I’m about to GM Scum and Villainy, and I have a question about the Cerberus starting mission (and clocks related to group actions in general I suppose):
The instructions under “The first scene” tells you to start a 10-segment chase clock and put two ticks on it – when it’s full, you corner the target, if it empties he gets away. No problems so far, but I’m having a hard time figuring out how to resolve a clock like this in a smooth way.
Let’s say they decide to simply chase the target. If everyone rolls for Scramble individually, it would feel weird – one member shouldn’t affect the target getting away if the rest of the group manages to keep up, for instance. I also think it would be really boring to start of with a scene where everyone rolls the same action, one after another.
But if they decide to do it as a group action, it would still take several rolls, probably costing the leader a lot of stress. I feel like it shouldn’t cost that amount of stress for a “simple” chase, and I think this approach would be pretty boring as well.
Maybe I’m overthinking it, and should just let the players go crazy – maybe they will all attempt different things, rigging a nearby hover-bike, shooting at the target etc. and the “group chase” won’t be an issue? Or maybe there’s an easy answer in sight, I’m just too narrow minded to see it? Any thoughts would be appreciated!
I just ran my group’s introductory S&V session a few days ago, so I’ve got some thoughts on this based on how ours went (we went with Stardancer, but I think the general principle is sound):
If the group succeeds on a Scramble, (i.e. gets a 6) but that clock isn’t filled, that means that they’ve succeeded at their immediate goal – the one they state before they make the roll – but there’s still action to resolve.
So maybe the target has friends they’ve called, and once they catch up they find themselves in an ambush while the target keeps running. Now they’ve got to make a choice – split up, fight as a group, or ignore the thugs and keep chasing. Maybe the target has bribed system cops to let them through a security checkpoint and now the Crew have to bribe, Sway, Command, or Skulk their way past. Some of these might be a bit harsh for a 6, but on a 4-5 they’re perfectly legit.
Bear in mind that once the clock is filled, the guy surrenders, but before then he’ll shoot to kill. There’s plenty of things you can throw at the PCs even in the case of 6es and crits. I’d definitely lean towards letting your players go wild – that’s the spirit of the game, and they can spend their downtime indulging their Vice to get rid of stress.
Good ideas! So as long as the players state their goals clearly, I can work with that, and then change the circumstances of the situation/challenges after that, even if they roll a 6.
I think I really needed this kind of reply to break out of my mindset – for some reason it didn’t feel right to introduce new kinds of challenges during a clock like this. Thank you!
Per the rulebook:
“When you create a clock, make it about the obstacle, not the method. Clocks for an infiltration should be “Exterior Patrols” and “Perimeter
Door,” not “Sneak Past the Guards” or “Hack the Perimeter Door.” The patrols and the door are the obstacles—the PCs can overcome them in multiple ways.”
So the clock is “capture the mark” and the obstacles are “he’s running”, “he’s fighting”, “system cops”, etc.