games

Bruno’s House Rules!

19 November 2025 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.

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).

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:

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

and

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!

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

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!

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

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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Finally! Tarot-sized Dungeon Solitaire

17 November 2023 Matthew Lowes

It’s been a few years since the Labyrinth of Souls and Devil’s Playground solitaire games launched on Kickstarter. Dungeon Solitaire continues to do well and gain new fans as hapless souls wander into the Dungeon.

With the Kickstarters we stuck to poker-sized cards to keep costs down, but as a tarot game it was always my intention to offer tarot-sized cards as well. It’s taken longer than I expected, but the new cards are now available on DriveThru Cards. I’ve also redesigned the faces to make the art as large as possible on already larger cards. The results are stunning and a fantastic addition to the Dungeon Solitaire line.

Here’s a few cards from the Dungeon Solitaire: Labyrinth of Souls tarot solitaire game:

Tarot-sized cards are also available for Devil’s Playground expansion and stand-alone game:

The larger cards come band-wrapped to keep the price down, but tarot-sized boxes are an easy find. If you’re looking for an update to your Dungeon Solitaire games, look no further. I like the new design and may update the poker-sized cards at some point as well. There may also be an Omnibus Rulebook on the horizon.

If you’re new to Dungeon Solitaire, you should know the cards come with free starter rules and the full rulebooks with many game variations can be purchased separately as PDF on DriveThru Cards or as a paperback on Amazon.

Hope you’re all doing well and enjoying life to the fullest. Once again, thanks to everyone playing Dungeon Solitaire the world! Keep on delving. :)

Dungeon Solitaire: Tomb of Four Kings — Korean Language Edition

4 January 20214 January 2021 Matthew Lowes

Ever since I posted the free print-and-play download for the first Dungeon Solitaire game, the dungeon has been expanding. And it’s been wonderful to hear from fans all over the world. A few fans have even offered translations into other languages. I’m super excited to announce we now have a Korean language edition of Dungeon Solitaire: Tomb of Four Kings. The translation by Dan looks fantastic and is ready for free download, print, and play.

I’m so grateful to Dan for putting in the hard work to make this Tomb of Four Kings translation. It looks fantastic and maintains all the original artwork and formatting. It’s a joy to share this game with others, and I’m so happy to be able to expand the audience with Korean speakers.

Tomb of Four Kings can be played with a regular deck of playing cards, and will always be a free download, no matter what language you speak. English, Spanish, and Korean editions are now available for download on the Games page. See you all in the dungeon! :)

Weird Roleplaying Starter Edition

15 May 2020 Matthew Lowes

I am releasing a free starter edition for Weird Roleplaying, a universal RPG system designed for for quick character creation, streamlined preparation and gameplay, and easy adaptability to any genre, setting, or source material.

As far back as 2013, I started looking to develop rules-light RPG rules that could be used with a wide array of adventure modules and setting material. I wanted to be able to run games in different genres, using anything I found interesting, without having to learn new systems or switch between systems.

Of course, I started by looking at the universal systems that were out there already. But they were either too minimal or too rules heavy, or they didn’t have the kind of straight-forward approach I wanted. So — as these things go — I wrote my own rules. Inspired by weird fiction throughout the ages, I called my game Weird Roleplaying.

I tested a couple core variants before I settled on the current system, and I’ve been running my games with it ever since. If you grew up playing old-school games like original D&D, Gamma World, and Call of Cthulu, like I did, the feel of these rules will be familiar. And yet, Weird Roleplaying is a thoroughly modern, streamlined ruleset that makes it easy to run games in any world you imagine.

The starter edition is a fifty page, black and white, print-ready rulebook that includes six quick-start settings. The bare-bones setting material is ready to use as is, and provides clear examples of how to tailor the core rules for different genres.

I am working on a complete rulebook that will have a color cover, illustrations throughout, additional content, expanded setting materials, and possibly even some adventures. Keep your eye out for future updates regarding a possible Kickstarter and launch date. Until then, I hope you enjoy the Weird Roleplaying starter edition as much as I have.

Free Revised Edition of Giant Available Now

3 April 2020 Matthew Lowes

GIANT in now available as a free download, ready for hours of print-and-play giant robot battles and skirmishes. This is an updated revised version, with a few errors corrected. Here’s the back-cover copy:

“Future wars are waged with huge humanoid machines known as giants. Human pilots are encased in neuro-conductive capsules behind layers of armor plating, their senses and nerve impulses merged with the artificial systems of the giants they control.

“Giant is a wargame played with paper, pencils, and six-sided dice. Inside is a complete game, including rules, a visual reference, a record sheet, a master battle map, and eight ready to play maps with various terrain. It’s perfect for travel or when you want an action packed game with minimal preparation.

“Each player controls up to three giants, chosen from fifteen different types. Arm them with missiles, guns, and lasers. Then send them into the battle!”

I designed this game back in 2015. I wanted to make a giant robot wargame that was simple enough to be quickly learned and played with nothing more than pencils, paper, and dice. It had to have just the right amount of complexity to provide strategic and tactical challenges, narrative excitement, and the promise of endless possibilities. Finally, it had to generate interesting, vivid, action-packed battles! During a year of development, writing, and play testing, Giant stayed true to that vision. I drew a bunch of illustrations, wrote some flavor text, and did a traditional acrylic painting for the cover. The final 20 page rulebook includes everything you need except dice and a pencil.

You can still support this game and others by purchasing a print copy of Giant from LULU with a glossy saddle-stitched cover for $4.99. Or purchase any of my other games, post reviews, or make a donation here. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Download the free rules, stand-alone record sheets, blank maps, and a print-and-play map pack below or on the games page.

Rulebook
Record Sheet
Blank Map
Map Pack

Here are some examples of finished games (click for larger images):

Dungeon Solitaire Retrospective: Part 6/6

21 March 202021 March 2020 Matthew Lowes

Dungeon Solitaire for the Ages

When I first set out to create Dungeon Solitaire, I had in mind to create a kind of classic solitaire game — something that could withstand the test of time. I grew up playing a lot of games. Solitaire and Dungeons & Dragons were around throughout my childhood. In creating Dungeon Solitaire, I can see now I sort of combined what I loved about them both into a single game.

The first few games of Tomb of Four Kings I played were magical. I knew I was onto something, if only for my own enjoyment. Soon I was enjoying the game so much I wanted to share it with others. Since then, it has only gotten bigger and better, and more magical.

As I write this, there is a global pandemic going on. My school job is canceled for now and my martial arts teaching is on hiatus. I’ll be working from home until things get better. I just launched a book and I’ll be working on more writing projects. I’ll be working in my backyard, cooking dinners, and doing what I can to support E. as she works on the front lines of this crisis. Other than that, if I can contribute anything to help the world through this, I will. Maybe playing Dungeon Solitaire will help somebody somewhere pass the time or forget their worries. I hope so. Tomb of Four Kings will always be free and all you need is a deck of ordinary cards to get started.

Dungeon Solitaire phone app design notes

Going forward, I have plans to release an omnibus rulebook, tarot-sized cards, and some t-shirts in the coming year. I have been trying to get a Dungeon Solitaire phone app off the ground for a couple years now, but circumstances have led to various setbacks. I’ll continue to work at getting it done with the help of one or more partners, and hopefully we’ll see that happen at some point.

Labyrinth of Souls rulebook layout concepts

Special thanks to Josephe Vandel for suggesting we collaborate, and for creating the incredible art for Labyrinth of Souls and Devil’s Playground. Thanks to everyone who backed these games on Kickstarter for helping Dungeon Solitaire reach its full potential. Thanks again to Elizabeth Engstrom and Christina Lay for making the Labyrinth of Souls fiction project a reality. And thanks to everyone who has supported these games, posted reviews, and spread the word. It’s been wonderful journey, and I am more than happy to keep it going.

I can only hope that more people discover the magic of Dungeon Solitaire. I don’t know how popular it could become … and it’s not that important. What’s important to me is this: many people have found some joy in it, and in my own estimation — admittedly biased — I think the game succeeds as a classic for the ages. I can’t imagine ever really tiring of this game or not being entertained by picking up again, playing a few games, and delving into the depths of the dungeon.

Dungeon Solitaire: Labyrinth of Souls & Devil’s Playground

Dungeon Solitaire Retrospective: Part 2/6

17 March 202021 March 2020 Matthew Lowes

Labyrinth of Souls Designer’s Notebook

Game design is a wonderful interplay between logical and narrative elements. I really enjoy both aspects of design, and the chance to combine them is one of the reasons why I love making games. This post will cover my thoughts on game design in general and my design notes from Dungeon Solitaire: Labyrinth of Souls. It’s a bit long for a single blog post, so I’m just going share here the PDF Designer’s Notebook I made for the Labyrinth of Souls Kickstarter. Everything is contained within: the origins of Dungeon Solitaire, major influences, design philosophy, testing methods, original images, and thoughts on the various challenges, solutions, and variations that went into Dungeon Solitaire.

Click here or on the title page below to delve in. Download if you want … and enjoy. :)

Dungeon Solitaire Retrospective: Part 1/6

16 March 202012 September 2020 Matthew Lowes

Enter the Dungeon

Back in 2015 I sat down on a bed with deck of playing cards to design a game that involved dungeon delving, exploration, and monster slaying. I never could have imagined where this would lead. In so many ways, this game has exceeded every expectation I had for it, and in some ways, it has really changed the course of my life.

Labyrinth of Souls and Devil’s Playground

Later that year, I teamed up with artist Josephe Vandel to launch a Kickstarter for an expanded tarot version of Dungeon Solitaire. Now, five years later, there are three Dungeon Solitaire games, with a whole bunch of variations, that reach all over the world. With the exception of maybe Antarctica, Dungeon Solitaire has been played on every continent. Please correct me if anybody has delved into the dungeon from the south pole.

A series of Labyrinth of Souls stand-alone novels (nine so far) have been published by ShadowSpinners Press. They feature a host of veteran and award-winning authors, as well as talented newcomers. Everyone has been a delight to read. In all likelihood, this is the only independently designed and published game to have its own fiction series. In October, I’ll be at the World Fantasy convention for the third time to help promote the Labyrinth of Souls novels and all the Dungeon Solitaire games.

Looking ahead, the success of this game helped cement my publishing skills and encouraged me to pursue more game design. I am planning to release more Dungeon Solitaire materials in the future. And in the months and years ahead, I expect you will see releases for games like Weird Roleplaying, Grimstone Fantasy, an expanded edition of Giant, and Warbound.

In addition to my ongoing game design work, the success of Dungeon Solitaire helped along — directly or indirectly — a number of other projects. My novel, The End of All Things, is in the Labyrinth of Souls series of stand-alone novels. My latest book, That Which is Before You, is a work of spiritual non-fiction that has its roots in something extraordinary that happened during the time that I was writing Labyrinth of Souls. And all this has laid the groundwork to publish further works, including a complete trilogy of fantasy novels that I wrote over a period of twelve years, a collection of my short stories, and at least three more spiritual non-fiction books.

So looking back — and ahead — Dungeon Solitaire has had a huge impact on my life and my writing/game design career. I’m very proud of what I’ve been able to put out so far, and there’s a lot of great work yet to do.

Most of the year, I still have a day job, so I just move ahead with the time I have. As a one-man publishing operation, I really enjoy getting to do a bit of everything, from design, writing, and testing, to editing, layout, and proofing. It’s hectic sometimes, but I love having so much control over the vision and execution of each project. I have also been blessed to work with and get feedback from some incredibly talented people. I am so grateful for them and for all the people who have backed the Dungeon Solitaire Kickstarters. You’ve changed my life, and that’s quite wonderful. And I’ve been so happy to be able to share Dungeon Solitaire with gamers around the world.

If I can be shamelessly honest for a moment, I am still a huge fan of this game myself. I think it’s awesome! It is everything I wanted to create in a dungeon-delving card game, and so much more. And it’s just fantastic to see like-minded souls discover its magic.

World Fantasy 2019

10 November 201917 November 2019 Matthew Lowes

[Note: the website is currently undergoing an update and redesign. Thank you for your patience while the details are sorted out.]

At the mass book signing with Christina Lay and Stephen T. Vessels

I had a great time at the World Fantasy convention this past weekend with ShadowSpinners Press and some fellow authors in the Labyrinth of Souls fiction series. Can’t say I saw much of LA, since I did not leave the Airport Marriott for three days, but the weather was nice, the conference was great, and the company was outstanding. It is truly a wonderful experience to be in the midst of so many creative and inspiring writers and artists.

The crowds gather in LA Airport Marriott

The ShadowSpinners table had a lively showing in the book room, and I had a great time answers questions about Dungeon Solitaire and the Labyrinth of Souls. I signed a few books, did a reading with fellow authors Christina Lay and Stephen T. Vessels, and managed to get to a few talks and panels. I was particularly interested to learn a bit more about audiobook production and particularly taken with the beautiful art of Reiko Murakami.

The ShadowSpinners table and chief editor Christina Lay

With another successful appearance, we are planning to make an even bigger showing next year in Salt Lake. We’ll have more books, more authors, and more games. Hope to see you there!

Art print by Reiko Murakami (available on her website)

Devil’s Playground Progress

2 April 201814 April 2018 Matthew Lowes

The Dungeon Solitaire: Devil’s Playground Kickstarter was a big success. Thanks to 314 backers we topped out at $13,605 in funding, and added eight substantial stretch goals to the project and some Kickstarter exclusives. I’m very excited to share this game with all our backers, and still anticipate shipping on time in June.

I’ve been very busy this last week doing final play-testing for the stand-alone game, putting together a rough draft of the entire rulebook with all stretch goals included, getting a start on creating the interior diagrams and tables, and coordinating with artist Josphe Vandel on the remaining artwork and card formatting. All the elements are starting falling into place, and everything is looking pretty awesome so far.

There’s still a ton work to be done though, including further play-testing on stretch goal games and variants, editing, re-editing, and re-re-editing the rulebook. Finishing final tables and diagrams and doing the interior layout. Then book and box covers, Then card proofs, book proofs, backer surveys, shipping logistics and finally orders! It’s a lot to do, and I will be on a tight schedule the next two months.

dp-playtesting — Devil’s Playground play-testing in progress.

Stay tuned here and on the Kickstarter page for further updates as the project moves forward. They probably wont be as frequent as I would like because I’ll be focused on the game itself, but don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions. In the meantime, check out all the amazing Dungeon Solitaire games and Labyrinth of Souls fiction that is already available.