Hey yall. So we did our first session last night and one of the biggest questions we all had is in regards to combat. The other issue we had is in regards to planning.
Question 1:
The rules arent very specific as to how exactly combat is supposed to flow. With my background in other RPGs it was really easy for me, and also for my players to automatically fall into the typical initiative style play. Without rolling for initiative that is. So my question is how do you all end up handling combat? Is it just a group action? How do you prevent it from feeling like the characters are just trading blows with the NPCs?
Question 2:
The other thing that ended up happening is during planning, everyone started to fall into the trap of trying to plan everything out during planning, instead of just picking a plan type, and jumping into the action. How have you guys found is an effective way to maintain the quick and easy way the Blades planning system is supposed to work, while while allowing your characters to feel like they can set up something cool before hand. For example I had one player who wanted to be able to have a Red Sash uniform to use to sneak into their treasury. How muck setup should be allowed during planning, and how much should be flashbacks?
Loving the game so far, and look forward to playing more.
Make the planning have a cost. For example, to get a Red Sash uniform, require a downtime activity (“acquire an asset”). Players may be reluctant to spend this cost on things that they MIGHT want when they realize that the flashback system allows them to spend the cost only after know they want it.
My group ran into the same planning debacle as well. I think it’s just a thing that happens, but know that it doesn’t last. 🙂
I think there’s a nice middle ground where you end up with a little bit of a plan, like a general outline, then in play you’re basically all flying by the seat of your pants but you use flashbacks to make it seem like you had it all planned out.
Your players need a little time to build trust with the system. Consider offering suggestions of how their planning questions are irrelevant or could be saved for later in flashback. Charge less (maybe no stress) for flashbacks at first, just to get them into the groove. Don’t let them choose specific gear AT ALL, just pick the loadout type (light/medium/heavy).
It’s also all very situational as well. In your example with the Red Sash uniform, hell, that could be done as a downtime action, or it could be a setup teamwork roll, or it could be a flashback, it could be simply “spend a coin dude”, or if getting a Red Sash’s clothes sounds interesting enough, you could focus in on it like its own mini-heist.
Combat: Since the mechanics are player-facing, I mostly try to go around the “table” (we play via hangouts) and present each player with their own particular problem. If it’s just a big brawl, I’ve set up a clock and had them roll a team Skirmish action. That’s worked out well enough, and unless it’s an unnecessarily large clock, it’s never felt dragged out.
Pass the narration ball to the players. Let them describe the carnage. When they suffer harm, describe it nasty, then remind them about resistance rolls. Don’t start off grazing a PC – the enemy jabs the blunderbuss into their stomach and blows their dinner across the wall behind them. It’s the player’s job to mitigate that.
Don’t plan on padding a session with combat. Let sixes take people down. Don’t use clocks for every enemy, just groups of them or significantly nasty foes. You can make an enemy “tough” by forcing a resistance roll before the PC can act. An enemy like that who also has a clock is fairly badass.
Until the Cutter gets a string of sixes. That’s life. Let that badass named NPC die messily, celebrate with the players, and think up someone else for next time.
1. I run my fights similar to Dungeon World. If you don’t have experience with that, the short explanation is this: Tell the players what the NPCs are attempting to do (or if the NPC is super badass, tell them what they’ve already done and see if your players resist), and ask what the PCs plan to do about it. Do this more or less after every roll until the bad guys or the players are defeated. The results of the rolls inform how much fight the bad guys put up, and the position the PCs are in going forward. If certain players aren’t contributing, bring them into the action by having NPCs target them, or ask how they plan to help another PC who is in danger.
So ditch the initiative, let the fight flow from the fiction and only roll group skirmish when it makes sense, or your players want to do that.
2. That happens. You and your players need to get used to the system, and you should just step in and tell them to not worry about the specifics. The game is more fun if you just pick a plan type, the relevant detail and get to the action immediately.
An important technique to avoid “trading blows” with the opposition is to play Blades the way it’s supposed to be played – namely, where every result changes the fiction. You don’t hit a guy and fill in two spots on clock and then have him swing back at you. You lash out with your blade and score him across the ribs, but then he drives you into a corner… or he falls back down the hallway towards his friends. Success, failure, or success with cost should all change the situation the characters face.
1) that’s the beauty: there is no supposed flow to combat 🙂
Just ask the player what he wants to do, and especially what he wants to accomplish. He wants to hit an enemy with a sword? Because he wants to kill or incapacitate him?
Ok, so roll the dice to see how it goes: if it’s a 6, the enemy is dead/incapacitated.
The good thing for the Gamemaster is that he doesn’t need to plan for a combat. No need for mapping, no need for npc stats. A basic understanding of the situation is enough.
If the enemy is no pushover, explain that it would be a desperate action. Maybe even warn the player about reduced effect (e.g. a master swordsman would only be wounded on a normal success, unless a setup action improves the situation).
If the players want to handle it as a group action, it’s their call. They just need to make it work in the fiction.
A word of advice: don’t count on combat filling up a whole game night.
Even a big fight between large groups is easily over after a couple of rolls; just make a clock.
2) yes, it’s easy for players and also the Gamemaster to fall into this trap.
Just remind yourself and your players that it’s completely unnecessary.
For example the uniform of the red sashes:
Ask the players if they want to use a deception plan by disguising themselves with the uniforms.
Otherwise, if it’s just that one player, convince him to wait until there is actually a guard that is not butchered by the cutter or shot by the hound. Then he can use a flashback and acquire it (promise him that you will not charge stress then, afterall he obviously planned for it).
Hey John do you have any input on this? Id love to hear your thoughts and suggestions.
Great suggestions from everyone BTW.