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Bruno’s House Rules!

Matthew Lowes

Periodically people email me about their Dungeon Solitaire games, sometimes with questions, sometimes with reports of amazing games, and sometimes with their own creations and house rules. It’s always a joy to hear how people are enjoying the game, adapting it, and delving deep into everything Dungeon Solitaire has to offer.

Every once in a while, someone comes along who has delved very deep indeed, and over the last six months or so I’ve had the pleasure of hearing from one such Dungeon Solitaire super player. Bruno, from Quebec, has explored not only Dungeon Solitaire Campaign Mode and the ALL-IN rules using the Devil’s Playground expansion, but he’s developed his own set of house rules for playing massive LoS-DP Campaigns with his own custom-made cards and enviable table setup.

Bruno has graciously provided some notes and references for his house rule to share with you. And while you may find them difficult to immediately interpret if you haven’t delved into the rules as far as Bruno has, it will at least give you some idea just how far you can take this game. And if you’re developing your own set of House Rules for LoS-DP Campaigns, I highly recommend looking into Bruno’s Rules for some great ideas.

Note that Bruno’s original references were all in French, but he’s been kind enough to provide us with English versions. He has made a few corrections or addendums to his rules, and I’m including those as well. You can even download his scoresheet as a printable PDF. Enjoy!

Bruno’s Setup

Here is way too much info about my Dungeon Solitaire world.

Photo 1. My homemade deck.

Photo 2. A table setup.

Bruno’s House Rules Campaign Scoresheet

(PDF Available here)

Bruno’s Notes

  • Abacus to keep score of 10 HP.
  • 5 tiles that I turn over when 13t or 15t is on the doom track, and 17-18-19t when a heavenly Gem is found (I don’t turn these last 3 often…)
  • Checkers pieces to keep track of the house rules. Golden spell (natural color) and Dark Spell (dark brown).
  • 1d10 (to roll for 6-7-8m+Full Armor), 1d4 (to roll for spells), and another dice to represent if a class is in play.
  • One tarot deck for drawing in town (evaluating gems, maintaining party, expenses). Campaign Scoresheet Background info. Mine was mostly in French. I made one in English. English is my second language, so please forgive me if my English is not up to par. As for the Scoresheet itself, it is so packed with stats and info/reminders that it is mostly for personal use. It would be hard for someone else to know how to score his/her game! Still, everything is there and a passionate player could find his way in my dungeon!
  • It is a double-sided scoresheet to score 40 games (19 on the first page, 21 on page 2).
  • House rules are at the top of page 1.
  • Then, the top Gray area would be to register the stats/records after the 40 games played.
  • Then the scoresheet. I packed info in the header column and here, it gets confusing. Because of lack of space, info not pertaining to the column at hand can appear.
  • And again, for lack of space, I had to improvise scoring places inside a column for secondary stats (for example, number of Skeins and gems, number of times I scored 4K or 3-Graces, etc.)
  • Finally, at the bottom of page 2, a reminder of some important rules from the books. So, in the gray area at the top of page 1.
  • (Arrow and infinity symbol) = Record number of consecutive exits
  • (Top treasure) = Best single score from the column below
  • (#3Ge-#3Sk) = Number of times I found all 3 Gems or all 3 Skeins
  • (#Heavenly : Total Gem) = number of heavenly gems found: total number of gems found. For example: 1:40
  • (#Skeins); total number of Skeins found
  • (Top XP): Best single score from the column below
  • (#2ndQ): Number of times I found a second Queen without effect
  • (Top Score), for example, C1/45640/4 (Campaign/# of Heavenly Gem found/ best XP Score/Rank.
  • (Keyhole): Number of times I found 16t-Shifting terrain without effect
  • (#4K – #3 Graces): Number of times I found all 4K or all 3 Graces
  • (54 diamond – 54 red shield): Number of times I found all 54 pts diamond or 54 pts red shield
  • (% Exit): Number of exits divided by 40 games = %
  • (number of turns total from exits divided by number of exits) = average number of turns per exit
  • (#Golden spell- #Dark spell) = Number of spells accumulated
  • (Top Death) = Simply to register your most common death. For example crpt 18% Clarification of the House rules about the Second Queen (Divine Favor) found without effect.
  • I Turn a Queen, then trap-6. I win the turn, leave the Queen in the turn and pick up a Golden Spell (at the end of the turn) which I can use starting with the next turn or later.
  • I turn a Queen, then the Dragon, then a second Queen. Here, the second Queen is not without effect. Per book rules, against a Dragon (and Lich, Abomination, Diabolical Machine, Hell Gate), a Divine Favor grants +1. It has an effect, so no Golden Spell in this case. Clarification of my previous email I gave an example to go for a Dark Spell (the missing 3-diamond). I forgot to mention that it was the last treasure missing to have all 54 pts of diamond.

Bruno’s Rules

The game is fantastic, and I tweaked two things that were a bit off.

  1. In LoS Campaign, we could find 110 points of treasure (excluding evaluating gems). In LoS-DP, 240 points! The result is that you have so much money that, in town, it removes all decisions from the game. Do I pay to remove crpt-curses, to maintain party, to recruit? Yes, Yes, Yes. I have so much money. Why not? In LoS Campaigns, I had to borrow a few times to keep going. It was stressful on the next delve to go further, find more treasures to get out of the red. Now, with so much money, that is another facet of the game that is not in play. I would add that in Campaign mode, some expeditions are really short. If I start with a crpt in the first few turns, I do get out quickly, sometimes in 3-5 turns. However, do that too many times, and you won’t have any money left. That is also not in play much because you quickly have so much money.

Solution? I increased all amounts by 50 % (except the Character ranks).

The game is tighter now. You’ve got to be careful with every decision in town (and have to risk more turns to find treasure/gp).

  1. The new character class “Magic User” is too powerful compared to the other classes, so that it renders them useless. Before, it was a tough decision to choose the right one (all classes were pretty even). And at rank4, you can take it a second time to have a total of +4d4 per expedition!

Solution? I removed that class from the game. However, overall, it is a tough game and we need all the help possible. The idea of the +d4 is great, so I included it in a way that brings many tough decisions into play. Hang on!

A. I added 7 ways of gaining a “Golden spell” that grants you each time a +1d4 (against any encounter or to gain 1-4HP).

If you can take into town:

  1. 3 gems (0/40)
  2. 3 Skeins (0/40)
  3. 100 points and more worth of treasure (excluding evaluating gems) (4/40)
  4. 4 Kings (0/40)
  5. 3 Graces (0/40)
  6. played more than 29 turns (0/40)

and

  1. Got a 2nd queen without effect (my dead card concept) on a turn (Golden spell earned at the end of the turn) (2/40)

I played 40 campaign games per book rules. In parentheses, I noted the number of times that situation could have occurred. So rarely. But now that I added the Golden Spell, there are many fun decisions in play to risk going for spells (and to better those stats).

  • Do I play a Disarm mechanism (or even a blessing) against an easy 5trap? No. But what if there are the 4th King and the third Gem on the turn? If I get out alive, I will receive 2 Golden spells in town.
  • Do I drop treasure one of my 4K and risk losing that Golden spell or do I battle to keep that option alive?

etc.

B. I added 7 ways of gaining a “Dark Spell” (remove to the bottom of the deck all of these: 1crpt + curses (Dungeon Plague/Dark Star) + 1 torch + 1 ration + regain all HP)! The jackpot!

  1. Find a Heavenly Gem (1/170)
  2. Have a perfect game: 3 Skeins-3 Gems (Never did it)
  3. 54 points (2-10 of diamond) (Never did it in LoS-DP)
  4. 54 points (2-10 of red shield) (Never did it in LoS-DP)
  5. Beat my own record of treasure points (100 points min.) (excluding evaluating gems)
  6. Beat my own record of consecutive exits (min. 10)
  7. Beat my own record of turns (min. 29)

So pretty much impossible. Hence, it does not tip the balance of the game. But bliss if you get one. Early on, the Records (5-6-7) will yield a few Dark Spells, but once a good record is set, it will be hard to gain it. Records to beat are set forever.

Again, many fun decisions and more memory will be in play. Let’s say that I missed the 3 of diamond on a previous turn. But I remember where it is and I turn the Portal. Do I go for it (but I still have to exit the dungeon to bring the proof into town) or go for a safer haul of magic items elsewhere that ensures that I will exit the dungeon?

Decisions pop up everywhere! I’ve made a nice detailed scoresheet to record all those stats. Love to get into town, do business, party a bit and register everything.

Finally, I kept my other dead card option from LoS campaign, 16t. If I turn it without effect (no Companions to kill or discards to shuffle), the shifting terrain creates a “keyhole exit”. I take the 16t in hand and I can play it to represent 1 turn for this expedition only. Obviously, it is to play it on the last turn to exit safely when things are tight.

I use nice wooden checker pieces (natural for Golden Spell, dark brown for Dark Spell) that I put on the table to represent what is available.

I think I’ve found the perfect setup. But then again, Dungeon Solitaire keeps expanding in my mind! So who knows! Thanks to you for having created that world.

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If it can be useful, I tweaked one rule pertaining to the Dark Spell. Before, #6 was Beat my own record of consecutive exits (min. 10).
I changed it to #5 for Every series of 10 Consecutive Exits.
To be clear, that would be 1 Dark Spell gained after 10 consecutive exits, another one after 20 consecutive exits and so on.

Correction #1

B. I added 7 ways of gaining a “Dark Spell” (remove to the bottom of the deck all of these: 1crpt + curses (Dungeon Plague/Dark Star) + 1 torch + 1 ration + regain all HP)! The jackpot!

  1. Find a Heavenly Gem
  2. Have a perfect game: 3 Skeins-3 Gems
  3. 54 points (2-10 of diamond)
  4. 54 points (2-10 of red shield)
  5. For every series of 10 consecutive exits
  6. Beat my own record of treasure points (100 points min.) (excluding evaluating gems)
  7. Beat my own record of turns (min. 29)

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Correction #2

As mention before, I had increased all amounts by 50 % (except the Character ranks-XP). However, I had forgotten to change the GP of the Noble ranks (castle upkeep).

Scoring Example

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When You are Silent Audiobook

Matthew Lowes

The audibook for When You are Silent It Speaks is now available on Amazon, Audible, and ACX. Narrated by me, this is the second audiobook I’ve recorded. The audiobook for That Which is Before You has been out since 2021. If you enjoy audiobooks and are interested in nonduality, enlightenment, and the spiritual path, I hope you’ll give them a listen.

I very happy to be able to record these audiobooks and share these words in the voice of the author. I’m speaking from direct experience in these books and hope a bit of that experience shines through in the reading itself.

It’s a somewhat long and arduous process to record these audiobooks. At times, my voice get tired or strained and I have to take a break for a few days. With a sustainable pace and editing, progress is relatively slow. This one took six months to finish — longer than I expected, but that’s the way of most projects. :)

Although I’m eager to record the audiobook for A Billion Fingers Point at the Moon, I’ll be taking a break from audiobooks for a while in order to complete work on some other projects, including the next book in this series, which addresses spiritual practice (Lighting the Sacred Fire is due out by the end of the year).

Whether in print, ebook, or audio, it’s been great to share these books with readers. And it’s a real joy to hear they are hitting their mark and having a positive impact on the spiritual lives of others. I look forward to continuing this series with a few additional books and audiobooks covering new topics and expanded teachings. Here are the books available now:

Now Available: A Billion Fingers Point at the Moon

Matthew Lowes

abf-cover-smPaperback and eBook editions of A Billion Fingers Point at the Moon are now available. There were a few delays, so it’s a bit later than expected, but I’m so happy this book is now available and in time for the Holiday season.

This is the third in this series of books dealing with spirituality and enlightenment. The first book, That Which is Before You, contains an account of my awakening, insights and teachings, as well an overview of spiritual practices. The second book, When You are Silent It Speaks, contains a more detailed discussion of the spiritual journey as a whole. This new book addresses the subject of spiritual language. It deconstructs the vocabulary of spirituality in order to cut through the confusion often created by the multiplicity of words and explanations.

Here’s the copy from the back cover:

“Decipher the language of spirituality for yourself, by getting to the heart of fundamental questions. Look beyond the confusing rhetoric of dogmatic and philosophical views that focus more on differentiation than on discovery of the Truth. Traditional teachings, conceptual understanding, and intellectual discourse are great, but as the saying goes, don’t mistake a finger for the moon. A Billion Fingers Point at the Moon appears to be about words and language in the context of spiritual traditions, but actually, it is all about the fullness of the moon.”

I hope you enjoy the book. Please consider posting an Amazon review if you read it. That’s a huge help both for the success of the book and for people searching for good books.

Writer’s Stuck

Matthew Lowes2 Comments

From the 2014 archives at ShadowSpinners, here are some of my thoughts on writer’s block:

The idea of writer’s block gets a lot of attention. I’ve always interpreted it as some kind of psychological block to writing, and while I can imagine such a condition, I can’t imagine it would be too common among writers. Much more common, I believe, and perhaps sometimes mistaken for a psychological block, is the experience of being stuck on a difficult problem.

I’m right in the middle of a summer long campaign to finish the 3rd book in a fantasy trilogy. It’s a project I’ve been working on for around twelve years all together, if you include a few years when nothing got done. And in that time, believe me, there have been times when I felt stuck. I struggled to figure out a particular plot line, or how to turn some necessary action into an exciting scene, or how to develop a specific character or theme over the course of a 300,000 word trilogy.

The first couple times I got stuck like this, it felt like a catastrophe. This thing can’t happen because of that other thing, and that character can’t be in this place at this time because how would he have gotten there, and so on. You’ve written yourself into a corner, and how the hell are you going to get out?

Over the years I’ve learned not to panic or despair. It never helps anyways. There’s always a solution; the trick is finding it. Sometimes it requires a day of hardcore thinking, the kind that makes your brain hurt and your sleep fitful. Sometimes it requires a long walk, a hot bath, or a few hours of looking at birds out my back window. Sometimes I just need a day off. In any case, it’s important to acknowledge that we need time to process problems when they arise, consciously and subconsciously.

Sometimes the answer comes to me in a flash, but if not I move on to the next step. When all the thinking and loafing around starts to feel indulgent, I pick up a pen and start writing ideas down. I brainstorm solutions and variations. I draw diagrams, make notes, and outline possible scenes. Finally, if I’m still not sure I understand the solution I pick the best idea I have and just start writing it. I don’t commit to using it yet. I treat it like an experiment. But more often than not, if I’ve gotten this far, the problem dissolves in the process of writing.

So while I don’t put much stock in the proverbial writer’s block, there are definitely real problems big enough to get stuck on. Luckily, getting unstuck is pretty straight forward: think/rest, brainstorm, and write. Repeat as needed.

*First Published on ShadowSpinners, August 2014.

Mountain of Ashes

Matthew Lowes

A new Labyrinth of Souls novel is out, Mountain of Ashes by John Reed. It’s a wild ride into a strange underworld where Matt Thanos tries to save his life and love from death and doom. This book really has everything: a Harley Davidson, mythic references, cowboys, an exploding trans-dimensional cactus, barfights, chrome lizards, warring gods, and an icebridge! It’s like a psychedelic western of epic proportions. It’s a great adventure, great fun — parts of it are laugh out-loud funny — and I highly recommend it.

John Reed is the author of seven novels and numerous shorter non-fiction works. He has conducted writing workshops, classes and seminars around the country for the past 20 years; his sensitive and insightful critiques have inspired hundreds of writers. His classes on the novel, short stories, essays and magazine writing have given many students a stepping stone to publication. Currently, John is editing a book-length collection of essays by Northwest writers. You can read an author interview here with the release announcement for Mountain of Ashes.

This is the eighth Labyrinth of Souls novel published by ShadowSpinners Press and inspired by the Labyrinth of Souls tarot card game. Every book is a unique adventure into some kind of underground or underworld realm. They’re all great stories by a group of incredibly talented and award-winning authors. It’s so exciting to be a part of this project and see these books coming out.

All the Labyrinth of Souls stand-alone novels are available in print and ebook from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online book retailers and ebook providers such as Kobo, Scribd, and Smashwords. Start anywhere and keep delving until you’ve read them all, including:

And keep eye out for Bayou’s Lament by Cheryl Owen-Wilson coming soon!

Labyrinth of Souls Fiction Keeps Delving Deeper

Matthew Lowes

Immortal's Penance promo picture1

Halloween marks the launch of a new Labyrinth of Souls novel. Check out Immortal’s Penance by L.A. Alber for a journey in the mythic underworld of the ancient Celts. Perfect Halloween reading as the story opens with a Samhain festival, a great time to be digging up a mysterious giant bog body! Taking place in the post WWII era 1950s, in a remote Irish village, this book has a wonderful feel of place, history, and larger-than-life legend.

This is the seventh Labyrinth of Souls novel, and there is more to come. Every book is a unique and stand-alone adventure. I am so proud that I’m a part of this project and that Dungeon Solitaire: Labyrinth of Souls had a part in inspiring these awesome books.

tss-cover-md

With all the work and excitement of the Dungeon Solitaire: Devil’s Playground Kickstarter and launch the first half of the year, I haven’t had a chance to mention the sixth book, which is also available now. The Snake’s Song by Mary E. Lowd follows the adventures of a squirrel in search of the lost Celestial Fragments of the All-Being. It features a cast of animals, but there are plenty of dangers in the underworld, like sorcerer crabs and an army of ghost moles.

All the Labyrinth of Souls novels are available in print and ebook from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other online book retailers and ebook providers such as Kobo, Scribd, and Smashwords. Start anywhere and keep delving until you’ve read them all, including:

And keep eye out for Mountain of Ashes by John Reed and Bayou’s Lament by Cheryl Owen-Wilson coming soon!

The Commencement Address

Matthew Lowes3 Comments

This year, the graduating class at the high school where I work asked me to deliver the commencement address. I was honored to do so, and I took the task to heart. It was a rare opportunity to speak to a group of young people at a transformative point in their lives. And with the parents, family members, and friends of graduates, as well as colleagues and members of the larger community gathered in the gymnasium, it was the biggest audience I’d ever had the opportunity to speak to. I’d like to share these words with you as well, so what follows is the speech I gave, pretty much word for word as it was delivered.

COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS

Delivered on June 9th, 2018 by Matthew Lowes

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I have to say, I am deeply honored to speak with you on this momentous occasion.

Some people expressed surprise that I would accept this task. But honestly … this is an honor I could not refuse. I am immensely grateful for the education I received, and for all my teachers, both in and out of school. So to me, to stand before a group of graduates and address them like this, is one of the highest honors imaginable.

Of course, I quickly realized that being honored is not really enough in a situation like this. It’s more of a … you know … you have to say something meaningful kind of situation. And so here I am, charged with saying something meaningful to you — something that might make a difference in your life and how you see yourself and the world.

It’s a tall order.

A few of you seemed concerned about what I would or wouldn’t say. You came around and asked me to say something specific, or asked if you could see the speech. But frankly, I turned down all requests. What would be the point of me speaking if you all knew what I was going to say. Also, I admit I didn’t entirely know what I was going to say yet. But since you all asked me to speak, I knew that I would have to speak from my heart.

The truth is, I know you just well enough to know that I don’t know the funniest anecdotes to tell, or the greatest accomplishments to highlight. But I know you well enough to know that I am grateful to have met you. And I know you well enough to know that some of you have struggled to be here, and others have overcome incredible hardships. And I am immensely proud of every single one of you.

Your accomplishments have encouraged us all. Your struggles have touched our hearts. And your presence has brightened our days.

Each one of you is worthy of far more time than I have here.

Nevertheless, I hope that I can give you some piece of advice, or a perspective on life that might be helpful. And with that in mind, I don’t want to reminisce about past glories, nor speculate on all the great things you may do in the future. I don’t want to pretend that there haven’t been hard times, or that there won’t be hard times to come. I’m sure there were, and there definitely will be.

Instead, I would like to talk about this moment, right now. For it is always in the present moment that we are living. It always has been, and always will be now. In this way, everything that has ever happened has happened today, and everything that ever will happen will also happen today. That is when our lives are unfolding. And this will always be the case, for you, for me, for everybody.

So let’s think about this. The past, as we remember it, is already gone. The future, as we imagine it, will never really arrive. It will always be now. This present moment that we are experiencing goes on throughout our entire lives. So how we live, here and now, is always what really matters.

This may seem obvious, but it’s a fact that is so easy to lose track of. It’s so easy for us to become distracted, unconscious of our remarkable existence in this present moment. And it’s so easy become wrapped up in our thoughts about what has happened and where it’s all going, or to become entranced by our ideas about who we are, what we’re doing, what we’ll become, what we’re capable of, what we should or shouldn’t do in the future, what could happen, and what it all means.

Of course we need to remember the past, to acknowledge and learn from it. And we need to plan for the future as well, to set course now for our greatest aspirations. But never forget that the present moment is all there will ever be. Whatever you do, even when you’re remembering and planning, you will always be doing it now. And even when you are not really doing anything, you cannot help but not do it now.

So whatever joy you seek in life, you can only find it in the present moment. And whatever you intend to accomplish, you can only work towards it in the present moment. And whatever problems may arise in your life or that you perceive in the world, you can only solve them in the present moment. And whatever kind of person you wish to be, you can only be that person now, in the present moment.

Life can seem incredibly complicated, but the truth is very simple. Moment by moment, we live these beautiful lives. They are filled with soaring heights, mundane plains, and abyssal depths. But whatever happens, have courage for the moment. For all we can do is attend to ourselves and the situation at hand, always living in this present moment.

Wisdom has not changed throughout the ages. But it’s up to you to discover what it really is. I can only give you a taste, point in the general direction, and encourage you to discover it for yourselves.

To all those ends I say: Be kind, be curious, be loving, be truthful. And I say all these things in the deepest possible sense.

Endeavor to find out who you really are and what your true potential is. I assure you, it’s way bigger than you can imagine.

And through it all, always strive to understand what it is to be a good person.

It won’t always be easy, but moment by moment, if we can just be that, everything else will take of itself.

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Thank you, and congratulations to the Class of 2018!

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Three Days Left for Devil’s Playground Kickstarter

Matthew Lowes

It’s been an exciting month, and an amazing success so far thanks to all the enthusiastic backers and supporters of the Dungeon Solitaire games. The Devil’s Playground Kickstarter smashed its initial funding goal in under 24 hours, and has gone one to hit seven stretch goals. We are on the cusp of another stretch goal with three days left to get in on the Kickstarter.

Time to get into the dungeon, and get in on the great rewards! There are high quality red-back cards for both the Devil’s Playground and the Labyrinth of Souls games, both featuring incredible, original artwork by artist Josephe Vandel. Included in the rulebook are a stand-alone dungeon delving game, Labyrinth of Souls expansion games, an all new card-based territorial wargame with multiple variations. And by getting in now, you will get two Kickstarter exclusive cards with special rules for incorporating them into your games.

In these last three days, please help spread the news by sharing this post or the Kickstarter page with your friends and gaming groups, on your blogs and especially on social media. This kind of word of mouth really makes a difference.

There is nothing more I can say, except to thank you deeply for all your support, enthusiasm, and encouragement. These games can only reach their full potential with the support of backers like you. And so I leave you with a few words from the introductory material for the Devil’s Playground rulebook, words taken from Malhak the Great’s Tome of Demonology:

At last, thoughts fall like shooting stars in the gravity of awareness. Some burn with the light of blinding suns, others with the light of a dim candle. But all catch fire and burn out. Nothing ever remains. Yet until that time, the soul is a house divided. It is a devil’s playground, at war with itself and everything it encounters.

I have seen the pox-ridden skies Illeanth, and the vermilion seas of Yoon. I have conversed with voices in realms of unending darkness. I have nosed perfumes so exalted that a single whiff bore a thousand years of bliss. I have walked with the first ragged tribes of humanity, and I have tasted ashes in the fallen ruins of their great civilizations. I have seen the arcs of eons and heard the silence that reigns in the depths of space.

And yet, all of these experiences have been but dreams within dreams within dreams. For in the emptiness between thoughts, there is no good or evil, no up or down, no light or darkness, no backward or forward, no past or future. There is no sight, no sound, no taste, no smell, no feeling. There is only that which cannot be uttered.

Until the sun rises beyond the distant mountains, until the spring comes, until we wake again, we remain lost in a dungeon of our own making. Until the illusion of the mind itself is destroyed, we wander in its depths. And though we ourselves designed the patterns its winding halls, we do not know the way out.”