If, like me, you want to play more Tabletop Role Playing Games (TTRPGs), especially if you plan on taking on the role of Dungeon Master, then there are AI tools out there that are perfect for you.
I recently went to see Alien Romulus and loved it so much that I wanted to return to that world in any form possible, and one of the best experiences I've found in that world is the Alien TTRPG. The game is immersive, and the final campaign was a rollercoaster of immersion and fun, even when I was kicked out of the dropship my party was escaping in a xenomorph rugby tackle.
But planning and playing a TTRPG can be stressful, and playing as a DM can be even more stressful. It takes a lot of work to craft an adventure, and the real-time sync can be a turn-off for many. But that's where LoreKeeper comes in. From what I've been playing, even though it's still in beta, I've found LoreKeeper to be a real game changer.
What is LoreKeeper?
(Image courtesy of LEGO)
The first question that needs to be answered is what exactly is LoreKeeper? Thankfully, I had the chance to speak with both developers Ali and David about LoreKeeper and what it brings to the table for aspiring Dungeon Masters. When asked to describe LoreKeeper, David had this to say: “Lorekeeper is a system that lets you upload your own little world with your own rules, gods, monsters, homebrew, you name it, and then create an AI from it – a private AI that you can basically interrogate.”
LoreKeeper serves as the perfect tool for any DM, making it easy to create adventures and characters, as well as answering any questions you may have about your player characters. LoreKeeper can make life a lot less stressful for DMs, no matter what game you're playing. It can even help you create your own homebrew and streamline the whole process.
But the AI is focused on supporting the DM, not replacing him, which was important to the developers. “We see the game as the game,” David said, adding, “It's about getting people together and having conversations and making funny voices. We're not trying to take away that value, but it's about being a backup, because that puts a lot of the burden on the Dungeon Master.” Lorekeeper makes the DM's life easier, and makes starting a game that much easier by removing hours of prep time.
But the real question for new and experienced DMs alike is how satisfying LoreKeeper is to actually use, and whether it really delivers on all that it promises. Thanks to LoreKeeper, I had the chance to try out the current beta version, which includes several pre-built game systems, one of which is the Alien RPG, which is what I'll be focusing on.
How LoreKeeper helps you create campaigns
(Image courtesy of 20th Century Studios)
I chose Alien because I love the Alien series and was intrigued by the recent movie. I wanted to see if I could use an AI to create a deep journey that could be tailored and modified based on the player's actions. So I asked them to write an adventure in which Weyland-Yutani places and seals some Xenomorph eggs inside a hub block. This block is full of characters with different backgrounds, including the player character. This simple description became the basis for the AI-generated title, “The Hive Within.”
First off, once LoreKeeper is set up, it couldn't be easier to use. Just ask a question or request a scenario. Specify as much detail as you like about what you want from a story or location, and Lorekeeper will create a detailed adventure for you. In this example, I've created three acts, some sample characters, and even a sample encounter. This is a great foundation for a DM to start a game on, and gives players a good framework to work from. However, LoreKeeper can go much further.
For example, if you want to add a new villain or event, you just ask the AI to include it in the current plot. LoreKeeper will rewrite your initial scenario with the new parameters while preserving the basic story. This means that DMs can easily make changes on the fly without suddenly rewriting everything and making players wait weeks. If you've played a TTRPG, you've experienced this. I have.
(Image courtesy of Alamy)
In my last Dungeons & Dragons campaign, I made the mistake of blowing up a storehouse. This alone wouldn't have been a problem, but this storehouse also contained an important plot point and was a key focal point of the entire campaign. To be fair to the DM, the probability of my fireball blowing up the storehouse was about 1 in 100, but this action completely derailed the campaign. This meant that the poor Dungeon Master had to basically rewrite the entire campaign, which took a lot of time. But with LoreKeeper, the DM only has to tell the AI to adjust the plot to take this into account, and it only takes a few minutes.
LoreKeeper can not only write your campaign, but also write dialogue. For example, I added a Weyland Yutani scientist to “The Hive Within” and mentioned his obsession with xenos. I can also have the AI write his speech with some notes I wrote about the character's personality. Here's the speech Lorekeeper created:
“Ah, there you are, my little lab rats. Welcome to this grand experiment. I am Dr. Victor Lang, your overseer and architect of this beautiful chaos. My beloved xenos, these humans are here to serve a higher purpose. They are vessels of your perfection, stepping stones in the grand evolutionary design. “Consider it an honor, humans. You may host the ultimate life form. Pain? Yes. Necessary? Of course. Your suffering is but a small price to pay for the birth of perfection. So press on, survive while you can. I watch your every move, every cry you utter. Learn. Enjoy the fleeting moments. Welcome to your destiny and the future of life itself.”
As you can see, this is a great baseline for DMs to work from and add their own twist to, especially useful if you're looking to develop your skills as a voice actor. Writing dialogue is arguably one of the most difficult skills to master, so having some dialogue included is a huge benefit to any DM.
Overall, I thought LoreKeeper was great. It certainly made my life easier, but having to pay credits might be a bit of a turn-off for some. But for those who play a lot of tabletop games, this is definitely a great tool to save time and add a new twist to your game. I should also mention that LoreKeeper requires you to buy the books that come with your main game system, so you'll need to own them to get the most out of it. It's also a bit complicated to get started with, but thankfully there's a handy Discord where users and developers are happy to help out.
I also love how many game systems you can set up with LoreKeeper. For example, I was able to create a campaign in Imerpium Maledictum, a game set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe where the entire party is orcs pretending to be humans. The ability to add your own games is also great. LoreKeeper is also open to people who don't play games but want to write novels or screenplays and need a place to bounce ideas around.
There is no free plan, but you can buy credits for $5, $10, or $15 and use as many as you need. Alternatively, you can pay for a monthly subscription, which is set up as tiers and costs $10, $20, or $50, giving you unlimited credits and world uploads. The amount you can upload is limited by the tier you choose. It's a bit pricey, but you can split the cost across your gaming group and it's cheaper than renting a space to play on a monthly basis.
So if you're looking to speed up and improve your DMing, come up with interesting adventures, or build a world for the fantasy novel you're writing, LoreKeeper is a great place to start.
