These are my notes of a solo play-through of the Sealed Library, a solo game by Matt Sanders based off the mechanics of the Wretched by Chris Bissette (and their SRD). I'm a neophyte when it comes to solo or journaling games, with only a short stint into Ironsworn, but here we go.
Day 1 after the barricade. The diary of Junior librarian, Thaddeus Blocher. The doors and windows remain secure though the ceaseless banging and distant screams still fill me with dread. I tell myself some of the others left outside might have survived. Today, I must begin choosing and moving the most important works, or what remains of them, down to the catacombs. I hope my food and water will last until my task is complete.
Roll a 6 on the die.
Draw, in order, 7 of
♡, 2 of ♡, 7 of ♧, 2 of ♧, 5 of ♡, 7 of ♤.
Day 2 after the barricade. The diary of Junior librarian, Thaddeus Blocher. I first locate as if by miracle an exquisite tome with exotic flora and fauna, pages animating as I assay the work. An image of the Bürokraken within will haunt me in tonight's sleep. Next, I choose a tome by Aarimar Calvoso, in hopes to salvage the best poetry known to mankind. Paging through, masticating the words, my mind away from the library for a split second. A boulder smashing through the northern window makes me jump. The re-enactment of the Old Ones' Demise in the glass gone for good. Who will come behind me, to pick up the ruins? Who will rebuild? How often does the cycle repeat itself? To reassure myself I start barricading the main entrance with shelves of newer works, their worth no less significant.
heavy tablets, showing the decapitation of King
Vlademar. He was the last monarch after the revolution of the three roses. A
tyrant, yet responsible for paving the way for the more civilized ways:
roads, hospitals, and the ancient shell that turned into this library. This will do for the day. When I return to rest for a few minutes, I find my bread moldy. Cutting the pieces and eating the scarce remains. My stomach protests like a band of angry cats.
Roll a 1 on the die.
Draw, in order, 7 of ♢.Day 3 after the barricade. The diary of Junior librarian, Thaddeus Blocher. A respite from outside. Have the invaders lost interest in our library, turning to other parts of the citadel? Did help arrive? During my search and cataloguing of the day, I run into the skull of Italvo Klakk, famed royal assassin. Judge and executioner of mischievous revolutionaries of her time. A person of unquestionable law, with what that rigid view entails. Her brain analyzed by our library. Her skull archived as a sign of warning for future generations.
Roll a 3 on the die.
Draw, in order, A of ♤, 3 of ♡, A of ♡.Day 4 after the barricade. The diary of Junior librarian, Thaddeus Blocher. With the first rays of light in the morning, a
section of wall on the river side of the library springs a leak and
destroys priceless works of calligraphic art. On the upside, I have
now access to clean, cool water.
I
think after clearing the classic philosophy section I need a rest.
Negationismus seems like the worthier of them to save, if anything to
prevent future generations to make our same mistakes. The invaders were
able to drop from the cliff to our weaker roof? Have they employed cranes or other works of engineering to assail us? It is then and there, that an idea appears on my mind... what if I check the destroyed sector for further underground rooms? And then and there, I find the vault my masters claimed as only hope! It will take me days to figure out its opening mechanism. But there is hope now.
Roll a 6 on the die.
Draw, in order, 2 of ♢, 3 of ♡, A of ♡.Day 5 after the barricade. The diary of Junior librarian, Thaddeus Blocher. My work must continue! The chamber of maps! I snatch one to save. From the stars, galaxies and the endlessly spanning Universum. Claimed to be a token sent form the lighthouse at the edge of the Universum. We are but a speck of dust. As a next stop, I have to move to the medical ward. Since magic flourished we made a prominent leap. A volume detailing salves and roots for common ailments and viruses seems the most valuable for our future. To the vault with it!
As I take these relics to the vault, I discover Master Justus resting dead on my return to the underground safe. I feel like a scavenging rat, picking his pockets for any valuables. Smoked beacon! If only I had been more thorough in guarding the kitchens... Tonight I'll feast! Passing adjacent cellars, a swarm of foul rats jump on me, surely judging me for stealing from the dead. I get repeatedly bitten until I find a safe place. These wounds will haunt me in the coming days.
After I calm down, and my eyes adjust to the dark, I see Master Braulis cold dead on the ground before me. A blade sticking from his back. Few paces away an invader, his neck trickling with blood from a wound caused by a letter opener. Braulis taught me the letters, and was the architect of my place within the library. He deserved a better death.
Baffled, depressed, and more alone than ever, I return to the main hall. The
invaders have the audacity of unleashing scores of snakes through the
cracked doors and windows. I have no alternative but to show them fire,
always with the dread of adding their bites to my already festering
collection from the rats. And the risk of scorching some precious volumes in the process.
Roll a 5 on the die.
Draw, in order, K of ♧, K of ♡, J of ♤, Q of ♢, K of ♤.Day 6 after the barricade. The diary of Junior librarian, Thaddeus Blocher. I wake up cold and tired, from my hiding place underground. How long have I been out? A wide-eyed, gaunt invader walks out in front of me, coming out from the cellars. How did he get here? We struggle, he with sword and me with my bare fists, meant for writing and not barbaric acts. I eventually win, but not without a bit gash on my side. I need some time to recover. But there is none to spare. Deep in the basement of the library, damp, and mold has claimed the legibility of many ancient maps and scrolls. Spores from purple mold fill your lungs. Hours later, you begin to cough up blood and hallucinate. I see my mother, before she had to abandon, her smell of lavender filling my nostrils. I don't blame her for what she did. Not now.
I move upstairs, to look through the Head-archivist Qualius' quarters. I find a bottle of fine Valindian wine in the lower drawer. He always had his vices, despite his virtues. I pour a third to my still open wound, and drink the rest in fast gulps. Alcohol gets to my head, and I am intoxicated again. I start scribbling all my sins on the walls. Maybe this will exempt me from judgement. I tumble down to the library proper. In a fall, I knock over a neatly stacked tower of books. As if calling to me, the open pages of a tome of restorative magick show up to me. I have little training in the arts, but I mumble the enchantment, which seals some of the blade's wound, but not all. Why didn't I pay more attention at the teachings from Braulis?
The kitchens? I already checked them, but what if there's something left? I go in quick pages, leaving a red trail behind me. Finally, I reach it, and start searching in a desperate fit. Sausages! They smell of rot. Might have gone bad? I need the energy, so down they go.
Not an hour later, I have a strong fever, unable to walk even. I hear loud thumps from the ceiling. I get sick. What's next...
Aftermath Debrief
- Overall a great experience. Can't wait to try Sealed Library again, and other games in this Wretched SRD family.
- My game was cut short by those 4 almost consecutive kings. Despite that, seems like a punitive game with many ways to lose, that state being the default and assumed outcome. Will make the few victories more joyous and unique.
- Being in control of pulling the blocks gives a sense of self-inflicted perish.
- It seems the game could run for several hours, I was at it for 1h30. If the A of ♡ is not placed at the top of the deck at the beginning. In the future, I'll try that.
- Detailed journaling is an exercise I'm not completely fond of. I also chose direct digital notes, which are probably detrimental here. In future games I'll just jot down bullet point notes on a piece of paper as I go (just key details), and day-dream/meditate the rest.
- How good is it on a second, third play? It seems there are a handful of plays here, before having to start the tinkering machine by changing entries on the cards, questions, etc.
