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Also check out on TTRPGkids: Tips and Tricks, Using Journaling Games to Grow Writing Skills

Journaling games that I’ve checked out on TTRPGkids

Dragon Dowser

Dragon Dowser sets up its initial story VERY well.  In a few short and artful paragraphs, there’s a frame of this somewhat post-apocalyptic land that was saved by dragons and has now turned on them while a group of rebellious individuals has set out to rescue and protect these dragons before everything descends into total chaos once again.  From there, the rest is largely up to how the player responds to the prompts and gives players a great opportunity to build up their story through journaling.

The Librarian’s Apprentice

Naturally, The Librarian’s Apprentice kind of HAS to take place in a library, but this particular library is very special.  It shifts and changes and is full of strange rooms, creatures, and books! For playing with my kid (4yo), I helped him with writing down responses for the journaling bit since he’s 4 and still working on reading and writing.  It made for a fun tag-team game with the little one, and, for older kids, this would be a great way to help practice writing.

Finding Familiars

The Familiar Finders is a set of books designed for kids to imagine a fantastic hidden world filled with creatures that have a magical form AND to journal about it!  While not a typical tabletop RPG, this book combo encourages kids to go out in nature and imagine the world of the familiars, kind of like a journaling LARP (live action roleplay) adventure!  It’s encouraged my kid to go on many walks and got us discovering and creating some awesome creatures together.

Eldritch Pets

Eldritch Pets is a rules-lite journaling tabletop RPG that’s all about raising a cute and terrible little creature!  Roll for random prompts that affect your pet’s corruption level and your character’s ability to handle said corruption as you delve into the world of the weird and oddly cute.

Wanderlust

Wanderlust is a collaborative tabletop RPG about learning to say goodbye as you head off into the next part of your life (whether that be seeking the lost city of dragons or moving to a new school).  It is a peaceful and melancholy journal-based game that, while still being fun, let my kid and me explore a new tone to our games, and showed me how much he’s starting to grow up.

GDEC

Global Dragon Egg Conservation, or GDEC, is a great all-ages friendly solo-journaling tabletop RPG – your goal is to take care of and hatch a set of dragon eggs!  There’s no combat or dice, but you will be writing answers to questions as you go on a journey to protect and understand the egg you’re taking care of!

Lil Gremlins

Lil Gremlins is perfect for young kids who can understand simple prompts and who are working on understanding cause and effect.  The premise of the game revolves around taking care of a little gremlin that tends to be a bit on the rambunctious side, and the kids are in charge of trying to figure out how to work with the chaos and show their gremlin that they care. While doing this, you journal all the work you and your gremlin have been doing so you end up with a story at the end that you can reflect on with your child as well.

The Hero’s Journal

The Hero’s Journal is a planner and journal that is set up like an epic quest and incorporates RP elements and story into your daily goals and routines to make them engaging and exciting. While not a TTRPG, per se, it has A LOT of the elements there, and can be a great opportunity to tie your love of TTRPG-vibes into your journaling to help keep up with your habbits!

Other popular journaling TTRPGs based on crowd recommendations

This list has tabeltop RPGs that I haven’t personaly tried out (yet!) but that others have recommended I check out in the future or who have been featured on the site during crowdfunding/pre-release! As I get the opportunity to try them, I’ll move them to the list above, and, for now, this still helps to narrow your searching!

• Brambletrek
• Journey Home
• Precious Little Animal
• It’s Time to Plant the Beans
• Everyday Enchanter
• Cordelia Nees a Kingdom
• Apothecaria
• Hang In There, Little One
• New Tales of Old
• The World Outside This Window

Also, please check out my journaling TTRPGs tips and tricks article here to see how to use journaling games to foster a love of writing and practice your skills!

Stay tuned for more from TTRPGkids!

I hope this list has helped you to find a game that you and your players will love, and make sure to subscribe to the TTRPGkids monthly newsletter or follow on social media to stay up to date on the latest and check out the rest of the site to see what TTRPGkids is all about!

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