Two areas where I find myself struggling for ideas as a GM in the heat of a fast-paced game:
1) Aside from physical injury (blades, bullets, falls, burns) and spiritual horror (seeing a ghost, almost being possessed), what are some types of harm that have been inflicted on crooks in your games?
2) Give me your favorite bits of ambient weirdness, either as complications or as background. I can make the setting steampunk-ish and exotic and complex with little difficulty, but I keep forgetting this is a world literally full of ghosts. What are some interesting details you’ve dropped in to Bring Doskvol to Life?
Sorry – I don’t know how I disabled comments! Enabled now! Give me your sweet ideas.
I often harm social reputation (“Laughing Stock”, “Name is Mud”, “On the outs with [X]” – that last one is great for temporarily removing access to a contact), as well as psyche in a non-supernatural way (“Angry”, “Resentful”).
I will also target a playbook’s special gear and armor. “Fine” items represent a step above the gang’s normal stuff, so not always available. “Jamming” a Hound’s fine weapon is a fantastic harm.
Snap. I’d be interested to hear as well
Parker Emerson social harm, I like the idea of that
Parker Emerson I love item targeting! Makes it easier to bake in the item recovery process to downtime.
John Perich: It does limit it to the lower tier of harm (limited effect is baked in), but it’s a good one to hand out freely.
When using social harm instead of physical, are there any abilities or bonuses that you allow to apply to the recover roll (similar to the Physiker ability for physical harm)?
One score happened within the energy farms in Barrowcleft. The faint blue glow of the weird willow trees, and the disembodied voices of ?? there made a fantastic backdrop for an interrogation and subsequent murder.
Re: non standard harm. Mind controlled (level 3). Battered soul (level 2). Fixated on Agnus (level 1)
To name a few
Due to time, I only got to run a little bit of the game. The gang got their job and are now doing the leg work. One of the pc’s was using begging as cover while she was being look out and rolled a 1. The streets were low traffic and I was having a hard time thinking of harm. Then it hit me.
“You feel some liquid fall on your head. You look up to see a clear sky, and someone taping the bottom of a chamber pot. Take a level 1 harm “Shit head””
Yuck! Nasty smell, possible infection and an unfortunate reputation. Grim.