kissable”? It’s all about having fun in the least civilized way possible.
- Whimsy: Please, please play this with silly people. You literally explode if you die! This is a game meant to be taken lightly, and to just have silly, creative, sexy fun.
2. Honey Heist
Bears are not the best thieves. Image Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/video-shows-black-bear-stealing-amazon-package-connecticut-porch-n1277546.
Game Source: https://gshowitt.itch.io/honey-heist
Honey heist is a game about “Goddam bears” pulling off a “complex plan that requires precise timing”. In it, you’ll play as, you guessed it, bears! And you’re robbing the prize from “Honeycon 2017”.
Character creation is simple - roll 3d6, and consult the tables. One for your descriptor (rookie, retired, slick, etc), one for your role (muscle, brains, hacker, etc), and one for your bear type / skill (Grizzly-terrify, polar-swim, etc).
Optionally, roll a d8 to determine your hat. Yes, that’s a real table in the rules. No, it doesn’t make a difference to the game.
Then you put 3 points into BEAR and 3 points into CRIMINAL. BEAR is for things related to being a bear - mauling things, climbing, scaring people, etc. CRIMINAL is for everything else.
Then the GM sets the scene and you get going! Make your plans, and try to execute them. If there’s ever doubt about the result, roll a d6. You succeed if the roll matches or is less than the relevant skill. (Trying to maul someone, and your BEAR is 3, you have to roll a 3 or lower). You get an extra d6 if the thing you’re doing is related to your special skill, or your type of bear, or your role.
If something goes well, move a point from BEAR to CRIMINAL. If it goes poorly, move a point from CRIMINAL to BEAR. If you ever reach 6 in either category, your bear leaves the party - either to pursue a life of crime (6 CRIMINAL) or they lose their cool and get taken by animal control (6 BEAR).
Also, you can choose to move points manually via flashbacks of making plans with the other bears “over coffee and cigarettes”.
Otherwise, get heistin’! Page 2 of the rpg gives the DM some ideas for setting details. For example, where the convention is being held, what the organizer is like, what the grand prize they’re heisting is. Keep going till the heist succeeds or fails, or till everyone abandons ship!
Play This If You Like...
- “Simple” heists: Love ocean’s 11? Couldn’t possibly think of the plan yourself? This is the perfect game for you.
- Bears! If you like bears, you get to be bears!
- Simplicity that leads to chaos: the simple rules and setup is perfectly designed for craziness to ensue.
1. The Witch is Dead
This one's for the cottagecore fans who want a little more vengeance in their lives. Art by Maxima on GoodFon.
Game Source: https://gshowitt.itch.io/the-witch-is-dead
In “The Witch is Dead”, you and your friends play as little forest animals that were helpers for a friendly, beautiful, lovely forest witch. Emphasis on “were”, because a witch hunter came and murdered her!!
Fortunately, you can bring your witch friend back via REVENGE. Find the witch hunter (who fled to the nearby village) and kill him! Then bring his eyes back to the witch’s corpse and she’ll come back to life.
You’ll use 4 skills in this game: CLEVER, for interacting with humans (and human things), FIERCE for fighting things (clawing, scratching, etc), SLY for being tricky (sneaking, stealing, hiding), and QUICK for running away.
To make your character, simply roll a d10 and compare it to the animal table. Each one has pre-set stats: for example, the Fox has 2 CLEVER, 2 FIERCE, 1 SLY, and 1 QUICK. Also, your witch taught you a basic “hedge-magic” spell that you can use (like Plant Growth, or Conjure Light).
When you try to do something, roll a d10 and add the relevant skill’s modifier. The GM decides how difficult the task is on a scale of 6 to 10, with 10 being “near impossible”.
If you don’t equal or beat the difficulty, you fail and gain 1 danger. If you ever roll equal to or under your danger, something terrible happens to you - captured, killed, injured, etc - depending on the situation, and the GM’s discretion.
The rules also come with a few tables for the GM. These help them determine a detail about the villagers (i.e. they’re very superstitious), the witch hunter (i.e. armored and tough), and a secret twist (i.e. the witch hunter died and is being buried).
Play This If You Like...
- Little forest critters: You can be a fox, a toad, and a magpie, among 7 other animals! Very cute! Potentially cottagecore!
- Revenge: that murderous witch hunter deserves to die! Even if the spell to bring the witch back fails. Take joy in ripping his eyes out!
- Being disadvantaged: In the notes of the rules, it says “Remember, most tasks that are normal for humans are really difficult for animals, unless broken down into much smaller steps”. This is a game where, as animals going against human(s), you’re definitely the underdog. Or underfox.
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