Hey, +John Harper – I took the liberty of emailing OneBookShelf with the idea I mentioned on RPG.net, referring to…

Hey, +John Harper – I took the liberty of emailing OneBookShelf with the idea I mentioned on RPG.net, referring to…

Hey, +John Harper – I took the liberty of emailing OneBookShelf with the idea I mentioned on RPG.net, referring to the Compendium of the stretch goals:

“Is it possible for a number of individual writers to give their permission to print their individual works in a single softcover book, and receive their shares of the proceeds from an account of a POD publisher such as DriveThru?”

And was told that such a thing is not only possible, but is easily done by splitting royalties using the publishing interface. While it’s been years since I’ve had a publisher account – my Eos Press days long gone, after all – I still thought it worth asking.

Anyhoo, ignore or use with my blessings – just trying to help.  🙂

Diceless Effect and Resistance

Diceless Effect and Resistance

Diceless Effect and Resistance

So, this is a modification I’ve been considering for a while now. Recent conversations have convinced me that it might be a good change for the game.

Rather than rolling for Effect and Resistance, you simply use the Effect rating to determine how much progress you make or how much stress it costs to resist a danger. Here’s how it works:

Effect

To determine the scope of your action, choose an appropriate effect rating (Force, Finesse, Influence, Insight, Maneuver, Will). By default, you inflict 1-segment per diamond, and +1 segment if you’re using a fine item.

If your action roll resulted in “increased effect” you do +1 segment of effect. If your action roll resulted in “reduced effect” you do -1 segment of effect.

Resistance

To resist the consequences from a danger that manifests, select an appropriate effect rating. You may choose to take stress equal to [6 minus the effect rating] to resist the consequences from the danger at hand, or instead suffer the threatened harm.

——————–

This approach is starting to appeal to me. It minimizes rolling, and simplifies the action + effect and resistance concepts in the mind-space of the game, I think.

The way this interacts with teamwork (setup) is another issue, but it’s easily solved.

What do you think?

If anyone else runs a crew using the Cult or Hawkers sheets, be sure to note the following changes to the faction…

If anyone else runs a crew using the Cult or Hawkers sheets, be sure to note the following changes to the faction…

If anyone else runs a crew using the Cult or Hawkers sheets, be sure to note the following changes to the faction tiers on the faction ladder. I’m sure more may change before the final version.

All the Tier 0 factions were raised to Tier 1 and Dimmer Sisters were raised to Tier 2 (which is great since otherwise the players’ selection of factions to have starting positive and negative status is rather slim).

Meanwhile, the Crows were added at Tier II Hold 3.

As for cosmetic changes, Ulf Ironborn got a first name, Scurlock became Lord Scurlock, Lampreys became The Eels, and Gondoliers had a spelling fix. 😛

Had a fun first session discovering my players cult crew last night.

Had a fun first session discovering my players cult crew last night.

Had a fun first session discovering my players cult crew last night. I’ll post the AP details later, but for now here are some of the questions that arose. I’d love any input you may have.

1) Collecting dice pools was the most time-consuming part actually. I’m sure as people learn the system that will speed up but it led to a question about re-rolling for more risk. When you get a 1-3 on Controlled, you have the option of re-rolling at Risky. Do these kinds of riskier re-rolls mean a player just immediately grabs the same pool just rolled and roll it again (not requiring a new ally to take stress to grant a backup die, or offering a new Devil’s Bargain)? I’m sure there should still be some fictional development and dangers will manifest between each re-roll when you’re in risky and desperate positions, but soliciting new Backup assistance and devil’s Bargains as if it were a totally new roll just takes lots more time than seems fitting. However, if it is just an immediate re-roll of the former pool, then doesn’t that boil down to “Rolling twice for the same thing”?

The other side issue is that if dangers manifest in between these escalated re-rolls, rolling to resist those effects jam in and slow the pace of the seemingly quick re-roll. Am I expecting a faster pace than is realistic, or do groups with system mastery fly through these rolls without all the negotiating that bogged us down.

Another key point for the players to realize was that they didn’t need to roll to give a backup assistance die to another player, they just had to pay stress and narrate something believable. I think they were getting confused about the difference between Backup Assists (which give 1 die to a roll at the cost of 1 stress) vs Set Up Point actions (which hand over effect dice to the player that follow’s through at the cost of perhaps risking a roll).

2) Related to the riskier re-roll question above, if Player A is on point, gets 1-3 and decides to re-roll in a riskier position, do they stay on point and keep re-rolling until they finally resolving whatever Point action started the whole business? If so, then adding in all the danger resist rolls that such re-rolling may entail, the spotlight may linger on Player A for maybe 3-6 rolls and that seems to not be the pace this game assumes, especially if all this is also taking place within a flashback. In my game, this led to Player B poised overlong waiting to attempt his impersonation while Player A, setting him up using a flashback did a bunch of re-rolls, an effect resist, and whatnot. I must be doing something wrong.

3) The QS rules make it seem like the players can rise two tiers at one jump; is that true? The QS says: “Take advantage of a faction one or two tiers above you when they’re reduced to zero hold. Successfully perform a mission to seize their position in that tier (they drop down one tier and reset to 1 hold).”

Does that mean if the Lampblacks (Tier 2) are reduced to 0 hold, then the PC crew could supplant the Lampblacks at Tier 2 with a relevant, successful mission/score? The Lampblacks would now be Tier 1, Hold 1, and the PC crew would now be Tier 2, Hold 1 (and likely vulnerable to all kinds of threats from the resentful Lampblacks, their allies, and other big gangs feeling threatened by such a swift rise of an upstart competitor).

4) Does gaining Hold at Tier 0 matter much (EDIT: beyond the 3 Hold needed to rise to another tier)? My players finished 2 scores in the session and quickly got up to 4 hold, but that made me wonder why Hold matters at Tier 0. You’re in no danger of being reduced or supplanted by anyone below you, and when you finally do rise to Tier 1, you’ll reset to Hold 1. Is Hold at Tier 0 just a narrative barometer for how stable your operation is?

Vigilante Variant

Vigilante Variant

Vigilante Variant

Hi all!

Just put my support behind this earlier this week and am hoping to run a game this weekend.

Had an idea for an odd viriant of the Vigalante type team. My idea was that a group of people would get together and create a Zorro or Batman type persona but it’s really multiple people helping create the myth. Using teamwork and support to create a “people’s hero”. No one character woudl actually be the “Batman” but as a team work together to create a myth and also perhaps cover their tracks. Perhaps making a big show as a distraction behind the “Hero” persona and costume after they’ve already or right before they plan to do something.

My idea was a Three Musketeers style hero of Duskwall called “The Black Marquis”. Wearing a tri cornered hat and a black diamond mask, with a long flowing black cape with red lining, rapier in one hand pistol in the other. Supported by an honest blue coat, a disillusioned noble and a network of varying degrees of respectability.

What do you think? Could such an idea work?

Second session co-GMing the Quick Start scenario with our crew The Twelve.

Second session co-GMing the Quick Start scenario with our crew The Twelve.

Second session co-GMing the Quick Start scenario with our crew The Twelve.

Last session ended with the Whisper creating a diversion to allow the Lurk and Hound to infiltrate the Red Sashes HQ and empty the treasury. The Whisper challenged the school to produce a champion to duel. He made enough of a commotion to allow his crewmates to infiltrate with little resistance.

The Whisper’s player ran this sessio as GM more or less. I think they had too much fun.

My Lurk’s vice is betting on boxing matches and other fights where men bloody each other viciously. So Bird had to resist the effect of lingering too long watching instead of get to the infiltrating already. Unfortunately, she took 4 stress resisting. An auspicious start. I guess she really enjoys watching men hurt each other. O, and making bets.

My Lurk had “previously” borrowed a partial blueprint of the HQ from a city clerk friend. The map was out-of-date, partly because of the recent renovations upgrading the vault. This flowed from my big mistake for this session: accepting a Devil’s Bargain at this point which made the treasury lock harder to overcome. Not just a regular Ice Turn Ball lock, it was a custom Grated Ice Turn Ball lock. A 4-segment became a 8-segment clock. No problems I thought.

NEVER TAKE A DEVIL’S BARGAIN MAKING THE MISSION GOAL HARDER. O. MY. GANDALF.

Anyway, finding our way through the HQ was easy enough with a Lead a Group action. Here sprung Question 1, which I ask below. The Hound and I smartly overcame the clock and quickly found our way to the vault, although some servants were silenced along the way, unfortunately. So far so good.

The antechamber to the vault was full of alchemical experiments. The Hound got into some chicanery with the Elderly Alchemist and a moonlighting bluecoat, who he had “previously” bribed to fall. 

Meanwhile, my Lurk ignored all that commotion and got to work cracking open the treasury vault and, you know, getting a mission successful badge. Five segments boom! (4 + 1 for Scout).

That would have done it. End game, treasure zonk, hand shakes all round! Not quite ghosts but clean for a rookie crew. Except. EXCEPT. That Devil’s Bargain.

Trauma: I overloaded my stress and got trauma on the 1–3 the Risky Action roll trying to crack the safe, while the Hound kicked the snot out of the elderly Alchemist with his Steel Capped Boots. This mean I got no closer to unlocking the vault. At least I dodged the sticky blue chemical dye that sprayed out from the trapped vault, which would have marked me as the vault cracker to the 20-odd incoming master swords. Unfortunately the dye reacted poorly with some chemicals strewn about, starting a fire.

Burnt: I ignored the spreading fire and re-rolled, getting a 4–5 on the Desperate Action roll. So still no closer to unlocking. I probably should have taken the stress, but I really didn’t want to get two trauma on my first mission. Here sprung Question 2, asked below. O, and I will never again try to crack another Ice Turn Ball lock, custom or not. Too traumatic.

Trapped: I finally got a 6 when I re-rolled. Which I unlocked the vault, easily. Unfortunately the antechamber collapsed into an burning inferno, cutting off my escape route. At least the Red Sashes weren’t going to stab me just yet. O, and something I was wearing was on fire. Bloody Uncle Aldo, getting me stung by my own Devil’s Bargain.

After that I actually escaped, carrying a treasury of alchemical warfare, with the help of some Elite Shadows I had arranged earlier for just such a situation. And the Hound just hobbled out, masquerading as a Bluecoat, next to the moonlighting Bluecoat he’d bribed. 

We’re going to do the Downtime and advancement stuff next week when all four players are at the table. I think the Red Sashes will like us less. Interestingly, they’ve got a passionate personal vendetta against the Whisper, thanks to a Devil’s Bargain. The eight-segment clock that came with that Bargain seemed plenty until we killed their servants, stole their alchemical armoury, and burnt their HQ down. Some people are just “sensitive” to shit like that.

Fun times! Cheers for the excellent game.

Question 1 Can a Backup Assist the Point in Lead a Group Action if the Backup is involved and rolling in that Group action? We said no but I couldn’t see any direct contradiction in the rules.

Question 2 Can I choose to take the effect after making the Effect roll and seeing how much stress I would have to take? Some of your examples suggest yes but it felt a little like cheating and wasn’t super clear.

Hey all.

Hey all.

Hey all. I’m GMing a gang of Hawkers who have just finished character and crew creation. I’ll post an actual play report when we’ve finished our first session.

Discussion about where my players might want to start with their criminal endeavors brought up a question. Can a crew gain a crew upgrade (like a library or a gang of rooks) through a score specifically intended to acquire the materials or persons necessary for that upgrade?

It may have sorta been answered in Sean Winslow’s discussion here: https://plus.google.com/108792259001927627388/posts/4P8anuPFeFc. It also pretty heavily relates to his earlier discussion, here: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+DuamnFigueroa/posts/9NSHAivGdH1.

Example time (ideal, but still possible): say that crew of Hawkers decides, in order to expand their production, to steal the equipment necessary to create a fully-functioning workshop from a rival gang. If all goes well, they find the Red Sashes’ supplier, knock over their alchemy den, and smuggle the stuff down the river to their lair. They roll well on development, gaining decent hold and coin. (Second Example could be a jailbreak for some friends of friends, who agreed to work for the crew if they’re busted out.)

There’s a big part of me that wants to say: yeah, you have a workshop, now, or an extra gang, but this jars with the rules-as-written (so far) and the idea that upgrades should come from a crew’s experience/growth/etc. It’s analogous to the question about PCs acquiring items from scores. John Harper stated, in the first linked thread, that a PC can gain permanent items through completing a project or through making a series of successful asset roles over time, with an item gained from a score getting an extra tick on a project clock (towards keeping it). Would the same kind of rules treatment work for a crews? 

Final note: we are all super excited to start playing! Our group is impressed with the simplicity of the rules and the awesome and terrible things you can do with the setting.