From Unplaytested Present and Underground Oracle Publishing comes a dark journey into obsession and vengeance with the solo roleplaying game No Mercy For Monsters.
The journaling RPG casts you as a monster hunter on a desperate quest, but in this dark fantasy, the monster you hunt is a reflection of the parts of yourself you wish you could destroy.
No Mercy For Monsters is a “Wretched & Alone” game, based on the award-winning system by Chris Bissette, which uses a tumbling block tower to build tension. This adaptation, created and written by Jess Pendley and Keith Pendley, swaps the tower for a deck of cards, dice, and tokens to chronicle a grim and personal story.
In the game, you are a woodsman, part of an ancient order sworn to protect your village. However, unlike your ancestors, you failed. A moment of weakness led to your parents’ death at the hands of a terrible creature known only as The Beast. Now, driven by guilt, you have embarked on a solitary hunt, vowing not to return until the monster is destroyed. The game’s narrative explores this toxic co-dependency between hunter and hunted, a space the game calls “The Hunt”.
Gameplay revolves around a “spirit counter,” a set of circles you create at the start of the game. Throughout your journey, card prompts will force you to fill in these circles. Each time you do, you must roll two six-sided dice. If the total is greater than the number of your remaining empty circles, your spirit fails, and your hunt ends in tragedy. The game can also end if you draw all four Kings from the deck or meet the special conditions of the Ace of Hearts.
Each round, you draw a number of cards, which represent your trials. The suit of the card corresponds to a different aspect of your hunt: Hearts are your memories and connection to the past, Diamonds are your obsession with The Beast, Clubs are the hardships of the trail, and Spades represent direct encounters with the monster. After resolving the cards, you record the events and your character’s feelings in a journal, which becomes the tangible record of your story.
A content warning at the start of the book makes it clear that this is an intense experience. The game delves into themes of obsession, self-loathing, guilt, revenge, and death. The prompts can be ambiguous but often lean into descriptions of violence and psychological turmoil, with specific content including blood, gore, animal death, isolation, and hallucinations.
Featuring evocative art by Tasca Skelton and Arcus Masmeyer, No Mercy For Monsters is a polished and compelling package for fans of dark solo RPGs.
Overall
I was very much in the mood for dark solo escapism when I cracked open the game. I liked every aspect except the 2d6 and their tyranny of random. The toxic co-dependency between me and the rivals I had to deal with was one thing, but the story ending before I felt it should have was a rough blow.
Overall, though, despite the threat of randomness, I recommend No Mercy For Monsters, especially for those who doubt solo games can work, because this game proves they do.
Disclaimer: My copy of No Mercy For Monsters was provided free to review.
Quick Links
You can begin your own hunt today, as No Mercy For Monsters is available as a PDF from DriveThruRPG.
