Has anyone toyed with altering the size of the clock as an alternative to using the “mismatched” rules?
For example, rather than taking a die off the cutter’s attack against a gang of 4, just give the whole gang a 6-tick clock or something of the like.
That’s kind of what I’ve been doing already actually. Although, just today I’ve been giving the scale rules another look and wondering if I should be using them instead. Also, when the PCs are moderately outnumbered and outgunned I’ve been considering the situation Desperate.
I think both techniques could work. I think I’d consider the scale options more so when resolving larger scale actions between gangs (securing a neighborhood, etc), or for when the PCs are more than slightly outnumbered. So far it hasn’t come up yet in our games, so it will be interesting to see what works.
Yeah, I’m finding myself not sure whether to use more ticks on a clock, negative dice for mismatched power/size, or changed the action (i.e. from risky to desperate) for powerful obstacles.
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I think use all 3 of those, more ticks on a clock, negative dice for mismatched power/size, and change action from risky to desperate. The question is when to use each one. I don’t know. It seems like more ticks would work best for something that will take more time but not necessarily up the risk so much. Changing moves from risky to desperate will be tacking on the most risk. Negative dice are the most neutral. Maybe something like that?
Yep, you have all three as “sliders” to express the danger of a situation.
– Use scale when they’re outnumbered, or when they have a numbers advantage. Example: Four PCs vs. 6 NPCs
– Use a bigger / smaller clock to reflect a more complex problem. Example: The 6 NPCs are veteran fighters, so it’s a 10-segment clock.
– The character’s position is determined mainly by their action and goal. Example: The PCs choose to assault the 6 NPCs, to kill them in a fight (instead of, say, trying to drive them off, or to get past them, or something less dangerous). It’s desperate.
I feel like a little bit about the difference between those 3 options would be good to have somewhere in the finished product or in the FAQ or something like that.
Of course. The full game has a lot more of this. As I like to say, I’m writing a whole book about it. 🙂
I like that, “As I like to say, I’m writing a whole book about it. :)”
Guess that was an obvious suggestion on my part. Sorry for taking up a bit more of your mental bandwidth with that one. 🙂
Heh, no worries, hari. 🙂