Pulp Alley; more questions

[Spinal Tap]

OK. I really like the look of Pulp Alley when I watch the reports but it seems so confusing to fathom the details.

I'm in the UK so have had a look at the Sally 4th website, there's rule books, scenario books, a league book, a gadgets/vehicle book and loads and loads of different cards, some linked to scenarios, some not.

So I now know that if  I buy the starter pack with templates and tokens and starter deck and the solo card deck I can play solo with the scenarios in the rulebook?

If I want to then play, for example, the Lost World of Lemuria, I then need to buy the league book, the scenario book and the two decks of cards for that scenario?

There are also cards for different factions and gangs. Where do they fit in?

And what do I need if I want to play against other people, I assume there are decks for opposing factions?

Sorry to be so dim but there's 94 Pulp Alley books and decks in total on that site, it's difficult to work out what's what.

[Porthius]

Hi Spinal Tap; its simpler than you think. Buy the Second Edition Rulebook as this has most of the rules that were previously in the supplements for first edition including, Solo rules, Horror etc

You don't even need to buy the card decks as these can be printed off or photocopied out of the book but the commercial ones are nice to have. All you need is a Fortune deck and Solo (if you want to play Solo).

Anything else is totally optional. Pulp Alley is all about tailoring the gaming experience to what you want. I like Lovecraftian inspired horror games so use the Horror deck and make up my own characters using the blank character cards Sally 4th sells. You don't need specific cards for factions unless you want pre-made specific characters.

The amount of content and variety available is down to the passion and excellent support Phipps & Co but I can see how it could be confusing for people just getting into the game.

Anyway, good luck on your Pulp Adventures! I can highly recommend the game.

[Alcide Nikopol]

Start with the Core Rule Book 2nd edition and a Starter Deck. That book and deck cover 90% of what we do in Pulp Alley. If you are going to play solo then you'll want the Solo Deck. That is all you need to get started. Everything else is optional and can be added later.

They posted two fairly recent videos that discussed all their books and card packs and it is worth watching. I'll post the links below.

By the way we have been playing Pulp Alley for at least 6 years and it has become our go-to rules set for skirmish level games. I am pretty sure we own everything they make and we are eagerly waiting more. I think it is great to have a game company that actually supports their rules like Pulp Alley does.

The Pulp Alley books video
The Pylp Alley cards video

[NickNascati]

I’ll add to what the others said.  The second edition rules and the starter or solo decks are basically all you need.  There are five or six scenarios in the rule book, and they can be played over and over, in any genre you care to use.  Yes, if you want to buy the scenario supplements, then you do need to either buy the card decks that apply, or photo copy the ones in the book.
I’ve been playing Pulp Alley for a few years now.  It is my go to set for just about everything.

[Spinal Tap]

Thank you gentlemen for all your information, its much appreciated.

Those videos are really informative.

I've also watched a solo play one and it seems that the solo deck does not do what I thought which was to control the actions of the bots.

If I've got it right you just play both sides to the best of your ability which I must admit I find hard; the cards perform a separate function. 

I think this is a game that will suit me best for playing against mates once the lockdown is done so will initially buy the rules and starter deck.

[nandrin]

In solo play, indeed you play both factions to the best of your ability, but the bots have some restrictions: They always fight to wound - no dodging. This is quite a difference to what player characters can and sometimes should do. Also, the solo deck is quite different from the multiplayer deck and adds some uncertainties and surprises to the game which I like very much. It feels a bit like you have a Gamemaster dropping events on the unsuspecting players.
I use solo mainly for playing two factions with different abilities and strategies to see how it works. It is always tremendous fun, too! Due to COVID I currently play the Lemuria campaign solo and it works very well.

[pistolpete]

echoing what others say but i'd like to add that the scenario/campaign books also have cards in them for you to photocopy for usage.  you don't "need" to buy the lemuria cards if you just copy them from the book itself.

[Alcide Nikopol]

Thank you gentlemen for all your information, its much appreciated.

Those videos are really informative.

I've also watched a solo play one and it seems that the solo deck does not do what I thought which was to control the actions of the bots.

If I've got it right you just play both sides to the best of your ability which I must admit I find hard; the cards perform a separate function. 

I think this is a game that will suit me best for playing against mates once the lockdown is done so will initially buy the rules and starter deck.

Many of the Pulp Alley scenarios do not require you to play two sides. There are a bunch of scenarios that include premade enemy non-player characters and there are specific rules about when and how the NPC's activate, move and fight. Here is a short list of recent scenarios that only require one league to play, #26 The Hostage, #27 The Bounty, #30 The Preacher, #31 Innsmouth Gold, #32 The Escape, #33 Rocket Science, #34 The Hollow, #35 Experiment 11-6. These scenario also work well for co-op play and there are more like this.

[Spinal Tap]

Many of the Pulp Alley scenarios do not require you to play two sides. There are a bunch of scenarios that include premade enemy non-player characters and there are specific rules about when and how the NPC's activate, move and fight. Here is a short list of recent scenarios that only require one league to play, #26 The Hostage, #27 The Bounty, #30 The Preacher, #31 Innsmouth Gold, #32 The Escape, #33 Rocket Science, #34 The Hollow, #35 Experiment 11-6. These scenario also work well for co-op play and there are more like this.

These sound more like what I'm after, game controlled NPC's; I really don't like just playing against myself.

However, I'm still a bit stuck on how to find them.

Looked all over the UK stockist website and there is just one scenario book but those listed above aren't in it. There's definitely no list of individual scenarios to buy except the longer campaigns.

Thought I'd google 'Pulp Alley the Hostage' but that found only one hit and that's to the cards on Sally 4th.

Google 'Pulp Alley The Bounty' and found a link to the Facebook Page with the list of solo/co-op scenarios sporting a link to the scenarios.

I followed the link and got the main page. It does list 2 products which might be the ones I need being the Scenario subscriptions but I'm still not sure as they seem to be pre-ordering forthcoming scenarios.

So, in summary, I'm still a bit lost (and obviously a bit thick).

[pistolpete]

they're in the pulp alley store under 'downloads' - you can get individual scenarios

https://store.pulpalley.com/category-s/1831.htm?searching=Y&sort=7&cat=1831&show=10&page=4

 i'll be getting a few myself for the same reason of having not-me controlled enemies

@alside - thanks for that list

[Spinal Tap]

they're in the pulp alley store under 'downloads' - you can get individual scenarios

https://store.pulpalley.com/category-s/1831.htm?searching=Y&sort=7&cat=1831&show=10&page=4

 i'll be getting a few myself for the same reason of having not-me controlled enemies

@alside - thanks for that list

Ah, Thanks.

I'm really sorry for more questions but I see that every single one is marked as solo; how do you tell which ones are the true solo ones rather than the ones where you play both sides?

Or is it just use Alcides list and it's pot luck on the others?

Also, if you are playing scenarios with NPC's controlled by the game, do you still need a solo deck?

[d phipps]

Ah, Thanks.

I'm really sorry for more questions but I see that every single one is marked as solo; how do you tell which ones are the true solo ones rather than the ones where you play both sides?

Or is it just use Alcides list and it's pot luck on the others?

Also, if you are playing scenarios with NPC's controlled by the game, do you still need a solo deck?

It is quite easy to use the basic NPC rules to control the opposing league. This basically means that they are aggressive and looking to fight you. You always have the option to decide the best course of action, but 99% of the time treating them simply of NPCs works great.

Yes, if you are playing solo then you will want to use the Solo Deck. Remember this deck is available as a free download if you'd like to put together your own cards.

[Spinal Tap]

It is quite easy to use the basic NPC rules to control the opposing league. This basically means that they are aggressive and looking to fight you. You always have the option to decide the best course of action, but 99% of the time treating them simply of NPCs works great.

Yes, if you are playing solo then you will want to use the Solo Deck. Remember this deck is available as a free download if you'd like to put together your own cards.

Brilliant.

Thank you.

Guess I know where my Christmas money is going to go now

[Commander Roj]

You won’t regret it. Personally I found putting a league together a bit intimidating. I eventually I just plunged in and the league worked fine. You just need to get a pencil and pad and get to work. When you are actually putting something together it made more sense to me than in the abstract. Hope that helps when you get started.

[Spinal Tap]

Massive thanks all.