TEXT: CAT’S DREAM
  A SOLITAIRE ADVENTURE RPG BY TOBIE ABAD
  ART BY IVAN FRANI
  
  Credits
  Written by tobie abad
  Art by tobie abad and Ivan Frani
  Expediter: Thomas Regala 
   
  Playtesting and Early Version Adventurers
  Glass, Daniel Luce, Andy Hauge, Ben Lehman
   
  Additional Playtesting by Thomas Regala, fudgebob dicepants, 
  Tim Devine, Erich Lichnock, David Ryan Quibilan Tarog, Kristen 
  Devine, Angelo Nevada, Aina Ledesma Luna, John Michael 
  Huang, Lawrence Augustine Mingoa, Stentor Danielson, Sarah 
  Meneses
   
  TAG Sessions
  This game was originally released as a blog post game 
  intended as a Studio Ghibli inspired RPG. It has now been 
  further developed to have a wider experience.
  This is copyright 2018 by Tobie Abad. 
  All rights reserved.  
  Check out more games by Tobie Abad at 
  tagsessions.blogspot.com
  2
  CAT’S DREAM
  A SOLITAIRE ADVENTURE RPG BY TOBIE ABAD
  
  Made using: 
  InDesign CS6 
  Illustrator CS6 
  MS Office Word 
  Fonts used: 
  Alfa Slab One 
  Century Gothic, Regular
  Times New Roman
  3
  “Time spent with a cat is 
  never wasted.”   
   
  Sidonie Gabrielle Colette
  
  Acknowledgements
  To my parents, Lito and Dulce, who have nurtured me and raised me 
  to embrace my imagination.
   
  To my Tag Team Supporters: Rocky Sunico, Mina Sunico, Rob 
  Abrazado, Lemuel Herman, David Korabell, and Tania Arpa, as well 
  as the  other supporters who were there when I began this project; 
  Ryan Schoon, Rob Deobald, Riverhouse Games , Karlo Licudine, 
  David Harrison, Che de Leon, and James Lo. You all have financially 
  made this book and all its gorgeous art pieces possible. Thank you! 
   
  To Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takah ata, Toshio Suzuki, Yasuyoshi Tokuma, 
  Joe Hisaishi, Satoshi Kon, Jim Henson, Lewis Carroll, Winsor McCay, 
  Patrick McHale, and Brian Froud, thank you for the inspiration. 
   
  To the Gallants, you keep me sane.  Alan, Ben, Dan, John, and Ryan. 
  The four of you are amazing. To jim (see lowercase), thank you for 
  always challenging me to keep creating.
   
  To Jovan, who challenged me to write a role-playing game that was 
  inspired by Studio Ghibli movies.
   
   
  4
  Inspirations
  The Cat Returns, Studio Ghibli
  My Neighbor Totoro, Studio Ghibli
  Castle in the Sky (Laputa), Studio Ghibli
  Papurika, Satoshi Kon
  Labyrinth, Jim Henson
  Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
  Little Nemo, Winsor McCay
  Over the Garden Wall, Patrick McHale
    
  
  For Rocky, 
   
  My heart and my love. 
  You remind me that reality, despite all its failures 
  and absurdities, is worth it because you 
  are in it to complete me. 
  I love you. 
  And to Yoshi, 
   
  I promise you, I will also write a dog game soon. 
  Keep running across the rainbows. 
  We love you.
  
  BASIC GAME
  CAT’S DREAM
  SINGLE PLAYER 
   
  AGES 7+
  
  What is Cat’s Dreams?
  Every now and then, for reasons they alone would know, a 
  cat leads a person to an unexpected journey.
  They walk up to a person, stare at them until the person 
  notices them, and brings them to where the adventure 
  begins. Only those curious enough to follow find themselves 
  lead down strange alleyways, unfamiliar paths, and twisting 
  corridors until they are brought to a place where they - deep 
  down – desperately needed to go. 
  Some say, this is because cats know the secret passages 
  that exist between rooms.  Between streets. Between cities. 
  Maybe even between worlds.  Cats can be feisty, demanding 
  for your attention one moment and then completely care-
  free and aloof the next. Many have offered ways to care for 
  and understand one’s pet cat. But know this: if a cat ever 
  offers to lead you somewhere, do not hesitate.  
  Follow.
  If you don’t, you’ve lost the chance to experience something 
  that only happens once in a lifetime.
  To Play 
  This is a GMless solitaire story building role-playing game. 
  The Basic Game explores fantastic and surreal stories.  
  Advanced rules and rules for Group play shall eventually 
  be released as well.
    
  7
  “I, as is well known, do not like cats.” 
  Sigmund Freud writing to his friend Arnold Zweig. 
  
  Setup 
  To play this game, you need the following:
  A deck of cards
  One six-sided die
  Writing tool
  Paper or Notebook,  
  if desired
  In this game, you are a person whom has been chosen by 
  a Cat.  
  The Cat has chosen to lead you somewhere where you 
  are needed.  And your choices determine what events 
  transpire, how they will unfold, and when the journey ends. 
  Unlike most role-playing games, there is no need to have a 
  Game Master in this game. 
  Instead, you only need to use the deck of cards to determine 
  the events that unfold and resolve the challenges you may 
  face. Every story is different. 
  And how it ends depends on how fate chooses to tell it for 
  you, and how you interpret and color the choices in the 
  events that unfold. 
  8
  
  The Character Sheet
  The game uses a “character sheet” although it might be 
  easier to image it as a play mat rather than a character 
  sheet, because in this game you do not fill it up with stats 
  or scores.  Instead, the sheet is used to keep track of three 
  things: Hope, Strength, and Fear. 
  Imagine dividing your sheet into four areas:
  Your 
  Character
  Come up with a name 
  and a short description. 
   
  If you need help, check 
  out page 11.
  Hope 
  This side is where 
  you keep your 
  cards for Hope 
  Challenges.
  Fear 
  This side is where 
  you track fear 
  difficulty.
  Strength 
  This side is where you 
  keep your cards for 
  Strength.
  ♥
  ♣
  ♠
  
  “Your Character”
  In “Your Character,” make a small sketch to represent 
  you.  Write down the name of your character.  You 
  can choose a simple name or a complex one. So 
  long as it is a comfortable name for you, it is a good 
  one.  Your character can be of any age, gender, 
  or social class you want them to be.   This is your 
  character.
  Under the sketch and the name, complete this 
  sentence for your character:
  “I want….”
   
  “I Want...”
  This is something your character wants to accomplish.  
  This can be a simple desire or dream that they want 
  to accomplish (“I want to learn to dance,” or “I want 
  to visit my mother,”) or it can be something that 
  seems impossible and fantastic (“I want to be able 
  to fly.”) 
  The way you answer this question sets the mood 
  and gives you an idea of what kind of game you 
  want to have. More serious or somber “wants” 
  will end up creating a game that may explore 
  a heavier emotional dream. Interesting and 
  exciting “wants” might become roots for a fun 
  adventurous dream. Quirky “wants” can result 
  in wacky and funny dreams. It is up to you what 
  sort of dream you want to create in the game. 
   
  If you need ideas, use the table on the next page to 
  generate your character.
  10
  
  “Your Character” Generator 
  Draw a card to generate an answer for each area:
  I am a...
  Student, Book keeper, Doctor, Architect, Child
  Artist, Magician,  Fisherman, Parent, Singer
  Baker, Writer, Orphan, Pilot, Construction Worker
  Athlete, Chef, Farmer, Blue-collar Worker, Twin
  Visit mother, Find my sibling, Fly, Go home,  Sleep
  Help someone get home, Adventure, Leave, Escape
  Learn magic, Get well, Build something, Find a friend
  Get something, Taste it, Know, Transform, Fall in love
  I want to...
  Am blind, Talk to animals, Scare easily, Hate cats
  Can’t step out, Need glasses, Miss my friends
  Ran away, Lost something valuable, Am sick
  Am a ghost, Did this before, Heard stories of this
  I actually...                  (for those wanting a bit more detail)
  Aina, Chester, Daniel, Flip, Joshua, James, Lanz, Mon, Sen
  Adrian, Maki, Dee Dee, Bench, Jheyar, Rupert, Mon
  Adam, Alan, Banana, Ben, Dan, Jim, John, Ryan, Elizabeth
  Christopher, Joseph, Maria, Rose, Valeria, Yoshi
  My name is....              (in case you can’t think of any)
  11
  
  Preparing 
  for 
  the 
  Journey 
  Cat’s Dreams is a zero-prep role-playing game. This means you 
  do not need to read up on the game’s setting or learn a lot of 
  rules before you can play. The rules are extremely light and are 
  intended to facilitate instant play. 
  As mentioned earlier, Cat’s Dreams uses a deck of cards. That 
  stack of cards shall be referred to as the Story Deck. Designate 
  an area for your Discard Pile. If you used some cards earlier to 
  create your character, that’s fine. Place those cards now in the 
  Discard Pile.
  In this game, cards will be used to both generate the unfolding 
  story, determine the challenge numbers, determine your scores 
  when you attempt to overcome a challenge, and when the 
  Journey ends.  A Journey is composed of Scenes and once you’ve 
  played through the last Scene, the story ends.  There are some 
  events, however, that might aburptly end the Journey sooner. 
   
  Decide on the Journey Length 
  Given this is a solitaire game, decide on how long you want this 
  Journey to take. A standard game is 10 Scenes long.   For short 
  games, you can have fewer Scenes, but it is recommended to 
  be no less than five.  For longer games, you can have as many 
  as fifteen Scenes, but this may mean multiple reshuffles of the 
  deck, depending on the Challenges you face.
   
  Length
  Number of Cards
  Estimated Time
  Short
  5 to 9
  15 - 30 minutes
  Standard
  10
  30 - 60 minutes
  Long
  11 to 15
  60+ minutes
  Draw the desired number of cards, then place them  in 
  a single row, face down.  These are now to be called the 
  Journey Cards.
  12
  With or Without Jokers? 
  A standard game does not use Jokers. Optional rules 
  using them can be found at page 48.
  
  Hope
  ♥
  Strength
  ♠
  “In ancient times, cats were worshipped as gods; 
  they have not forgotten this.”   
  Sir Terry Prachett
  Sample Set-Up Below: 
  This is not a hard rule. You can always arrange things 
  differently so long as each area is clearly defined for you.
  Your 
  Character
  Fear
  ♣
  Story 
  Deck
  Discard 
  Pile
  Journey 
  Card
  01
  Journey 
  Card
  02
  Journey 
  Card
  03
  Journey 
  Card
  04
  Journey 
  Card
  05
  ...
  
  Starting 
  the 
  Adventure 
  The story begins with you at some common location you normally go 
  to. Perhaps at a coffee shop, or a corner café. Or maybe you just 
  stepped out of the market or just left school. The Cat catches your 
  attention. Roll a six-sided die three times to determine how the Cat 
  grabs your attention.
   
  Table A-1: Cat’s Descriptor (Your First Two Rolls) 
  Die Result
  First Descriptor
  Second Descriptor
  01
  White
  Long Coat
  02
  Gray
  Solid
  03
  Black
  Harlequin
  04
  Orange
  Two Colors  
  (Roll for the second color)
  05
  Cream
  Patchworked
  06
  Brown
  Pointed
   
  Table A-2: Cat’s Special Trait (Your Third Roll) 
  Use Option A on your first game. Use either afterwards for more 
  variety. 
  Die 
  Result
  Special Trait  
  Option A
  Special Trait  
  Option B
  01
  Can Talk
  Walks upright
  02
  Sings
  Ghostly
  03
  Has a prop
  (Examples include hat, 
  umbrella, suitcase, eye 
  glasses, etc)
  Roll twice in Option A to gen-
  erate two different Traits.
  04
  Walks on walls
  Shapechanging
  05
  Is followed by a  
  procession of other cats
  Is an inert stuffed toy when 
  others are looking
  06
  Can become invisible, 
  leaving paw prints
  Choose 3 traits from either 
  column 
  The Cat’s unique Traits grab your attention and cause you to break 
  from your usual routine. 
  
  15
  Perhaps it is curiosity or amusement, but you find yourself following 
  the Cat as it leads you down a winding path.   It leads you to a 
  place where your “Wish” can be granted.
  Feel free to narrate what the Cat leads you through until you reach 
  the Door.   Remember, the focus of the game is the Journey, so 
  don’t take too long to choose when you get to the Door. During 
  this trek to the Door, feel free to mention small details that imply a 
  connection to your Wish. Finally, when you get to the Door, generate 
  it using the table below. 
  The Door brings you to the place where your Wish can be granted.
  Table B: The Door 
   Roll two dice to generate the Special Door.
  Die 
  Result
  ...Door
  ...that...
  01
  Tiny
  Calls to you
  02
  Glowing
  No one else can see
  03
  Invisible
  Reminds you of your bedroom 
  door
  04
  Floating
  Has a golden cat paw as a 
  door knocker
  05
  Talking
  Has your name on it
  06
  Transforming
  You have seen in your dreams
  What 
  about 
  the 
  Journey 
  Cards? 
  The Journey Cards come in after the First Encounter. For 
  now, the narrative is building up to the first encounter. The 
  First Encounter is a good way to give the story “bookends,” 
  so they have a starting narrative detail that the story can 
  return to at the end of the Story. 
  
  Stepping Through
  As the Cat leads you through the door, you find yourself entering a 
  whole new world. Generate the world by rolling a six-sided die three 
  times, the first two rolls on Table C-1 and the last roll on Table C-2.  
  Table C-1: The Door Leads You to a... 
  Die Result
  Place Descriptor A
  Place Descriptor B
  01
  Magical
  Forest Kingdom
  02
  Mysterious
  Miniature Town
  03
  Dangerous
  Underwater City
  04
  Hidden
  Steampunk Village
  05
  Moving
  Beach Island
  06
  Quiet
  Floating Castle
   
  Table C-2: [Place] ...that... 
  Die Result
  Place Descriptor C
  01
  Where Objects are able to talk
  02
  Filled with your imaginary friends
  03
  Your grandmother used to tell you about
  04
  You used to draw as a child
  05
  You once read about in a children’s book
  06
  Perfectly matches a story you wanted to but never 
  had a chance to write
  “Like all pure creatures, cats are practical.”   
  William S. Burroughs
  16
  
  Upon arriving in this new location, you have your first encounter.  
  Roll the six-sided die, and draw a card to generate who you meet! 
  Table D-1: First Encounter 
  Die Result
  Black Card
  Red Card
  01
  A Lost Princess
  A Warrior
  02
  A Witch
  An Old Woman
  03
  A Kind Spirit
  A Hospitable Insect
  04
  Another Cat
  An Irritating Bird
  05
  A Monster!
  A Talkative Painting
  06
  Your Reflection 
  You encounter two beings, 
  roll for them (one from each 
  column) and ignore any rolled 
  sixes.
   
  Also generate what happens in this first meeting.   
  Roll the six-sided die. 
   
  Table E-1: What Happened in that First Encounter? 
  Die Result
  Upon Meeting...
  01
  Issues a Challenge
  02
  Casts a Spell/Curse on You
  03
  Welcomes You and Gives You Advice
  04
  Gives Directions
  05
  Gives You a Gift 
  06
  Asks Of You a Favor
  Narrate how the encounter unfolds. How the event affects you and 
  how this whole journey seems to promise the possibility of getting 
  what you Want. It is also possible what you Want seems unlikely so 
  far, and the adventure instead becomes the obstacle you must 
  complete to once more have the opportunity to get what you want.
  17
  
  Other Encounters 
  You can choose to use these tables to generate other characters 
  you encounter in your Journey. Draw a card to generate who you 
  meet! 
  Table F: More Encounters 
  Card
  Black Card
  Red Card
  Ace
  Talking Animal
  Kind Stranger
  02
  Scary Guard
  Stern Elder
  03
  Shy Imp
  Talking Statue
  04
  Drunken Farmer
  Bookish Guard
  05
  Hungry Driver
  Burping Bodyguard
  06
  Bold Poet 
  Inquisitive Servant
  07
  Colorless Clown
  Weeping Grandmother
  08
  Nervous Weaver
  Confused Lamp Lighter
  09
  Lonely Fisherman
  Singing Highwayman
  10
  Sleepy Builder
  Gentle Giant
  Jack
  Fragrant Vassal
  Entangled Archivist
  Queen
  Vengeful Swordsman
  Blind Priestess
  King
  Forgetful Nobility
  Disembodied Voice
   
  None of these personalities are innately good or evil. They are free to 
  be interpreted as you will. If you are having trouble working with the 
  generated personality, you can always shift down one row, or shift to 
  the other column.  You can even switch the discriptor of one column 
  with the actor of the other column.
  
  “I am not lost... I am not lost...”
  
  The Journey Has Begun!
  With the use of the Journey Cards in front of you, craft the narrative 
  of your journey. Each Journey Card becomes a Scene that involves 
  your character. Use the Keywords of the card to color the narrative. 
  Note that some Cards might have more than just Keywords on them.  
  Some cards may have Challenge rating. Some might have effects.
   
  Solitaire Role-playing Game
  Given this is a Solitaire Role-playing game, each Journey Card is 
  instended to be a jumping point for ideas on what happened or 
  unfolded in your story. If you were cursed by a Witch in an earlier 
  scene, for example, and the next Scene card you chose shows 
  “Play with locals,” it is your chance to flex those creative muscles to 
  narrate how that unfolds. Do the locals hate the witch too, so they 
  still play with you despite your curse? Do you interpet the card to 
  mean instead you come across a makeshift theater  with the locals  
  performing on stage and you watch from the shadows? That is up to 
  you. What is important is that you come up with a story that makes 
  sense and have fun in the process.
  No Wrong Interpretations
  Don’t be afraid of how you choose to interpret a card. It is completely 
  up to you to define how a card contributes to the unfolding fiction. 
  Use them as guides but do not be afraid to shape the story as you 
  see fit.
  Should the Journey Cards 
   
  The original idea has the Journey Cards face-up and 
  allow the player to map out in advance a possible 
  narrative flow.   
  Players seeking for a challenge can leave the cards 
  faced-down and only reveal them one by one as they 
  tell their ale.  Both are valid ways to play.
  20
  be face-up or face-down?
  
  Step 2
  As you shape the story unfolding in the Scene 
  based on the Keyword on that card, find a 
  good point when to inject the Challenge 
  written on the card.
  Attempt to resolve the Challenge. 
  (See Facing Challenges, in page 22)
  21
  Step 3
  If you succeed, proceed to Step 4. 
  If you failed, you may Try Again. 
  (see Trying Again, in page 28) 
  If you fail a second time, proceed to Step 4.
  Step 4
  Gain the bonus or fulfill the penalty of the 
  card as listed.
  Step 5
  If the Story Deck has not run out of cards, 
  continue to the next Journey Card.   
  (Return to Step 1) 
   
  If the Story Deck has run out of cards, 
  proceed to Ending the Dream. 
  (see Ending the Dream, in page 29)
  Step 1
  Select one of the Journey Cards. Place this 
  Card directly above your Character. This is 
  the Current Journey Scene. 
   
  Build a story connecting this to the First 
  Encounter, or to any previous Journey Cards 
  that have been played.  
   
  If the Card calls for a new Character, use the 
  Table D (p17) or Table F (page 18) generator 
  as needed.
  Taking the Journey
  
  Facing Challenges
  When a Journey Card is selected, the player must eventually 
  attempt to Overcome the Challenge listed on it. Be sure to build the 
  narrative to work with the card and any previous stories established 
  by previous scenes.  In this game, the Story deck is used to attempt 
  to overcome Challenges.  The dice can help, but only when you are 
  Trying Again.
  There are three kinds of Challenges:
  Hope Challenges, Strength Challenges and Fear Challenges
   
  Hope Challenges are overcome using Hope.
  Strength Challenges have a value to beat based on Fear, and are 
  overcome using Strength.
   
  Fear Challenges can be overcome using either Hope or Strength. 
  But these cannot be Tried Again. 
   
  Also remember, Fear will always wins ties. 
  Let’s explore these concepts in detail in the next few pages.
  Your 
  Character
  Hope
  ♥
  Fear
  ♣
  Strength
  ♠
  22
  
  Hope Challenges
  Hope is the Trait that is important whenever the 
  character tries to do something positive which is 
  not being contested or opposed by someone. 
  Examples include:
  Trying to find a dropped earring, following 
  the trail of a lazy firefly, or climbing a wall are 
  examples of actions that are tested by Hope.  
  Journey Cards that are Hope Challenges 
  typically mention the value of Hope needed to 
  Overcome the Challenge.
  23
  “Children, old crones, peasants, and dogs ramble; 
  cats and philosophers stick to their point..”   
  H.P. Lovecraft
  If you fail to pass a Hope Challenge, 
  you can Try Again.
  Hope
  ♥
  
  Strength
  ♠
  Strength Challenges
  Strength is the Trait that is important whenever the action 
  of the character is being opposed by other characters.  
   
  Running from one rooftop to the others is just a Hope action. 
  But if you’re doing this while being chased by soldiers, then it 
  becomes a Strength action. Trying to talk and convince the 
  living stone wall to let you pass is also a Strength action. 
  Don’t look at this as physical actions. Look at this more as when 
  the character’s strength of conviction and determination are 
  key to succeeding in the task.
  Fear is the Trait that tries to make things more difficult for you in 
  Strength Challenges. In many ways, Fear stops you because 
  you allow it to. While there are instances when Failure cannot 
  be avoided, it is only through Strength that one can overcome 
  Fear. During all Strength tasks, the target you have to beat is 
  based on what you have currently in Fear. Don’t worry, this 
  will get clearer soon. But know that what you have here in 
  Fear, is what makes your Strength action a challenge.
  24
  If you fail to pass a Strength Challenge, you 
  can Try Again.
  If your Strength card is red, you can 
  also add the number of your Hope 
  card to your Strength, regardless 
  of its suit. Strength can come from 
  unexpected places.
  
  Fear Challenges
  Finally there are just some threats that may be faced with
  Hope or Strength, but are just so tremendously terriying 
  that they cannot be tried again.  
  These types of Challenges are more part of the 
  Advanced Journey game and are recommended 
  only for advanced players who are used to the game.  
  Fear Challenges are horrifying because they can 
  lead to character death if you aren’t ready for them.  
   
  The full rules for the Advanced Journey will be released in 
  the Supplement, Another Cat’s Dream: Advanced Journey 
  Game.
  25
  The Brave Protagonist
  While the Protagonist might not necessarily 
  be a brave person, it is in these small 
  moments of courage that the protagonist 
  continues on in their journey. See Strength as 
  a representation of i nner power, rather than a 
  display of physical prowess. Explaining where 
  the strength is drawn from, whether it is from 
  a growing sense of self-esteem or a desire to 
  make one’s parents’ proud, can be great 
  narrative details to add to your evolving story.
  If you fail to pass a Fear Challenge, you 
  cannot Try Again.
  Fear
  ♣
  
  Card Values
  Each suit resonates with a specific Trait in the game. A resonating 
  card is worth its face value. Otherwise, it is only worth 1 point in 
  facing the Challenge.  
  Jokers are not usually used. But if you choose to use them, they 
  have their own rules (see Optional Rules, in page 48.)
  Hearts = Hope 
  Hearts resonate with Hope.
  Clubs = Fear 
  Clubs resonate with Fear.
  Spades = Strength 
  Spades resonate with Strength.
  ♥
  ♣
  ♠
  Diamonds = None 
  All Diamonds are considered to value 1.
  Overcoming a Challenge
  If your current Journey Card which has a Challenge, draw 
  three cards.  Turn one card face up and choose where to 
  place it between Hope and Strength.  It is best to place the 
  card in the area you feel that matches the current narrative.  
  The remaining two cards are then placed face-down in 
  each appropriate remaining area.  
  While you have not turned the cards over, you 
  are free to switch them around.  However, once 
  you’ve decided to turn any of the remaining cards 
  over, 
  you 
  can 
  no 
  longer 
  change 
  their 
  positions.  
   
  Once you are final with your decision, turn the three cards 
  face up and see if you succeded.  If any of the cards are face 
  cards (Jack, Queen, or King), something special happens!
  26
  
  27
  Face Cards
  If a face card is drawn instead (Jack, Queen or King), an 
  NPC can enter the scene.  Face cards do not have a value, 
  but are considered to always succeed unless the story 
  otherwise says so.
  If the Face card is in the Hope, the character is an ally and 
  will help you accomplish a task. 
  If the Face card is in Strength, it can be an Ally or an Enemy 
  depending on whether or not the suit is red (Ally) or black 
  (Enemy). An Enemy in Strength means the Enemy helps 
  you, for now (usually a henchman or unusually dangerous 
  character choosing to help you instead). 
  If the Face card is in Fear, however, then your story will have 
  an Antagonist. For this action, you automatically fail. From 
  this point on, every time a Face card with Spades or Clubs 
  appears, it will now represent that same enemy once more 
  making an appearance in your story. Antagonists always 
  have a value of 8 to overcome.
  After cards are dealt, and an Action is resolved, all cards are 
  discarded save for the Fear card. The Fear card is removed 
  from play.
  “But cats to me are strange, so strange 
  I cannot sleep if one is near.”   
  W.H. Davies
  
  Can I die? I failed right?
  In the spirit of how dreams tend to work and the  
  inspirations behind this game, players rarely - if 
  ever - die in this game. Instead, they wake up 
  alive and discover they were saved by an old ally, 
  or were given mercy by their antagonist at the 
  last moment.  This is keeping with the genre of the 
  game’s inspirational muses.
   
  What about in the 
  Advanced Journey Game?
  Death can happen. In fact, death tends to 
  happen with a failed Fear Challenge.
  Try Again
  If you did not have enough to overcome the Challenge, you 
  can Try Again.  When you Try Again, you discard your Hope 
  and Strength card, and draw two new cards.  If that is still not 
  enough, you may also roll a six-sided die and can add it to 
  the result to try to overcome the Challenge one last time. 
  If you do choose to roll the die, you must discard a third card 
  from the deck at the end of the Challenge.  You may see 
  what card was discarded if you want to.
  Try Again allows a failed attempt much greater chances at 
  success.  However, it does so at the cost of discarding more 
  cards.  You are only allowed to Try Again once per Challenge.  
  You can never Try Again Fear Challenges in an Advanced 
  Journey Game.
  Failing to Overcome a Challenge
  When a Challenge is failed, the player simply continues the 
  narrative to reflect the failed action.  The story continues, 
  however, as the dream only ends when the last Journey Card 
  is played, or when the Story deck runs out of cards.
  
  29
  Out of Cards
  If at any time you run out of Story Cards, sadly that means the 
  Story comes to an abrupt end. Your character suddenly sits up 
  and finds herself in her own bed.  A cat stares at her from the 
  window, then very calmly, and nonchalantly, walks away.
  The dream is over.
   
  Reaching the End of the Journey
  If you successfully reach the end of the journey by playing 
  and overcoming the challenge of the last Journey Card, 
  then you have reached the ending of your Journey!   You 
  can simply narrate the ending the way you want, and have 
  any characters you enjoyed in the story be part of the finale.  
   
  Alternately, you can generate the ending with two die rolls. 
  Table G-1: The Unexpected Ending 
   Roll two dice to generate the Finale using the first and second 
  Descriptors.
  Die 
  Result
  First Ending  
  Descriptor
  Second Ending  
  Descriptor
  01
  A Confession
  A Shooting Star
  02
  A Festival
  A Blossoming Flower
  03
  A Reunion
  A Delicious Treat
  04
  A Promise 
  A Familiar Song
  05
  A Kiss
  A Letter
  06
  A Farewell
  Another Door/ A Key
  
  “Hello? Is anyone there?  
  Who is there?”
  
  Example of Play
  Daniel of Norham decides to play Cat’s Dream. He tries generating 
  a character and from the deck, he draws four cards and gets 10    , 
  3     ,  8     ,  and K    . 
   
  Looking at the table, Daniel looks at the possible combinations.  He 
  can play a Construction Worker (    ) who is named Alan (    ), who 
  wants to Go on an Adventure (    ),
  and is actually someone who scares easily (     ) or...
  He can play a Magician (     ) who Lost Something Valuable (     ). 
  He can name the Magician, Cheska (    ) and she really wants to 
  Learn Real Magic  (     ).
   
  Then, he feels inspired and decides to make his own character. 
  Daniel decides to play a single mother named Bethany who wants 
  to travel (since she could never afford it, especially with the kid). 
  Daniel decides in the opening scene, she can lose her kid and that 
  leads to the whole adventure.
  Breaking the Rules
  As always, feel free to break the rules 
  if you want. The game is designed to 
  help 
  facililate 
  an 
  experience 
  but 
  if 
  you find yourself still having fun doing 
  something in a different way, go for it!
  Realizing he doesn’t really have that much time today due to 
  adulting responsibilities, Daniel decides this will be a quick Journey 
  and draws 5 cards from the Story Deck. He lays them out on the 
  table, and designates places the Story Deck down nearby. On a 
  separate pile, he gathers all the cards he used up in coming up with 
  a character and places them in the Discard Pile.
  Used Cards
  All used cards go to the Discard Pile, unless 
  told to remove them from the game.
  31
  
  With the 5 Journey Cards now set down, he picks up the six-
  sided die he normally uses when he plays A Single Moment and 
  rolls it three times. He gets a 3, 6 and a 3. He looks at Table A-1 
  and Table A-2 and considers the possible combinations:
  He could meet a Black Harlequin cat who can turn invisible (3,3,6) 
  or a Brown Harlequin cat which has a monocle (6,3,3) or even a 
  Black Pointed cat with two traits (using Option B) and after rolling 
  two more times, he gets 2 and 1, so the cat can talk and loves to sing. 
   
  Daniel decides Bethany was in the supermarket with her baby, 
  Thom, when they come across the Black cat. When Bethany 
  sees the singing cat, she ends up placing Thom down as she 
  tries to quietly follow the cat. She does not see Thom crawl 
  away from her.
  Move the  
  Story Forward
  Notice 
  how 
  Daniel 
  is 
  already setting the stage for 
  Bethany to “Lose something 
  important” even if the actual 
  meeting hasn’t happened 
  yet.  When playing, embrace 
  opportunities that move the 
  story forward.
  As Bethany follows 
  the 
  singing 
  cat, 
  Daniel decides the 
  cat stops by the 
  wet market area to 
  grab a bag of tuna. 
  Bethany remembers 
  to check on Thom 
  just as the young 
  child slips into The 
  Door. 
  Quickly rolling two dice, Daniel generates 2 and 5 and 
  determines that the door appears as either a Glowing door 
  with her name on it (2,5) or as a Talking door that no one else 
  can see. Daniel opts for the talking door.
  “Oh my!” Behany exclaims, “My baby. Please. I need to get my 
  baby.”
   
  The door laughed, “What’s a baby?”
  Bethany shook her head, “I’m talking to a door.  Thom!  Thom??!” 
  
  “Who is Thom?” a second voice asked. Bethany turned to  see 
  the black cat looking at her with a puzzled expression.Bethany 
  covered her face with her hands, “Oh! Oh... Am I going crazy? I 
  just lost my child..”
   
  “Did this child go through here, Mister Knob?” the cat asked. 
  Bethany looked up to see the door responding with a smile 
  creaking on its surface, “If she means the tiny version of her, yes. 
  he went in.” 
  33
  Conversations 
  and 
  Dialogue 
  While not required, it will play much more better 
  if you also choose to speak out lines for the other 
  characters. Rather than simply saying, “They 
  argued” you giving words to what the characters 
  exchange helps you also get a better feel of their 
  personalities as the game goes on.
  “May,” Bethany gasped, “May I please step in as well?”
  “You might get lost in there, milady. Perhaps I should assist you?” 
  the black pointed cat offered.
  “I... I would appreciate that,” Bethany nodded. The door slid open 
  and the two stepped through.
   
  Daniel quickly rolls and determines the door brings Bethany and 
  the cat to a Hidden Floating Castle that she once read about in 
  a children’s book.  With the same result of 4, 6, and 5, she could 
  have instead had it bring them to a Quiet, Beach Island that she 
  used to draw as a child. Daniel decides he likes how its a Floating 
  Castle more. He describes how Bethany and the cat step through 
  the door and find themselves immediately on a platform atop one 
  of the towers of the Castle. He can see the clouds spewing out 
  from underneath the Castle, making it look like it was nothing but 
  clouds.
  Daniel decides he likes the sense of tension and wonder and 
  opts to keep at the Journey Cards face down. He then pulls his 
  hand back as he realizes he nearly skipped the First Encounter! 
  
  And with that, Daniel draws the first 
  Journey Card. 
  Opening it, he discovers it contains the 
  3 of       .
   
  Referencing the tables, he sees the 
  card is a moment of Mistaken Identity. 
  And it calls for a Strength Challenge!  
  He draws three cards and places them 
  down nearby. Picking up the first card, 
  Drawing a card, he rolls the die and looks at the combination:    
  Jack       and a 4.
  Bethany stares at the irritating bird (4 and Jack of Hearts, which is a 
  black card). The bird whistles at them and a quick roll reveals a 4, it 
  greets them with a mix of tones. Bethany calls out for Thom, wondering 
  where her son had gone. The black cat points stretches, admitting, “I 
  don’t normally keep track of humans. You all look the same to me.” 
  Daniel sticks his tongue out, before he covers his face as he laughs. 
  He didn’t expect to find himself wanting to act out the reactions.  
  Bethany growls, “Come on Cat! Where is my son, Thom?” To their 
  surprise, the bird responds, whistling as it flutters in one direction. 
   
  “It would seem,” the cat sighed, “You will already have a guide. 
  Hurry on now, adventure awaits!
  Acting Out 
  Do you have 
  those moments 
  too? I love acting 
  out what the 
  characters do. 
  It just feels more 
  natural to do so.
  he turns it over and reveals it as a 5 of    . Now has to decide where 
  to place them between Strength and Hope.  Not knowing what the 
  others might be, Daniel decides to place it in Strength, thinking even 
  if it counts only as a 1, it allows Bethany to add her Hope to its final 
  value.  He opens the two other cards and learns her Hope is a 5 of     
  and her Fear turns out to be a 10 of     ! This means Fear is only 1, 
  which means she overcomes it! 
   
  Daniel works out the narrative to work with the results. Bethany runs 
  after the bird, leaping over cloud mounds and leaving a smoky 
  trail in her wake. Daniel realizes someone has to mistake Bethany 
  for someone, so he quickly goes back to Table F for encounters 
  and draws a 9 of  .  This means Bethany encounters the Singing 
  Highwayman! 
  
  35
  “You there,” Daniel talks as the highwayman who emerges from the 
  shadows of a tree, “Aren’t you the one I’m supposed to hold up?”
   
  “What?” Daniel replies as Bethany, “I think you’ve mistaken me for 
  someone else, dear sir.”  
  “I am a highway man. I am no sir.”
  “I’m looking for my son,” Bethany replies, “I think you’re not someone 
  who can help me though. If you don’t mind, I’ll be going ahead now..”
   
  Daniel decides the Highway man shrugs, letting Bethany leave. The 
  Highway man stares at the path, waiting for the woman he was 
  supposed to rob.
   
  Daniel draws the next Journey Card. It turns out to be an Ace of          .  
  Looking at the chart, that means it is a Threat of Discovery and 
  requires a Strength Challenge.  Daniel thinks about this for a bit and 
  decides there’s need of some time before this moment.  He needs an 
  antagonist of some sort.  So Bethany continues down the path, and 
  soon enters a small clearing where something was busy eating.  Once 
  again, Daniel opts to generate an encounter and draws a Queen 
  of       .  That generates a Blind Priestess! Bethany sees a pale woman 
  whose hair is twisted into horn-like extensions. Her eyes are gone, with 
  scarred skin covering there previous place. Her fingers are stuffing a 
  dead bunny into her lips as she suckles on their bones. 
  Gross Out Moment 
  Keep in mind, you can always 
  define the result in whatever 
  way works best for you. In this 
  example, Daniel loves horror 
  too, so he had the priestess 
  look kinda ghastly.
  One thing for sure, Bethany 
  did not want to be noticed 
  by this priestess!  Drawing 
  the requisite three cards, 
  Daniel looks at the first one 
  and it is a King of    !
  This being a Face card in his possible three card spread means it is a 
  distinct character. Being red, it can be an ally. Looking at the rules in 
  page 27, Daniel opts to place it in his Strength! This means it is an ally, 
  and Hope can add too!
  
  Generating the Ally, Daniel draws a fourth card, and this turns out 
  to be 7 of     . Bethany clamps both hands over her mouth in shock 
  as the priestess rips the rabbits foot off with her teeth. She backs into 
  a black and white figure that clamps its hands over her mouth and 
  pulls her safely back. Bethany turns and sees it is a colorless clown. 
  Daniel decides the clown is a mime.
    
  “What is that thing?” Bethany gasped. The clown mimes “I don’t 
  know” by raising both hands and shoulders. 
  “I just want to find my son,” Bethany sighs.
   
  The clown mimes holding a baby in its arms.   Bethany motions Thom 
  is older. The clown nods affirmatively.
   
  “Please show me where,” Bethany mumbles. Daniel decides Bethany 
  tries to follow the clown.  Dariel then realizes since the Clown is a 
  Face Card in Hope, he automatically passes the Challenge with the 
  Clown’s help! He peeks at the two other cards, and they happened 
  to be a 2 of      for Hope, and a 9 of       for Fear. Good thing it was a 
  Face card!
  Remember: Face Cards are auto win 
  A Face Card in Hope or Strength means an auto win. If 
  it was in Fear, however, the antagonist reveals itself and 
  becomes a recurring threat! AND you automatically fail 
  too!  If FACE cards appear in both Hope/Strength and Fear, 
  then the Fear wins.  Fear wins all ties. 
  Having snuck away, the third Journey Card is drawn. It happens to 
  be a 6 of      .  The table defines it as Make New Friends.   The rules tell 
  Daniel to draw a card and its color detemines what happens next. 
  Daniel finds a 4 of      which means he shuffles back all discarded 
  cards.   The Clown and Bethany find a moment to sit down. Bethany 
  tells the Clown her story and about how she is looking for Thom. The 
  Clown mime laughs and points towards where they came from. 
  The Clown mimes the priestess’ actions and Bethany understands. Her 
  son is in danger from that thing unless she finds him first.  Emboldened, 
  Bethany stands up and thanks the Clown and asks for its name. The 
  Clown just bows.
  
  Daniel draws the fourth Journey Card. It turns out to be a 6 of     .  
  According to the table, that means  Cursed!  An ear-splitting roar 
  breaks out from the woods and Bethany grabs the Clown’s hand.  
  She drags the clown with her as the forest around them tears apart. 
  The priestess screams with her bloody talons reaching out to grab 
  them. The two try to run but the priestess grabs hold of Bethany and 
  curses her, telling her that she will feel nothing but sadness in her 
  heart!
  “Why are you doing this to me?” Bethany cries.
   
  The priestess laughs, “Because I can. These are my woods and you 
  are not meant to be here. You will find no hope in ithis place! This is 
  mine! Mine!”
   
  Daniel realizes this will be bad. The curse means he automatically 
  has to discard the card assigned to Hope.  He prays that the last 
  card won’t require a Hope Challenge.
  Daniel describes the Clown running to one side, the Priestess  holding 
  him up and choosing which side to eat first, the upper half or the 
  lower half. Daniel draws the fifth Journey Card and flips it over.
  The card turns out to be a Jack of     .  This means “Transformation! A 
  friend all along” The effect shuffles back all discarded hearts, which 
  aren’t many given the earlier reshuffle. But the card’s keywords also 
  offers story options. Is the Priestess a friend, after all? One testing 
  to see her mettle? Is the Clown actually Thom and in this world her 
  son is an older helpful fellow?  Daniel considers the story so far then 
  realizes the Friend All Along can be the highway man from earlier. 
  The Priestess and Bethany hear singing and suddenly, a shot rings 
  out! The Priestess pulls back at the lead strikes her in the face, forcing 
  her to withdraw. A second and third shot ring out as the Highway 
  man fires a few more rounds at the monstrous Priestess.
  Pay Attention to your Journey Cards 
  Seeing its three down from five, Daniel knows the 
  story is nearing its possible end in this short game. He 
  reminds himself to make the narrative have a cool 
  ending somehow. 
  37
  
   
  “Well, if I ain’t wrong this time. I believe that’s my target,” the highway 
  man laughs.  The Priestess pulls away, screeching but her antler like 
  hair catches on vines, keeping her from running away.  The Highway 
  man hums as he fires a few more shots, singing about keeping the 
  roads safe and the rides light, and reloads a new round of bullets.
  Bethany runs to the Highway man and hugs him, thanking him for 
  the help. As she turns to check on the Clown, she sees him motioning 
  at her to come closer.  She and the Highway man approach and 
  see what the Clown has found.
  Daniel rolls the dice twice and gets a 1 and a 4.  Looking at the list, 
  he quickly realizes he knows how to end the story.
  Could he have kept the story going? 
  Absolutely. If the player feels the current narrative can 
  still keep going, then they can simply draw as many 
  Journey Cards as they want.  You can even ignore the 
  abrupt waking up ending when cards run out if you 
  want, and just reshuffle cards. Whatever makes it more 
  fun for you is acceptable!
   
  More ideas are in page 48, Optional Rules.
  On the grass, Thom is sleeping with his thumb in his mouth like a 
  pacifier.  Bethany hurries and picks up her boy, hugging him tight. 
  The boy barely wakes up, telling her he’s tired and ready to go home.  
  Bethany starts to hear a familiar song and looks up at the Highway 
  man. He sings a lullaby she has heard before:
  Good night, good night
  Your eyes are getting heavy
  Good night sweet light
  It is time to sleep and dream.
  Good night, good night
  This is the end of your journey. 
  Let’s close the light
  and return on your next dream.
  38
  
  Bethany stares at the Highway man and realizes, “You were the 
  dreams I used to have. When I was little!” The Clown nodded quickly. 
  The Highway man bowed. Even the Priestess now emerged from the 
  woods where she fled and bowed too. She no longer had bullet 
  holes in her body.  Bethany looked around and smiled, realizing she 
  once used to have fun here often. 
   
  “Promise to us that you’ll come back,” the Highway man asked.  “Or 
  at least promise to us,” the Priestess hissed, “That you will let him play 
  with us?”  She pointed at Thom.
  The Clown nodded a yes.   Bethany smiled, “So long as it is just for 
  play.”  They all hugged her tight.
  Another door emerged and hoped to lead her home. Bethany and 
  Thom wake up, back at the market, having seemingly fallen asleep 
  on the side against an aisle. In the distance, they see the singing 
  cat from earlier and realize his fur pattern would look like a highway 
  man.  The cat hurries away.  Thom and Bethany share a secret smile 
  between them knowing there’s a place they alone can go to and 
  have fun.
  Daniel feels the story is a good complete session. 
  He packs up his cards and has just finished a quick session of Cat’s 
  Dream.
  The End
  
  “Eat all you want, my dear.  
  So yummy!”
  
  CARD TABLES
  CAT’S DREAM
  BASIC JOURNEY
  
  Clubs : Basic Journey 
  Table H-1: Clubs 
  Card
  Keywords
  Challenge / Effect
  Ace
  Threat of Discovery!
  Strength Challenge
  02
  Disguise Fails
  Strength Challenge 
  03
  Poisoned!
  Strength Challenge 
  Fail: Discard next red Face 
  card revealed.
  04
  Chased by monster! 
  Run for it!
  Strength Challenge 
  Fail: Discard five Story Cards
  05
  Riddle Too Tough
  Strength Challenge 
  Fail: Discard ten Story Cards 
  06
  Horribly Lost
  Hope: 10 
  Fail: Discard ten Story Cards 
  07
  Forgiveness. Second 
  Chances.
  Reshuffle back up to 7 
  discarded Story Cards
  08
  The Long Wait.
  Hope: 4
  09
  Curse Broken. Spell 
  Undone. 
  Strength challenge.
  10
  Friend badly injured.
  The next revealed red Face 
  Card is instantly discarded.
  Jack
  Imprisoned. Captive!
  Strength Challenge  
  Fail: Discard 10 Story Cards
  Queen
  Gloating enemy. 
  Enemy victory.
  Strength Challenge  
  Fail: Remove 3 red Story 
  Cards from the game.
  King
  Prove you care. 
  Sacrifce. Courage.
  Strength Challenge  
  Fail: Discard 20 Story Cards
  42
  
  Spades : Basic Journey 
  Table I-1: Spades 
  Card
  Keywords
  Challenge / Effect
  Ace
  Sudden Twist! Way 
  home is closed!
  Hope: 6
  02
  Thank you. Grateful.
  Reshuffle back all Diamonds 
  03
  Mistaken Identity.
  Strength Challenge or mis-
  taken identity affects next 3 
  challenges
  04
  Resolve! Can do it!
  Reshuffle 4 Story Cards of 
  your choice.
  05
  Twist! Enemy posed 
  as your friend!
  Strength Challenge 
  06
  Safe Journey. Long 
  roads. Winding 
  paths. 
  Hope: 1
  07
  Antagonist not really 
  evil! Explainations.
  Reshuffle back all odd Story-
  cards.
  08
  Running on unsafe 
  path! Danger!
  Hope: 5
  09
  Console someone.
  Hope: 2
  10
  Fooled! Confusion! 
  Trickery!
  Strength challenge
  Jack
  Friend has disap-
  peared. Aban-
  doned.
  On next challenge, discard 
  the Strength card. 
  Queen
  Cheerful thanks. 
  Reshuffle Diamonds or Hearts 
  back to the deck.
  King
  Invitation to go 
  home.
  Hope: 8  
  Fail: Dream ends early.
  43
  
  Diamonds : Basic Journey 
  Table J-1: Diamonds 
  Card
  Keywords
  Challenge / Effect
  Ace
  Play with Locals
  Hope: 2
  02
  Glimpse of family/
  real world.
  Shuffle back 2 Story Cards 
  03
  Argument with 
  Locals
  Strength Challenge
  04
  Confront someone 
  everyone else fears
  Strength Challenge
  05
  Ate something you 
  shouldn’t have
  Hope: 5 
  06
  Cursed! 
  On next challenge, discard 
  the card assigned to Hope. 
  Do not replace.  Curse ends.
  07
  A good night’s rest!
  Shuffle back up to 7 Story 
  Cards
  08
  Can’t Sleep. Bad 
  Dreams.
  On next challenge, dis-
  card the card assigned to 
  Strength. Do not replace.  
  Curse ends. 
  09
  Good breakfast! 
  If the next Fear card is a Face 
  card, discard and replace.
  10
  Missing home. Sad 
  Memories.
  On next Strength challenge, 
  add 1d6 to Fear
  Jack
  Transformation! 
  Friend all along!
  Shuffle back all discarded 
  Hearts.
  Queen
  Transformation! Gain 
  authority! Title! 
  Shuffle back all discarded 
  Spades.
  King
  Transformation! New 
  Dimension!
  Reroll and generate a new 
  setting to continue the story
  44
  
  Hearts : Basic Journey 
  Table K-1: Hearts 
  Card
  Keywords
  Challenge / Effect
  Ace
  Explore, Fascination
  Hope: 1
  02
  Get Lost
  Hope: 2
  03
  Meet Nice Townsfolk
  Hope: 1
  04
  Dead End
  Hope: 3
  05
  Lost
  Hope: 3 
  06
  Make New Friends
  Draw card. 
  Black: Shuffle back up to 7 
  discarded Story Cards. 
  Red: Shuffle back all discard-
  ed Story cards.
  07
  Try Interesting Food
  Hope: 1
  08
  Pretends to be from 
  here
  Hope: 2
  09
  Learn more about 
  this place
  Hope: 1
  10
  See glimpse of the 
  Antagonist.
  Hope: 2
  Fail: Discard 5 cards!
  Jack
  Friend offers to guide 
  you.
  Automatically succeed in the 
  next Challenge as well.
  Queen
  Authority figure 
  welcomes you.
  Reshuffle all discarded cards.
  King
  Deus Ex Machina
  After this card, automatically 
  succeed on your very next 
  Strength Challenge.
  45
  
  “Calm down, Mister Cat. I got this!”
  
  OPTIONAL RULES
  CAT’S DREAM
  ANOTHER JOURNEY
  
  Optional Rules to Try
  When I first wrote the rules for Cat’s Dream, the game only had one 
  table of options to generate the story.   For this first published release, 
  however, I felt it was apt to offer a few alternative rules and tables to 
  use to add more replay options and value to the game.  Hope you 
  like them as well!
  Optional Rule: Jokers
  If you want to play a version of the game that uses the Jokers, you 
  can use this simple rule:
   
  Optional Rule: Shorter Dreams
  You do not have to finish the entire deck. At any time when you feel 
  the story has reached a nice point, you can always opt to end the 
  Dream there.
  Optional Rule: The Long Dream
  You can chain multiple sessions of Cat’s Dream into one long story. 
  To do this, however, it might be important to have a page where you 
  can keep track of all the characters you have in the story, based on 
  the card that was drawn.  That way, if the card is drawn again in a 
  later game, you can reintroduce the character to the narrative.
  Each session can end with the Dream ending, but the start of later 
  sessions can skip the preliminary introductions and simply have the 
  Cat return to start a new dream. 
  Optional Rule: Gaming Tool
  At the start of each game session, or any time you need a creative 
  push, you can use the tables to generate ideas on where the game 
  can go. 
  48
  The Joker:  
  Each time a Joker is drawn, the Challenge is 
  automatically resolved in a humorous or hilarious 
  unexpected way.  Afterwards, three cards must 
  be discarded from the Story deck.
  
  “It was just a dream!”
  
  CREATIVE IDEAS
  CAT’S DREAM
  TIPS & THOUGHTS
  
  How This Game Began
  Back in January 4, 2013, a dear friend of mine informed me of a n 
  activity that was making circles in a social network.  Jovan introduced 
  me  to something called the 2013 Creative Pay-It-Forward.  I never 
  quite figured out who started it but I thought it was an incredible 
  idea and rather than just offer it to the first five who commented, I 
  offered it to seven people.
  Jovan had a slot and her request was a tabletop role-playing 
  game inspired by Studio Ghibli movies. Since I wanted her to be 
  able to play the game once it was done, I decided to write it as a 
  solitaire experience.   The first dive into writing the rules was finished 
  in February 21, 2013.  And it took a few more years later to find the 
  courage, the confidence, and the tweaking necessary to bring it to 
  where it is now.   A lot of kind people have fun playtesting it and their 
  feedback proved to be incredible in seeing how the design could 
  be better tweaked to work in a smoother way. I listed them all in 
  the credits page and I will forever be grateful to them for their kind 
  words and their honest feedback. Ignacy Trzewiczek talks about the 
  paradoxial importance of playtesters and their feedback and I took 
  that insight to heart. I also drew strength from Jared Sorensen’s 3 
  Design Questions (What is the game about? How is the game about 
  that? How does the game encourage or reward it?) and John Wick’s 
  fourth Question (How do you make that fun?)
  The joy of seeing the results of people playtesting the game was 
  unparalleled. From feedback that helped smoothen the way the 
  rules are told to considerations on how certain cards or activity can 
  mechanically affect the game, I realized some rules worked well, 
  others eeded a bit more tweaking, and a few would better function 
  as rules for more advanced versions of the rules or even for more 
  mature stories that can include character death.
  One of the big influences in the creation of this game is an old 
  beautiful tabletop game that used Tarot cards. The game did not 
  use character sheets and it was, in my opinion,  an amazing work of 
  design.  The name of the game was Psychosis and it was published 
  in 1994 by Charles Ryan of Chameleon Eclectic.  Another influence 
  was the beautifully crafted game of steampunk heroism and magic, 
  Castle Falkenstein designed by Mike Pondsmith in 1994 for R. Talsorian 
  
  Games. Of course, it goes without saying that Studio Ghibli movies 
  such as Hayao Miyazaki’s My Neighbor Totoro, Castle in the Sky, 
  and most especially Hiroyuki Morita’s The Cat Returns were massive 
  influences in the tone and the feel of this game. Part of the greater 
  challenge was finding ways to allow the game to breathe and invite  
  more options and narratives to explore.
  I also remembered a lot of other stuff which I loved that explored 
  similar “ordinary person explores an unexpected world” such as 
  movies like Labyrinth, or books like Alice in Wonderland.  These also 
  resonated with modern shows such as Over the Garden Wall and 
  in some ways, shows like Steven Universe, and Adventure Time. 
  I realized I could offer a wider range of character types to meet 
  and encounter, and feel less constrainted to limit interactions and 
  encounters to only fantastic personalities.
  So here we are with the actual release of the Basic Journey rules.  I 
  do hope you enjoy the game as much as I had enjoyed crafting 
  it. And I do hope you all enjoy it enough to also support the later 
  supplements of the game.
  Improvisation and Narrative
  For people who love playing role-playing games, or for people who 
  are fans of theater, the concept of improvisation is often reduced to 
  the idea that one should never say, “No” to another’s contributed 
  concept in a narrative. A common adage is to always reply with, 
  “Yes” or “Yes, and..” or even “Yes, but..” But it is important, in my 
  opinion, to bear in mind that there’s a world of difference between 
  improvisation and simply throwing anything at the other player, “just 
  to see how they would react to it.”
   
  The best improv tries to build on the existing narrative, and not just 
  throw something different or unexpected. And when writing this 
  game, I tried to think of the card tables in that direction. Each entry 
  tries to help develop further the original premise of the cat bringing 
  the character to a strange yet familiar fantastic world. There’s no 
  avoiding that some elements might feel a bit out of place as it is 
  impossible to anticipate every single possible twist and flow the 
  story has taken, but care at least was taken to work with a general 
  thematic feel in mind.  
  
  Here are some tips and ideas to consider when interpreting the 
  cards (as well as when you lay any other table top games that may 
  welcome improvisation at the table:
  Pay Attention to Contrast
  If every single event is worldshaking, and every single character is 
  super unique, distinct, named, and prominent, then it can get very 
  complicated and confusing quite quickly for the narrative. The best 
  stories pay attention to balancing the “screen time” between the 
  key characters who are vital in the narrative and those who are 
  important to serve as set dressing. 
  Just as a good story guides the reader in identifying who the main 
  character is and who the key supporting characters are, a good 
  game should also guide the players who are impoortant in the 
  unfolding narrative. If the man who serves the wine at the tavern 
  doesn’t really have anything important to contirbute to the narrative, 
  then there’s no need to waste time learning their name or building 
  their backstory. In a solo game, you’re spending time detailing 
  something that you won’t even explore further in the game. And in 
  a group game, you’re wasting everyone else’s time with things they 
  cannot really relate or connect with.
   
  Embrace Opportunities to Connect With Each Other
  Learn the secret of finding small interconnections between characters 
  and scenes. They don’t all have to be massively intertwined as that 
  simply leads to convoluted plots and unrealistic narratives (“Wait, 
  so you mean the man who murdered my brother’s cat turned out 
  to be the former lover of the teacher who taught me about sword 
  magic despite him being the father I never really knew?”).  The 
  connections you can identify can be simpler ones.  Maybe it could 
  simply be someone you remember travelling alongside in the past. 
  Or someone who you saw in a previous scene. Or someone, who like 
  you, also was absent in a specific instance. 
  To be more specific with Cat’s Dream, characters you meet in your 
  narrative might share the same opinions as you for some nonsenscial 
  things (“You hate flowers too? I think they really suck.”) and that can 
  be enough to create opportunities for the characters to connect.
  
  Make Choices And Bring Change
  It can sometimes be easy to take a backseat and leave the hard 
  work of plot change to the other players. For some, it could be 
  due to the fear of “not having a good idea”. For others, it might 
  be because they feel unsure if the other players will want to do the 
  same action. But in a solitaire game, this can manifest instead as 
  thinking that changes to the plot and narrative can only happen if 
  the cards say they do. 
  In all cases, allow me to stay that as a Storyteller who has been 
  running games for practically thirty or so years, players who declare 
  the choices they make are players who are invested in the unfolding 
  narrative.  These are players who are telling the group they’re 
  enjoying the game so much that they want to see where it goes. 
  After all, if any of the other players feel the idea might not be a good 
  one, they’re also now able to speak up and in character, debate 
  on the matter as well. The declaration of a choice leads to reactions 
  and interactions. 
  In a solitaire game, this can be represented as simply adding more 
  narrative twists of your own when you feel like it would be a good 
  time to do so. You don’t have to wait for a table result saying 
  someone welcomed you to their home to narrate how a resident of 
  the fantastic world welcomes you to thier home to join them for tea. 
  Don’t be afraid to allow your imagination to add details. 
  The Present = Opportunties, The Past = Factchecking
  When throwing in twist and ideas, it helps to have them always reflect 
  events in the present and not the past. While flashbacks can be cool 
  and fun, any game that has more than a single key flashback in the 
  narrative starts slowing down as other players might start worrying 
  about fact checking their own contributions to the new “past” that 
  was established.
  To avoid losing time with too much, “So what again happened back 
  then and how did that effect things today?” kind of questions, try 
  to limit any improvised details to the present. While television and 
  movies work wonderfully well in surprising the viewer with “actually 
  this is what really happened in the past” moments, for players who 
  are collectively trying to tell a story while they come up with it on 
  the fly, this manner of fact-checking can be tedious and frustrating.  
  
  Games do not have the leisure of editing time before the broadcast.
  In a solitaire game such as Cat’s Dream, the same can still be said. 
  Limit your flashback twists only to when they are really needed to 
  keep the flow of the story clean and easy to manage. 
  Integrity Matters in Personality
  While twists are fun, twists work best when they happen in comparison 
  to everything else that embraces the existing status quo. Pay 
  attention to what has been established for certain characters and 
  do not be afraid ot help further develop them with new details that 
  contribute to the story. A nobleman might have been established 
  as a lover of art. But maybe you can also reveal that he refuses to 
  go hunting too, because he despises seeing animals killed for sport. 
  Likewise, a knight that watches over the forest might turn out to also 
  be the same person who visits the shrubbery trolls and teaches them 
  to read.  If the new contribution supplements the existing facts, then 
  embrace that opportunity to further build on the personalities.
  Also pay attention to the emotional integrity of the characters. A 
  detail you add might seem completely unique or new but if they 
  still hit the same correct emotional notes or personality touchstones, 
  then they can help in defining the person better.
   
  Be Open To Learning Later
  You do not need to know and be able to answer everything as the 
  story unfolds. Be open to the possibility that some things might only 
  become clearer as time passes. Or that some information might only 
  be revealed in the later part of the story. A dangerous monster might 
  choose to leave the character unharmed and the reasons behind 
  it might only come clearer later in the game. Maybe the beast 
  received kindness from the player character in the past? Or maybe 
  some magic or enhantment protects the character? Allow certain 
  details to remain undefined or incomplete for now and simply try to 
  answer them later on.
  These standing questions are fine to have so long as the player 
  character is invovled in the unfolding narrative at the present.  
  55
  
  CARD TABLES
  CAT’S DREAM
  ANOTHER JOURNEY
  
  57
  A Darker World
  The Cat leads you to a world that currently is beseiged by war! 
  While this is a darker world than the Basic Journey, this is still not the 
  Advanced Game where death is a possible result.  Instead, here, 
  opportunities for more serious or introspective narratives on war can 
  be explored.
  Is there anything you can do to help? Generate the world by rolling 
  a six-sided die three times, the first two rolls on Table C-3 and the last 
  roll on Table C-4.
  Table C-3: The Door Leads You to a... 
  Die Result
  Place Descriptor A
  Place Descriptor B
  01
  Smoldering
  Rural Town
  02
  Ashen
  Urban City
  03
  Well-Guarded
  Campsite
  04
  Silent
  Underground Cavern
  05
  Ruined
  Makeshift Hospital
  06
  Rebuiding
  Brokendown Train
   
  Table C-4: [Place] ...with... 
  Die Result
  Place Descriptor C
  01
  People desperate to escape
  02
  Survivors hurriedly gathering their belongings
  03
  Injured soldiers tired of fighting
  04
  Mothers and children worrying over their husbands
  05
  Music playing from a band refusing to embrace fear
  06
  Armed soldiers suspicious of any strangers... like you.
  Upon arriving in this new location, you have your first encounter.  
  Roll the six-sided die, and draw a card to generate who you meet!  
  Use table D-2 to see who you meet. 
  
  Table D-2: First Encounter 
  Die Result
  Black Card
  Red Card
  01
  A soldier
  A translator
  02
  A mother
  A musician
  03
  A child
  An artist
  04
  A dog
  A grandparent
  05
  A reporter
  A doctor
  06
  An automaton
  Choose two from any column. 
  Describe why they’re together.
   
  Also generate what happens in this first meeting.   
  Roll the six-sided die. 
  Table E:-2 What Happened in that First Encounter? 
  Die Result
  Upon Meeting...
  01
  Asks for your help to deliver a message
  02
  Begs for food
  03
  Warns you to be careful of the dangers out there 
  04
  Blames you for being part of the war (which you 
  have no idea about)
  05
  Asks you to stay close in their last moments
  06
  Asks if you would be willing to accompany them to 
  get to someplace important
  Narrate how the encounter unfolds. This is the starting point of the 
  Darker Journey.   This type of story is inspired by movies such as 
  Graveyard of the Fireflies, Howl’s Moving Castle, or even television 
  shows such as Over the Garden Wall. 
  In this game, the card deck might move much more rapidly than 
  a Basic Journey. The Face cards will also feel much more powerful 
  here as they have a much more notable effect on the game.
   
  58
  
  Clubs : Another Journey 
  Table H-2: Clubs 
  Card
  Keywords
  Challenge / Effect
  Ace
  War.
  Fear Challenge
  Fail: Search deck for Face 
  Cards. Shuffle and remove from 
  game half. Reshuffle deck.
  02
  Shot at by Soldiers.
  Strength Challenge 
  03
  Handcuffed to post.
  Strength Challenge
  04
  Hunted!
  Strength Challenge 
  05
  Ouch. Sprained foot.
  Hope: 4 
  06
  Friendship Ends.
  Hope: 10 
  Fail: Reveal ten Story Cards. Re-
  move from game all Face Cards 
  revealed. Reshuffle deck.
  07
  Such a Heavy.  
  Burden to Bear
  Strength Challenge: 
  Fail: Discard five Story Cards
  08
  There are too Many. 
  Find another way.
  Strength Challenge 
  Fail: Discard ten Story Cards
  09
  Walls Block the Way.
  Strength challenge. 
  Fail: Discard five Story Cards
  10
  Something breaks. 
  Replace Strength and Hope 
  immediately.
  Jack
  Following orders. 
  Surrender.
  Strength Challenge  
  Fail: Discard 10 Story Cards
  Queen
  Fearless Judge. 
  Demands answers. 
  Two Strength Challenges  
  Fail: Reshuffle back all Clubs.
  King
  Alchemical. Noble. 
  Loss of memory. 
  Stoic.
  Strength Challenge  
  Fail: Reshuffle back all cards. 
     Remove 10 from the game.
  59
  
  Spades : Another Journey 
  Table I-2: Spades 
  Card
  Keywords
  Challenge / Effect
  Ace
  Major Curse.
  Fear Challenge
  Fail: Search deck for Even cards. 
  Shuffle and remove from game 
  half. Reshuffle deck.
  02
  Tea and Biscuits.
  Choose ten cards from the 
  discard and shuffle them 
  back. 
  03
  The Dog. 
  Hope: 5
  Success: May replace Strength 
  card on next challenge with a 
  Discarded card.
  04
  Threat of Discovery. 
  No more hiding.
  Hope: 5 
  Fail: Discard 5 cards.
  05
  Misfire! Look out!
  Strength Challenge 
  06
  Fog of War. Navigate 
  in the dark. 
  On next challenge, replace 
  Fear card with a new facedown 
  card. Reveal when ready.
  07
  Friendship is tested.
  Hope: 5  
  08
  Fireworks in the sky. 
  Or are they bombs?
  Reshuffle back all odd Story-
  cards.
  09
  What’s the  
  Password?
  Hope: 2
  10
  We have you  
  surrounded!
  Strength challenge
  Jack
  The Bounty Hunter. 
  On their sights.
  Pass two Strength challenges, 
  one after the other.
  Queen
  A Towering Giant. 
  Hope: 8 
  Fail: Discard all odd cards.
  King
  Double Crossed! 
  Wrong Titles.
  Hope: 4  
  Fail: Dream ends early.
  
  Diamonds : Another Journey 
  Table J-2: Diamonds 
  Card
  Keywords
  Challenge / Effect
  Ace
  Mass Destruction. 
  Bombs. Poison. 
  Cruelty from Above.
  Fear Challenge
  Fail: Roll the six-sided die. Re-
  move from the game all cards 
  with the rolled number.
  02
  A moment of unex-
  pected Kindness
  Shuffle back half the 
  discarded cards.
  03
  Sharing a meal
  Hope: 2
  04
  Argument over food.
  Hope: 5
  05
  A surprising find!  
  Treasure in the junk.
  Draw two cards, choose 
  higher one for Hope next 
  challenge.
  06
  Starving.
  Discard 10 Story cards 
  unless your Strength is an 
  even number.
  07
  It is safer here.  
  Sturdy shelter.
  Shuffle back up to 7 Story 
  Cards
  08
  They want what you 
  have. Give it!
  Strength challenge.  
  Fail: Discard 5 cards. 
  09
  Dream of family.
  Gain +3 bonus on next 
  challenge. 
  10
  Checkpoint!  
  Friend of foe?
  Hope: 5
  Jack
  Colors Changed. 
  Pain for Peace.
  Shuffle back all discarded 
  Hearts.
  Queen
  Symbol of office. 
  Definite identity.
  All Fear challenges from this 
  point are Hope challenges.
  King
  Golden Throne.  
  Dying Monarch.
  Shuffle back all discarded 
  Diamonds.
  61
  
  Hearts : Another Journey 
  Table K-2: Hearts 
  Card
  Keywords
  Challenge / Effect
  Ace
  Fear and Anger grow 
  worse.
  Reshuffle back all Spades cards 
  into the deck. Remove this card 
  from the game.
  02
  Meet refugees along 
  the road.
  Hope: 3
  03
  Abandoned Homes. 
  Might have food or 
  medicine inside?
  Hope: 3 
  04
  Fireflies dancing in the 
  sky. 
  05
  Desperation leads to 
  unnecessary violence.
  Hope: 3  
  Fail: Next challenge is read as 
  a Clubs result.
  06
  Some candy still left.
  Draw card. 
  Black: Next challenge is a Clubs 
  result. 
  Red: Autosucceed in the next chal-
  lenge.
  07
  Something heavy. 
  Help out!
  Strength challenge
  08
  People in pain. Will 
  you help?
  Hope: 2
  09
  Kind strangers offer 
  shelter. 
  Hope: 4 
  Fail: Discard 5 cards.
  10
  Dreams of before the 
  war began.
  Hope: 2
  Jack
  Amnesiac figure.
  Forgotten duties.
  Replace the Hope and 
  Strength card immediately.
  Queen
  Last goodbyes. 
  Discard 5 cards immediately.
  King
  Shooting Stars Fall.
  Draw card. 
  Black card, the Dream ends.
  
  A Quiet Meditation
  As with the normal rules, when you reach the end of the Journey, 
  you can use this table G-1 to narrate how the dream comes to an 
  end.  
  In addition to this, in a Darker Journey, you can use the table 
  below to generate one final activity to close the Darker Journey.  
  As the Darker Journey can explore heavier themes, it can help to 
  give the session a closing activity to help wrap up the game.  This 
  is completely optional.
  Table G-2: A Quiet Meditation
  Roll two dice to generate the losing activity using the first and 
  second Descriptors.
  Die 
  Result
  First Ending  
  Descriptor
  Second Ending  
  Descriptor
  01
  Write a short poem
  Share it with the author of the 
  game (you can reach me via 
  email or social media) 
  02
  Light a candle
  Make a wish
  03
  Play a song
  Say the names of each 
  character in the game session
  04
  Eat something small
  Give thanks
  05
  Sit quietly alone
  Shout as loud as you can
  06
  Lie down and look 
  at the sky
  Share the game with a friend
  Thank you for playing!
  “You know what I should do?” Hoshino asked 
  excited. “Of course,” the cat said. “What’d I 
  tell you? Cats know everything, Not like dogs.”   
  Haruki Murakami, Kafka on the Shore
  
  about the author and artist
  Tobie is a Game Designer, Artist, and brains behind TAG 
  Sessions.  He used to be terrified of dogs and has no 
  particular attachment to cats, but people change and 
  now he laments all those wasted years of not liking pets.
  He is a game designer for mobile games and is a member 
  of the Indie Game Developer Network. 
   
  He lives with his partner-for-life, Rocky, and they have a 
  wonderful geeky piece of heaven where they introduce 
  lots of people to new role-playing games and awesome 
  board games. And yes, he loves ice cream.
  Facebook:  Tobie Abad Gaming 
  Twitter: @AllTobieNoShade 
  https://www.patreon.com/tagsessions
  
  about the artist 
  Ivan Frani is Senior 2D Video Game Artist who works in 
  the mobile gaming industry. His passion for Games and 
  Art since childhood pushed him to pursue a career in the 
  growing video game industry. 
  Having experience with different types of art style and 
  animation for the past 5 years, he has become flexible in 
  adapting in more than one style of work that would be 
  beneficial in doing different kinds of projects.
  http://grunt45.deviantart.com
  https://ivanchristian.artstation.com
  https://www.linkedin.com/in/ivan-christian-frani
  Author’s note: 
  This is the second project Ivan has worked on with Tobie 
  Abad. The first was his Fiasco playset, Sickening Queens.
  
  about the expediter 
  Thomas Regala is a game designer from The Epic Gaming 
  Regiment based in the Philippines. When not creating his 
  own games, he assists others in making theirs, helping as 
  he was helped.
  https://www.facebook.com/theepicgamingregiment/
  
  “The creation of a single world 
  comes from a huge number 
  of fragments and chaos.”
  Hayao Miyazaki
  
  Sometimes...
  ...a cat can lead you on an adventure unlike any other.
  One where dreams can lead to unexpected twists and 
  unbelievable experiences.  
  This game was inspired by the works of Hayao Miyazaki, Toshi 
  Suzuki, Isao Takahata, and Yasuyoshi Tokuma. 
  CAT’S DREAM
  A SOLITAIRE ADVENTURE RPG BY TOBIE ABAD
  First Edition
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Kid Friendly/Nature, Animals & the Environment/Cat's Dream.pdf