Blades in the Dark: Game Questions – Page 20 – Blades in the Dark G+ Archives

1. How does one determine whether or not to give coin during the payoff?

2. Our crew are Hawkers. Do we only get coin when we are making sales? What if they run a scores to acquire new product supply or secure new sales territory through seizure of another crews claim?

3. Can you give a few examples of scores that do not include a payoff?

Question for the web-mind:

This weekend I finished the fourth session of an ongoing Blades game. During our sessions, I’ve been in the habit of having the players mark down their XP gained from making Desperate rolls as they make those rolls. For me, it’s simpler than trying to go back and recall each and every roll. However, this session I had a couple of characters who filled their Attribute tracks in the middle of the session. (Helped that a terrible Engagement roll started the whole Score in a Desperate situation!)

The query came up as to whether they could “cash in” on the filled tracks and gain a dot in one of the associated Actions. I made the call to allow them to reset their XP tracks and take that extra dot right away. My rationale was that it was quick and done and helped out the characters. But I was curious how other Blades GMs handle tracking Desperate XP and what you would have done in the same situation.

Thanks!

I’m curious: Blades has a fair bit of time travel (flashbacks) and mode switches (gather info vs score vs downtime).

I’m curious: Blades has a fair bit of time travel (flashbacks) and mode switches (gather info vs score vs downtime). So how do you as a GM deal with consequences of “out of score” actions? For example: a PC is gathering info, something goes wrong, and he takes harm or stress. So he’d go into the score wounded/stressed? Or a flashback goes pear-shaped and the PC takes trauma. It’s permanent, so when we come back to “now” he’s traumatised?

I’m having a hard time figuring out when and if opposing gangs should take actions against the PCs.

The crew is at war with another gang, the lampblacks. Does that mean that the Lampblacks will be openly sending thugs to attack the PC crew? Are the built in game mechanics of +1 heat and lowering of hold and possible Tier enough?

1. Should this attack happen during an existing score that the players are running? If the PCs have run a smooth score is it proper to drop the opposing gang attack before the downtime? They will finish the score with zero heat based on their rolls otherwise.

2. Should it be a part of downtime?

3. Should it be a score that you notify them about during free play?

How do other GMs handle this situation?

You know that moment during session one where the GM asks the players to introduce themselves?

You know that moment during session one where the GM asks the players to introduce themselves? How can I make that cool and fitting for BitD? What questions should I have the PCs thinking about before they even speak directly to the Camera?

I just want to avoid the, “I’m a dude and a Leech and my special ability is being creepy”

Ideas?

I just ran a test session and have a few questions, if anyone would like to help out that would be groovy!

1. What effect does ‘Fine’ have? Does it give another d?

2. Is it normal to have 50% of the crew suffer Trauma in a score?

3. What happens to a traumatized PC in the middle of a score?

4. Can you resist the result of a 1-3? (Can resisting turn it into a success?)

5. Devil’s Bargain + push + help = is that possible?

6. Flashbacks – I.e. If the ‘steal a canoe’ roll had failed in the flashback would there have been a canoe at the exit?

7. What requires a roll and what doesn’t? i.e. The ‘Silence’ potion. The Trance Dust. The grenade. Is it only required if there is a chance of failure?

8. If you get a trauma on a flashback, does it apply to the current scene?

9. What effects do heavy weapons have over regular weapons?

One of the Leech’s contacts includes “Jul the Blood dealer” and I’m having trouble imagining what exactly that means…

One of the Leech’s contacts includes “Jul the Blood dealer” and I’m having trouble imagining what exactly that means other then sounding cool. Does anyone have any cool interpretations of this text?

I’m about to start my first BitD campaign (as a GM) and was wondering what you would have done differently if you…

I’m about to start my first BitD campaign (as a GM) and was wondering what you would have done differently if you could retcon your first session. What would you have done differently and why? What would you keep the same? I’m looking to learn from others’ mistakes. Thanks in advance!

What are people’s takes on using Group Actions to move around Stress/Consequences?

We had a Score where the crew was hired to acquire some goods, but the goods turned out to be tagged for tracking in the Ghost Field. The Whisper had determined that the tags could be dissolved with electroplasm, with the consequence from that roll that whoever did it would get some nasty electroplasm burns. The Whisper was 1 Stress away from Trauma and generally not in great shape. The group felt this action was vital because taking tagged goods to their patron was basically a mission fail state, and wanted to boost success. The Spider especially wanted to take responsibility (due to having no Stress yet).

We wound up running it as a Group action on Attune, with the Spider leading and taking the Harm. This felt like stretching the rules. How would you have run it?

Category: Blades in the Dark: Game Questions