Thousand Year Old Vampire - A Solo RPG Review

[@timh4168]

Creator here: I am really enjoying how perfectly Seth has called me out on "memories are a single sentence" and "this character sheet example isn't really that great."

[@SSkorkowsky]

Hi Tim! You didn't leave much for me to criticize. You did a fantastic job making a beautiful game.

[@sinisterthoughts2896]

Dude... the message on your website is very bigoted and hypocritical. Seriously, you are projecting very hard and act as guilty as those you blame.

[@sinisterthoughts2896]

​​​@@SSkorkowsky sounded cool, but the author has a lot of hate and likes margianilizing people. Just look at his website, he has a whole manifesto there. In it he even claims all creative types(that would include you) "universally hate" people who have any disagreement with his personal politics. Obviously that is a ridiculous claim, but it still is in very poor taste. I just want you to be aware there are apparently some strong implications dealing with this person.

[@timh4168]

​@@SSkorkowsky But I kid you not: I put that character sheet in thinking "This isn't a usable thing but someone won't have the slightest idea how to organize their character sheet. This'll get 'em started."

[@originaluddite]

To some extent it's also the fault of English, a-la those run-on sentences in Regency novels. Maybe that's when the vampire learned to write. :)

[@gbgamer9474]

I especially love Jack checking in through the ages to mention tips and tricks

[@SSkorkowsky]

I'm pretty sure this vid holds the record for the most Jack costumes

[@dmeep]

@@SSkorkowsky the most Jack costumes so far....

[@davidbrennan660]

Has Jack sent in the invoice yet for his wardrobe use yet?.... he strikes me as the kind of guy that keeps all the receipts from filming ........and that he steals Cigars from your desk when you leave the room..... I say as I see.... A would best mark the Liquor bottles as well with a felt tip.... but hey, you know your your NPCs better than I do..... I just say as some of mine I think when to the same finishing schools.

[@--enyo--]

Sort of reminds me of the movie ‘Orlando’.

[@Torvik40]

@@dmeep Yeah, it made me wonder just how big Seth's costume collection is.

[@ADiceySituation]

Finally got around to teaching us how to play with ourselves, eh Seth?

[@SSkorkowsky]

I'm a man of my word

[@nodtothestrange1008]

I had a great time playing this last year. Like Seth I also scoffed at the warning at how dark and distressing it could be but then surprised myself at how much it affected me when characters died after having a long history in the story. My character lasted about six hundred years. I played as an English peasant farmhand almost killed in the Battle of Hastings in 1066 and then saved via undeath by a mysterious vampire. There was an antagonist vampire called Mar who harassed me over a couple of hundred years until I wrapped a heavy chain around him and left him on a riverbank for the sun. I was almost discovered by a vampire hunter in Kent, England but I managed to poison him to get rid of him. Years later his descendent tracked me down in Germany and befriended me, said he forgave me for killing his ancestor and then staked me and cut my head off in my sleep.

[@ts25679]

I fully expected the video to end on Sympathy for the Devil

[@sollytom6266]

I got a chuckle from the reference to "Night at the Opera" in the outro.

[@thomasbecker9676]

That book looks incredible. Also, props to the costume changes throughout the ages.

[@vilhelmpuddintain9295]

I have actually played this before! But, perhaps appropriately, I... don't remember what happened in my playthrough, and I lost the journal I wrote as part of it. Whoops!

[@SSkorkowsky]

Are... are you a 1,000-year-old vampire?

[@johncollins7631]

Using this as a resource for making characters for Vampire the Masquerade when I’m feeling stumped would be really useful.

[@songsayswhat]

I've used it. Great way to flesh out elders' backgrounds.

[@balamstudios]

This was actually a very good idea

[@LoganCrazyBoy]

Seth in a helmet with fake teeth going "this is a pretty dark game intended for mature audiences" got me laughing so hard

[@aklevah1]

Also of note, the ink on the spine of the book is glow in the dark.

[@SSkorkowsky]

Wait! What? _Runs off to check_ Holy crap! It glows in the dark!

[@tubasaur]

Yup, I found that out on accident. I emailed the author and he said it was meant to be a little easter egg.

[@Zandaarl]

Wow, thanks! I have had that book for 3 months now and never noticed! 🤯

[@azraelle6232]

Now I wonder if there's anything that glows under a UV light.

[@nielle1963]

Sticker on front: Bibliotheca Regia Hafniensis De Forbudte bøgers værelse Translated from Latin and Danish: The Royal Library of Copenhagen Room of the Forbidden Books

[@chadsmith8966]

This definitely looks like a great resource for creating a vampire villain. Imagine a COC campaign where the investigators come across these old journals during their adventures, slowly piecing them together. Learning about this vampire’s origins and life only for the bloodsucker to arrive and want his memories back. That would be awesome.

[@odolowa1]

Moment that really stuck with me when I played this game was my vampire getting the prompt to sell his oldest possession, and I realized that at that point his oldest possession was his journal that contained his original name.

[@--enyo--]

Ouch

[@matthewconstantine5015]

I've only played through one game of this so far. I spent time as a lord in Eastern Europe and as a wizard in Venice. But after fleeing to the New World, things didn't go well and I ended up dying on a park bench in LA sometime around 1980.

[@cadenceclearwater4340]

Perhaps Jack should only feed on alcoholics🍷😅

[@paulbigbee]

Another Ennie-class video: that art piece for the Vampire Creation slide - just magnificent Seth!

[@SSkorkowsky]

Thank you very much. Though all the art came from the rulebook. I merely Photoshopped them into proper slides

[@nasir6r996]

I had fun with this game Played an ancient Turkic Khan who was cursed for killing and eating his dad out of desperation. His mark was that storm clouds followed him wherever he went, as Tengri was so disgusted by him that he refused to shine light on him. He learned how to speak and write Farsi, which is how he was able to keep a journal. It was badass. His whole tribe/horde became kind of infamous, as his Mark made it that members had to travel far in order to escape the oppressive darkness. He lost his horde eventually, and Temujin (Genghis Khan himself) put him down. The last entry I set up as a "controversial, supposedly lost fragment of The Secret History of the Mongols" where I went into detail about it. "Go on, Temujin. Strike me down. I'll always be Khan here" were his last words. Needless to say, I enjoyed it

[@alantheinquirer7658]

Please for the love of Nosferatu, do NOT make the Mark your skin glitters in sunlight!

[@rommdan2716]

It will going to be I "become a bat themed dark vigilante"

[@cam4636]

The dark curse leads you to that eternal hell: High School...for _eternity_

[@goadfang]

I really enjoyed the game, but I also didn't feel like playing again. It was interesting, but the book was probably the best part. I plan to gift my copy to someone who I think will love it more than I did. Still, a very interesting experience and I think most people interested in RPGs should at least try it out.

[@RockOfLions]

A Seth Skorkowsky calendar of one of he's characters each month plugging one of his #1 game recommends each month would almost be worth buying.

[@Lasiusi]

Yeah i kinda wanted to say the same, so im for it!

[@andrewlance3898]

Jack the NPC could easily have a calendar of his own

[@rsjastoz]

Seth please make a calendar! I missed out on the Tabletop friends merch. I would love a calendar from you!

[@dubuyajay9964]

01:15. Time to go ask a Tzimisce to give me more grey matter.... 10:30. "American Psycho" Vampire?

[@FatalKitsune]

I know what a doge (duke) is, but internet memes have so tainted my brain that every time I hear the word I think of that dog. So I just kept imagining Seth's character pledging his service to a cheerful-looking dog in sunglasses.

[@DominusRexDK]

Bibliotheca Regia Hafniensis and the "De forbudte bøgers værelse" - to you non danish readers out there, The Forbidden Books Chamber/Room apart from the forbidden books, the latin is an old ownership mark that was used by the Royal Library in Copenhagen -just something you may find interesting.

[@naughtiusmaximus1231]

Seth your alter-ego Jack showing up as a vampire in different historical costumes is really great, love your content.

[@SSkorkowsky]

Thank you very much.

[@euansmith3699]

The skits in this video are especially funny, and the costumes are very impressive; fangs really suit Jack. A calendar, eh? Featuring all of Seth's characters? That could be fun.

[@Chipperz1]

"God knows he aint pretty enough for an OnlyFans" is the biggest laugh I've had at anything for a long, long time :P

[@LadyLunarSatine]

Thank you fir covering this. It not only sounds interesting but I had never been given an explanation on how these sorts of RPGs are played. Also, something seems amiss with the publisher's website when I try to visit it.

[@SSkorkowsky]

Hmm. Link should be working but the site seems to be having trouble. Maybe a rush of traffic? I dunno.

[@SSkorkowsky]

Appears to be back up.

[@sinisterthoughts2896]

An interesting note from the author on there.

[@scottturner3831]

Seth, do is there any way Mongoose would give your viewers a discount or perhaps a black friday sale? There's a significant number of books I'd like to purchase, but I'd also like to get them at kickatarter prices, which I have missed out on. Or do you know when there will be the next Mongoose kickstarter for Traveller?

[@bigblue344]

Solo RPG's are so underrated.

[@alessandroraviolo1305]

That feeling when you see a new Seth's video 🎉 and it's about an RPG I've been drooling on for months, too!

[@Spark_Chaser]

Love this video. Did a great job of pointing out how the system works, and some "how to" on it. Also loved the costume changes each time we checked in with Jack. This does remind me of a game I go through Itchio called "The Wretched." It's a sci-fi "trapped on a ship with an alien monster trying to get in" story. Uses playing cards and a "wooden block tower" to help give prompts for scenes. Intended to be recorded, but I could also see it as text logs. It would be a great way to set up a "lost derelict" plot for a Traveller game. Run through the game to a conclusion, then have the players find the ship, with all the logs, and let them have fun with the monster on the ship.

[@RupertFoulmouth]

Bought a copy as a gift for a friend based on your review. You give great inspire and honest feedback.

[@SSkorkowsky]

Hope they enjoy it

[@matthewautodidactyl612]

Ya know... maybe Seth ain't pretty enough for a calandar... but I'm thinkin' Jack might just be able to pull it off... Especially if he's doing a different game each month.

[@Reuvii]

Put me down for one of the "12 Months of Skorkowsky" Calendars

[@DrFranklynAnderson]

I know VtM isn’t your thing, Seth, but in case you ever try it I’ve got three words for you: Jack the Toreador

[@GunsoftheArchangels]

This is gonna be such good supplemental/backstory material for Vampire: The Masquerade NPCs!!!

[@fran3ro]

Great t-shirt. The most important memory should be the time when he chopped the fire giant's head... through the boooooone!

[@northernlight8857]

I dont get solo rpgs. I love the interactions with the other players, but I love that it exsists.

[@songsayswhat]

I'm so excited to see you review 1000 Year Old Vampire! I purchased it when it came out & have had so much fun with it. Made some amazing vampires along the way, too. I can't speak highly enough of it.

[@Skimmer951]

Im not much of a journaler but man I want that book its gorgeous. Thanks for the video Seth!

[@kennyh1203]

A Jack the NPC calendar could be pretty dang funny/cool. #JustSaying

[@NefariousKoel]

"Gary The Ghoul's Reflections On His Life, Times, and Cuisine Through The Ages."

[@sirguy6678]

The game seems like it’s best enjoyed by aspiring writers and the people who always felt they didn’t get enough homework in high school

[@blshouse]

Calendar featuring Jack and the rest of the gang releasing when? Christmas 2023 to soon?

[@dmeep]

written in 1020 published in 2020

[@MaxWriter]

This feels like Varney the Vampire the Role Playing Game. This is interesting, and I could see it's use for background and history. Nice review.

[@Blairwolfvt]

Now Jack the NPC on the other hand, *he* could have a calender.

[@paulcrosslin]

Solo RPGs are gaining a foothold and It's not a bad thing. The wonder of "Choose Your Own Adventure" combined with cinematic soundtracks. Play it when you want to and get immersed in your own sweet time. I highly recommend Sound Realms. Other than that, here is a reference .. "And we wept, Precious, we wept to be so alone. And we only wish to catch fish so juicy sweet. And we forgot the taste of bread... the sound of trees... the softness of the wind. We even forgot our own name."

[@SaucerheadTharp]

I enjoyed the game. I did a play-through where one of my resources was a Bavarian castle over a little village and I went from a manor Lord to a sinister thing that dwelt beneath the castle ruins while my legend became a thing of dark myth.

[@vitore.sanches7712]

He did it! Seth finally told us about him playing with himself! XD But, seriously, I LOVE solo RPGs and this is a great example of how rich this kind of games are. It's certainly not for everyone, but I believe everybody should at least try one once and see how it goes. Tip: try The Solo Investigator's Handbook for Call of Cthulhu or Legacy of Cthulhu, a Brazilian post-apocalyptic game about the rise of the Great Old Ones.

[@bryanstephens4800]

Oh cool solo play. Been looking at that for Travaller. Only way I get to play I think.

[@SSkorkowsky]

I have a copy of Solo for Traveller, but haven't done anything with it.

[@bryanstephens4800]

@@SSkorkowsky maybe I beat you too it! You have people to play with, even is your Psion is below average!

[@SSkorkowsky]

He really is a terrible Psion.

[@ericjome7284]

The costume changes for Jack were excellent.

[@claudiavilleneuve7936]

I also tried to play solo rpgs, but couldnt finish my story of 1000YO vamp. But I couldnt finish Lichdom either. My vampire was pretty cool, but I found out I had trouble keeping it short and wanted to expand on what happened to my also heart-eating japanese courtesan whose chest had become a huge thoothy maw with a freaking long tongue rolled up around her spine. See? I suck at short sentences lol. As you said, I think i'd rather write a short story rather than follow prompts but the game itself is expertly made. Loving the wardrobe in this vid!

[@thomasedin764]

A long time ago (not thousands) we had a discussion about Vampire the masquerade and other setting where the characters play immortals. This is difficult to comprehend and both for the GM and for the players to have a feeling how it should be played. In a way it is also hard to understand even how the life was for some one in the 1920 like in CoC. So this solo game is a perfect way for a player or a GM to come up with a understanding how it could be to be immortal. Usually this type of games risk to be another action game, but I like to a deeper understanding (even not perfect) how it could be. Great job Seth and @timh4168

[@kevinkabal6598]

Seth may not be pretty enough to do a calendar, but Jack...! C'mon... free your inner Jack and give us 12 months of awesome scotchy advice on how to survive Mythos encounters. I dare you!

[@madsbardino2862]

De forbudtes bøgers værelse funny little thing. Part of the text on the cover is Danish. De forbudtes bøgers værelse It means: The Forbidden Books room. keep it up with your awesome videos

[@digiparkz]

i played this game when it was recommended on the shut up and sit down channel, it was such a blast!! i personally played a vampire who was about to die from the bubonic plague and had buboes they had to hide along with their mangled arm from when they were turned into a vampire, it was so fun to get myself to dig through older history that i probably wouldn't have otherwise!

[@nubertuberluber]

I was having a good day. Then I saw Seth put out a new video; now I'm having a *great* day!

[@normative]

Ooh. I love this book and it had not even occurred to me to use it to make up a thoroughly fleshed out villain for my CoC group.

[@YouTubeIsRunByMarxists]

Nice mail armor aventail. I suppose it's large enough to be described as a bishop's mantle. You need full mail armor.

[@junkbucket50]

Hey Seth have you considered trying Vampire: The Masquerade? It's my favourite game and would be really cool to see you do some videos on it!

[@Growls]

Holy hell! Seth, just spotted the Pendragon Starter Set back there. Review at a point?

[@Gruoldfar]

So, how would this work with a player and a GM or 2 players doing this together?

[@Raven.flight]

Seth delivers again. Thanks Seth.

[@dicewrites]

TYOV is one of my all time favorite rpgs, played it about a half dozen times now and I've had a lot of great experiences with it.

[@boop5725]

I was going to buy the book, but the author had a caveat on his site saying that he didnt want any conservatives to buy his books. I'm not conservative, but found the statement a bit grating, so i wont be buying it. Thanks for the review anyway, Seth.

[@mkklassicmk3895]

Jack actually looks pretty legit as a Vampire.

[@chazaktyler]

I don't really have anything clever to say, so this is just for the algorithm.

[@mcox2171]

Honey wake up! There is a new RPG Review!

[@theresaa.5043]

Very interesting single-player game review. Your books 📚... loved the Vuldacan Series, nail biters for sure! Loved Ashes of Onyx, now need to get Mountain Daggers and Sea Quills. ❤

[@drskelebone]

I never realized just how many costumes you must own. XD

[@valkoharja]

Great calendar / only fans quip at the end. 10 / 10.

[@austrohammer7069]

Great, now I want a Seth Onlyfans channel. Or at least a calendar...

[@mitchistophelesr6756]

I used this in combination with Vampire the Requiem to create and elder vampire background and motivation for events in a modern game. The elder I made got imprisoned actually by an organization and I used that for plot threads in modern nights VtR. We did not get to finish the Requiem chronicle; however, it was still fun.

[@joebonar]

Right when you started talking about the utility of this game I immediately thought about making elder vampire npcs for vtm, and then Jack said it. Definitely seems like a good exercise and I'm curious to check it out for the prompts and art for making more believable npcs.

[@EurojuegosBsAs]

This game needs a fan-made Inkle version. With the pdf in hand, it cannot take more than a week or so to make ❤❤❤

[@aerodynamiccerebrum]

You 100% should do a calendar of Jack the NPC either different quotes

[@mrskwid1]

What is an RPG, a misrible pile of secrets.

[@Grayald]

This is begging for some kind of visual novel release on steam or something

[@ausername27]

Mine involved a lot of research. I loved ancient Egypt when I was a kid so my vampire is a ancient egyptian.

[@davewire87]

Really love this book. It’s absolutely beautiful. Tim did a great job. I’d like to mention that he’s been working a sequel for a while now and he plans on crowdfunding it in February. There is also a spin-off multiplayer game, “500 Year Old Vampire”, in the works.

[@sinisterthoughts2896]

I was going to buy a copy, then I read his not to prospective buyers and it changed my opinion.

[@mikegould6590]

What a great idea...this as a way to roll a long term villain

[@williamfawkes8379]

I'll keep this in mind next time I wanna play with myself. Context, you dirty dogs.

[@sinisterthoughts2896]

Check the website, the author has a note for anyone interested in buying their products.

[@richardleatherman5075]

OK. I think I may want to try this so .... opting out of video. Sorry Seth.

[@sinisterthoughts2896]

Did you read the notice the author posted on his website?

[@perry6762]

The only fans joke made me lol

[@MegaherzX]

Finally some solo love 🎉

[@therasslintheatre2960]

Memory slots ? Are you sure this ain't a game about an ancient robot ?

[@sinisterthoughts2896]

Or a ps1?

[@geekdomo]

I feel like you are looking at my bookshelf Seth! I have had this for a couple of years now but as all things go, just haven't found the time to play it. It's an absolutely beautiful book. Thanks for the video, now gonna watch it ;)

[@geekdomo]

Oh also! I bought a leather bound journal book to write in for this as I couldn't see myself ruining such a beautiful book.

[@DanteRavenkin]

Man, you put together the most engaging and informative reviews I've ever seen on KZbin! I've always been curious about this game, so it's nice to see a positive review. Adding it to my "to buy asap" list

[@Volvandese]

I've never heard of this game, but it now has me very intrigued.

[@sinisterthoughts2896]

Check the website, the author has a note for all possible buyers. You should probably read it first.

[@themadowl9224]

HOW DID I NOT SEE THIS UPLOAD SOONER D: I ususally watch all of your Videos and I have been obsessed with TYOV for months, I can't believe I missed you talking about this! Edit: I find it fascinating how little time you spent on an entire game playing with only the single sentence prompts. I chose to put an additional journal entry down for every prompt, spanning 1-2 pages, sometimes less, and thus I only really did 3 or 4 prompts per session - it took a few months to get through the game.

[@TheSoliloquyMan]

I ran with how much detail I could put in I had to stop after my daughter, my most constant enabler, died of old age and then the blood god that sired me stole a wish making trinket, then my enemies destroyed my memories of her via my diaries. The depression and absolute despair I felt after that for my vampire was very real.

[@mrfikss]

This is probably the highest quality book that I own. Out of ALL the books I own.

[@VincentSeeger-oc7gi]

Great review! Also I picked up your Mountain of Daggers as an audiobook and I really enjoyed it this summer. Really helped the work day go by quick.

[@SSkorkowsky]

RC Bray did a fantastic job with those. Also... deep in my channel's videos, the very first one is a short story I read for a podcast years ago called The Mist of Lichthafen. It's not a Black Raven story, but it a heist adventure set in the same world. You can check that out (though I'm not as good of a reader as RC Bray)

[@VincentSeeger-oc7gi]

Checked it out and enjoyed it. I think you undersell your own voice talents 😁

[@OomaGooma]

Lotsa costumes in this episode. Cool.

[@midnightplatypus1973]

1000 Year Old Vampire in the Traveller Imperium ... you know where this could go.

[@tolemykus4805]

I used this book for a different role playing experience. It was called 'Thousand Year Old Egg'. I hatched in the year 0. Then I ... 'get your hands off me! I was telling a story. No, don't throw me out yet. I am just getting to the...... ouch! Stop hitting me.... :)

[@justintiffin-richards6840]

💭Mmm... 🧛🍷 I sit consuming another fine Château Grand Seth-Skowsky... considering my existence, is it thirst that drives? a parasite with fading memories and dreams of symbiosis? You know I could well imagine if you made sponsored video sections? basically ads like LTT it could be quite the "hoot!"

[@sergentharker7182]

I think the idea for this is kind of neat, like a more adult version of The Wizard of Firetop Mountain and those other Fighting Fantasy books.