I have a couple questions about early (v3) versus final version (v8) models of the game. I eagerly read the first playtest and kicked the tires with some friends, but didnt follow along with all the changes through playtesting.
1) What happened to “On Point” and “backup” roles during a Score? We rather enjoyed that procedural mechanic at the time, was it deemed too restrictive to the fiction in the final version?
2) I remember some talk about rotating the GM’s role during gameplay (related to the On Point role), so that 5 players might all have active characters, and the role of GM was fluid. The On-point player may take their action, then move to the GM role for a round, etc. We were very excited by the prospect of a fully collaborative game. Will there be hack or add-on support for this style of gameplay in the future?
Thanks. Ive read the final rules, I’m gathering my crew of players, hoping to get my first session in the coming weeks 😀
I could be wrong but I think On Point and Backup are now Lead a Group Action and Assist. In the end the feel of those maneuvers (leading and having the leader’s back) are still covered, but more fluid.
Ahh V3, good times.
1. “On Point” is now “Lead a Group Action”. Backup doesn’t have a real 1-to-1 reference but it could be someone doing a setup action, spending stress to assist, or being part of the group action.
2. This took digging up the old file (yay for archives) to confirm but yeah “on point” just means who’s leading the group action or more loosely, who is doing a thing right now. As for rotating GMs, there is nothing to stop this but it isn’t explicitly supported in the rules. My advice would be to do it after a full Score/Downtime cycle but otherwise the nature of the game is collaborative enough that I think GMs can sort out discrepancies that might arise in game.