I’m not going to spam this channel with updates, but I wanted to note that with this episode my tutorial series has…
I’m not going to spam this channel with updates, but I wanted to note that with this episode my tutorial series has finished covering all of the rules relevant to Scores and is moving on to the Downtime phase rules!
https://youtu.be/okDfD53VMik?list=PLhnce2Cs9CTUeWd6F4wlHlWVqwcq6zrQV
I recently finished a book that might work as an inspiration to BitD.
I recently finished a book that might work as an inspiration to BitD. It’s Blackwing by Ed McDonald. It has pretty many things in common with BitD setting but obviously there are differences as well.
It’s a fantasy setting with firearms, although they are lower tech than in BitD. People seems to be hard bastards and there is a blasted wasteland like in BitD. There are weird cults and scheming nobles with odd way to generate electricity.
The most striking difference is that it is not about criminals but rather mercenaries.
You can find it from Kindle store so you can get a free sample in case this got you interested.
Hello everyone!
Hello everyone! Big Blades in the Dark fan here, and I ran my first session last night. Things didn’t go smoothly in the pregame, since the players decided to be smugglers, so I prepared for a smuggler game, and then at the last minute swapped over to Hawkers, so I had to throw out all my notes.
Their plan is to essentially peddle gambling and vice. They want their own casino/sin parlor. Which is pretty cool, I’m totally for it. Right now though they essentially run a floating craps game in a bunch of alleyways, so long way to go. I’ve got a Hound who’s the former captain of the guard for a fallen noble house, a Lurk who used to be an Inspector, a Slide who specializes in infiltrating the upper crust despite his very low and humble origins and a Spider who used to be the accountant and planner for a now-defunct criminal organization. They’ve decided to work out of Silkshore, in an old paddleboat which can’t (currently) go anywhere.
Which has brought about good and interesting. I love the Blades in the Dark factions, but they lacked the sort of boots on the ground gangs I needed for Silkshore. Sure, the Crows, the Sashes and the Lampblacks (especially them, Baszo Baz is the Slide’s rival) are present, but I wanted some of my own gangs for the district.
So, I’ve currently got two gangs and two casinos for some higher level rivals. The Viceroys rule the street gambling in the district. In fact, their whole thing is the sort of Silkshore side entertainments. Their main issue is complacency. There are also the Furies, a gang made up of many former courtesans, performers, acrobats and entertainers of Silkshore, at first banded together for protection but now more criminals than protectors.
The Furies are also the ones the PCs paid off when they started their operations. The Furies had a clock about investigating the murder of a performer, the Alabaster, which I expected to go on in the background while the PCs carved out their turf, but instead our “heroes” decided to go right for it. So it wasn’t really a traditional job, but I was able to improvise pretty well. Still, going around investigating places isn’t exactly the Blades in the Dark way but we managed. It’ll hopefully lead to all kinds of darkness, criminality and maybe even our heroes controlling a theater!
Other interesting note. I ended up having to throw the Spirit Wardens in as the PCs investigated the murder. Since they aren’t super-detailed in the book I added some of my own touches. I gave them plague doctor masks, long jackets, tricorns and a surprising amount of physicality. PARKOUR! And the PCs picked up a clock for the attention of the Spirit Wardens, so that should be interesting.
All in all, a pretty cool first session.
I just had an idea too cool not to share.
I just had an idea too cool not to share. Someone wanting rapid access to a ritual casting makes the elaborate pattern by pressing wire into wet plaster on the wall, and while chanting they’ll pull on the nib that sticks out, so the ritual carves itself in the wall as the wire pulls out through the surface of the plaster.
Could be a ghost door, or a more mundane message left with flair. Part of a riddle hunt. But there’s a wire sticking out of the wall, and when you pull it the wire tears out of the plaster, carving a track like a marble rolling down the invisible pipe, making visible the pattern that has been dormant there all along.
How do folks handle open table drop-in/drop-out irregular players?
How do folks handle open table drop-in/drop-out irregular players? If I have people interested but not wanting or able to commit to a long term regular game. Would BitD suffer for that and we should instead look to a different game?
For German speaking fans, here’s a podcast series about Blades in the Dark.
For German speaking fans, here’s a podcast series about Blades in the Dark.
http://www.3w6-podcast.com/podcast/2017/11/15/306-blades-in-the-dark-setting
Questions about the structure:
Questions about the structure:
There are 4 ‘phases’; The Score, Free Play, Downtime and Engagement Roll.
How do you organise yours? I know the stages are not meant to be rigid, however if after coming back from a Score with little to no stress and some harm, then going straight out to Free Play (and researching the next score) may well be dangerous. I understand that this is supposed to be free flowing but do any of you have ideas on how to help the players choose the best way to deal with this dynamic?
I guess managing your resources as a player is an important factor, but the narrative must trump that right?
Many thanks.
LFGM
LFGM
Hey guys, just wanted to remind you that we have people hosting games over at http://LookingForGM.com specifically for Blades in the Dark.
Come over and check it out. If you’re interested in the game, signup for an account and join the game. After the game is done, you can rate the GM, just as the GM can rate you as a player. Support your fellow GM and players!
Hello everyone
Hello everyone,
I was wondering about two things:
1)how many factions were involved with the party at the start of the campaign?
2)how many different factions did your campaign involve by the end?
Just curious.
Just curious…. How much do you feel that the Score selection should be played driven? We’re still running with training wheels at this point, and my plan was to offer two different opportunities from different ways and let the players pick one (or go of on a different tangent if they wish, say going for turf). I’m just wondering how much per-planning of scores happens by the GM when things start moving naturally.