A Mythic Random Solo Campaign Start-Up Generator

I was digging through my files looking for an old solo wuxia-style Mythic RPG adventure I had played back in 2009 (in the hope of porting over a character or two into the Legends of the Wulin RPG) when I realized that I'd never shared here on Solo Nexus the steps I had used to randomly create the world of that adventure. If you've got the Mythic GME, Mythic Variations, and the Creature Crafter, you can shape the beginnings of any world and setting in just a few easy steps.

Here they are:

RANDOM SOLO CAMPAIGN START-UP GENERATOR

STEP ONE: Genre
First, choose the genre, or, if you really want to be surprised, roll up the genre randomly! Make lists like the ones below, roll a d10 for each one, and combine the results:

STEP TWO: Theme
Use the rules for Complex Questions found in Mythic Variations to ask "What is the overall theme of my campaign world in this genre?" Thus, the context/focus of that question is the previously selected genre itself. What you want from this question is a broad stroke that conveys through the answer the flavor and attitude of the campaign world. Think of it as the stand-out blurb on the back of a game box or sourcebook.

GENRE: Medieval Martial Arts Fantasy
THEME: [Praise/Illusions] In a lawless and exotic land of martial arts and mysticism, the most renowned warriors risk their very souls by augmenting their inner energies with the ancestral might of the Ghost Planes.

STEP THREE: Starting Location
Use the rules for Complex Questions to ask, "What is the (general or specific) starting location(s) for my PC?" The genre and theme together now become the context/focus of this next question, and the answer need not be a concrete place; a region or conceptual area could be sufficient. Admittedly, you might not need this step; the genre and context on their own may so strongly suggest a starting point for adventuring that asking such a question becomes unnecessary. Nevertheless, it could be worthwhile to try it out - a surprise may be waiting for you!

PC STARTING LOCATION: [Vengeance/Attention] As clans and tribes constantly feud with one another, cunning adventurers, chivalrous loners, and ruthless rogues wait patiently to choose sides…to fight for what is right or for what is profitable.

STEP FOUR: PC Races (or Classes)
Give yourself character creation options out of thin air by using The Creature Crafter to develop two or more non-human races to use as potential PCs and NPCs. Humans become the baseline, unless the world generated thus far has insinuated otherwise (as in a fey land where fairies could be the baseline).

PC RACES: [Creature Crafter] 
[Baseline average] – Humans (land dwellers) 
[Humanoid; Beautiful, Insect-like; Natural Weaponry] – Mantids (underground dwellers) 
[Humanoid; Odd skin color, Crude clothing; Climber] – Tiangou (tree dwellers)

STEP FIVE: Background
All worlds have some amount of history to them, even the most primitive ones. They also have secrets. This step is your chance to see the important moments of your world's past and to hear whispers of its future! Use the Backstory Event Generator from Mythic Variations to learn about the campaign world's history, culture, or politics. To do this, just replace the designation "PC" with "Campaign World." Thus, on the Backstory Focus table, "New Campaign World character" could refer to a race that is, for whatever reason, not allowed for PC use, or it could be a significantly powerful individual whose actions have been instrumental in making society what it is when your PC begins. "New Campaign World thread" could describe an important event or development in the past, a cultural or geological renaissance or upheaval, or anything else that adds more flavor to the landscape, given the already defined genre, theme, starting location, and races/classes

CAMPAIGN WORLD BACKGROUND: [Number of Backstory Events: 4] 
[New Campaign World character*/Attach/Dispute] 
*[Creature Crafter: Large, Elemental, Water-based, Extra limbs; ???] 
As the earth-fixed clans of the Humans, Mantids, and Tiangou propagate across the Known Lands, the mysterious water-based Undino have attacked without warning, attempting to drive away the “transgressors” who they feel have defiled their sacred rivers and lakes. 

[Campaign World negative/Heal/Opposition] 
Feuding clansmen have taken advantage of the Undino presence; rather than banding together to make a pact with each other against the water monsters, rival groups have tried to point the Undino at their enemies, making a dangerous situation far worse since no one as yet is fully aware of what the Undino are capable of or why they are so aggressive. 

[Campaign World negative/Refuse/Outside] 
The constant feuding and the abuse of ancestral spirit power from the Ghost Planes has made the Celestial Mothers of the Humans, Mantids, and Tiangou look down from Heaven with great displeasure, wondering if their children can ever be redeemed, or if they should simply be wiped out of existence. 

[New Campaign World thread/Overthrow/Portals]
The small settlements at the North Gate – the treacherous passageway between the Razor Rim and Dragon River which leads to the Unknown Lands – have been attacked at night by mysterious beings, and all in the Known Lands wonder if the greatest threat of all is soon to come.

And that's it. The examples above led to a full Mythic RPG solo adventure that I played out on the Mythic Yahoo boards in 2009. It was called "The Sorrows of the Celestial Mothers" and it featured the wuxia fantasy adventures of Peng Wei, a young wandering warrior trying to make his world a better place. Here's his background:

Experiencing great difficulties with his family, Wei ran off and fled to the underground domain of a nearby den of Mantids. He begged for their admittance – which he received – but, because he was male, he was unceremoniously put to work. The den leader, Mistress Zala Third-She, took to young Wei and began to train him in their fighting styles. Wei’s dedication and good soul earned him a place in the den leader’s heart. She proudly called him a member of her den, and made Wei promise to use his training in the martial arts and the Cobra Chain to uphold justice until the Celestial Mothers deemed his journey to be done.

No matter how well Mistress Zala’s clan had treated Wei, he still held within him great pain from his early childhood. His father was a cruel clan boss who preyed on the weak and wished his son to do the same. Wei refused to accept his father’s path and fled. But Wei has never fully escaped his nightmares and the fear that, should he ever tap into the Ghost Planes, the spirits of his father’s many victims might materialize to take revenge on Wei’s soul.

I liked Peng Wei a lot and always wanted to revisit him, especially after everything he went through during his adventure in which he freed the village of Little Lakes from the influence of Xiana, the forgotten sister of the Celestial Mothers. Now that I'm into Legends of the Wulin, it might be fun to bring Wei back into service!