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Impermanent posted:You badly need an Ursa drum major. With the way my players have been solving problems lately, the bears will probably survive to be recurring. I'm totally going to make a traveling Ursa drummer who plays music at odd hours in the inn room next door while they're trying to sleep.
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Oct 28, 2014 16:42
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GEExCEE posted:I have online spreadsheet-type character sheets for every character but the druid. I couldn't find a template for him. Is there anything out there, or do I have to make my own? The second post of the thread has some google sheets for different classes (druid here).
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Oct 28, 2014 16:45
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I'm an idiot, sorry.
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Oct 28, 2014 16:49
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Yeah, you're kind of boned in PbP. The system really isn't built for it. Think about how it'd work in a live session: Players can pretty much only tell you what they do when you ask them, "What do you do?" Whereas in a PbP, if you're not controlling the flow, they're all going to be doing things all the time. It'd be like if everyone was talking at once. Really, the only way I can see this working is to only allow each player to respond to their own individual "What do you do?" prompt. You'll probably end up with less dynamic fights, but there really isn't much you can do with an asynchronous medium like that. You can still try to get them mixed into each other's actions like you would in a live game, responding to each other's partial hits and misses. And it shouldn't be an issue if you have multiple prompts per post. But you need to be the gatekeeper and somehow control the flow of the "conversation" like you would in a live game. Also the rules text is online here: http://book.dwgazetteer.com/
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Oct 28, 2014 16:53
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You'd have to respond to each player, and they'd have to write like a paragraph max.
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Oct 28, 2014 17:00
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Thinking about it, PbP is really just a giant mess because the DM is generally intended to be the final arbiter of move triggers too. For instance, since there aren't any difficulty modifiers or anything, you need to be able to call for extra Defy Dangers to attack a dragon or other dangerous opponent.
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Oct 28, 2014 17:11
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Could the player describe what they're doing (i.e. punch the dragon in the face) and the GM roll whatever to make that happen?
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Oct 28, 2014 17:14
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Babe Magnet posted:Again, my condolences for PbP Dungeon World. This is something you're going to have to try and develop you're own system for in the long run. You're not doing anything wrong, really, it's just a tough system to play asymmetrically like that. There's no right or wrong way to go about it, but what I feel is intended to happen is everyone reacting to each other on the fly. Turn orders kill combat in *World games, because they're built off of fiction first, and you stifle fiction when you put it in these rigid barriers of "who goes next, nuh uh it was my turn, you have to wait". The result is most definitely fewer actions for baddies, and since most bad guys don't survive on mountains of HP and resistances like in, say, D&D, they absolutely have to have their owns moments to shine and stretch their legs in the fiction in between getting pummeled by players. To play DW PbP, you really have to target players with GM moves. I've made this mistake about 20 times before I figured it out. Don't start a combat with: there are enemies charging towards you, what do you do? The players are going to obliterate these enemies by getting to "go first." You have to make a point to target your players. As a GM it might seem mean at first, but it is going to make the action that much better when they overcome. For example. I recently had a game where I was using these guys I made: pre:Oread Group, Magical, Organized, Intelligent, Cautious, Hoarder Spear (d8+2 damage) 6 HP 2 armor Close, Forceful, Reach Earth spirits tasked with the defense of the mountainous places of the world. They stand steadfast with others of their kind of form an unbreakable line of soldiers. Instinct: to warden mountains Crush with the strength of stone Turn the ground into a weapon Form a bastion of defenders Suddenly, this one sided fight got a whole lot better. it took them twice as long to kill the last 2 mobs than the first 4 they slaughtered because I started using my moves as I intended them to be used. The fighter was knocked prone by a shield, his sword spinning away while the Oread was trying to skewer him. The Elf had to distract it with his bow just for the fighter to get back up and in the game. My point is, you have to remember to Think Dangerously, and I mean really dangerously. I threatened to push a player off a 40 foot cliff, but his allies came to his aid before he was thrown off. It may seem mean, but make it so one player can't save himself, and the others have to intervene. Point the narrative towards each character in turn and make them react to you, not the other way around. If the players control the fight instead of you, you need to mix it up and get control again, or they with chop their way through armies of foes.
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Oct 28, 2014 18:05
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Generic Octopus posted:Could the player describe what they're doing (i.e. punch the dragon in the face) and the GM roll whatever to make that happen?
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Oct 28, 2014 18:08
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I've run a couple of experimental DW games and played in good and bad ones and here's what I learned. You don't need a long overdrawn recruitment phase. They frontload character backstory creation and bonds too much and rarely leave enough blanks, so PCs will just retread familiar territory instead of interacting with one another and it'll be terrible. When everyone, especially you, make it a point to ask everyone else pertinent questions in or out of character to find out that stuff together in the course of play the characters will grow organically from the beginning. Everyone will be playing to find out instead of leaning on their prep crutch. "First and foremost, you describe the immediate situation around the players at all times." In both games I kept track of everyone's mechanical and fictional status in a block at the bottom of every one of my posts, something like this. pre:P1 21/21hp 3arm surrounded by hand range goblins P2 8/18 1arm blind, -1 spells, behind a boulder near P1 P3 0/17 1arm crushed by the cave in, talking to Death I was gonna say stuff about really thinking dangerous but Teonis covered that. They were one of the players that complained the most at first when I did that to them  From ones I played that were bad, at least in parts: Start in media res or the first page of posts will be boring prologue navelgazing, and Make moves all the time, because there'll be a golden opportunity in every player post. If there isn't at least a choice between one threat present and another approaching for the PCs to deal with it's basically railroading. Don't presume player actions in your prompts, eg with a multiple choice question like "do you x or do you y?" Let go of the urge to plan for what the players might do or imply or suggest what they should do and focus on responding to what they actually do. Generic Octopus posted:Could the player describe what they're doing (i.e. punch the dragon in the face) and the GM roll whatever to make that happen? Most importantly the exercise showed me that PbP DW has its advantages over live because you can actually keep track of when everyone wants to talk at once. As long you make sure that everyone's on the same page that the fiction as they portray it is negotiable, more a representation of the character's intentions/hopes/aims, that nothing's set in stone until the GM responds, and you actually make moves and follow the rules and guidelines in the GM section, it runs fine. Don't let the medium get you down.
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Oct 28, 2014 18:24
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slydingdoor posted:I was gonna say stuff about really thinking dangerous but Teonis covered that. They were one of the players that complained the most at first when I did that to them Who knew it would be my greatest lesson.
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Oct 28, 2014 18:35
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I was just re-reading The Medic, and I have a question about First Aid. The move says the person being healed gains hold- does this mean that if I get 3 hold and spend 1 to heal d8, I can spend the other two to heal later on, after taking more damage, without being tended to again? What is supposed to be the reasonable time limit on using hold from First Aid?
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Oct 30, 2014 01:48
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In general you lose hold when it makes sense. No idea what that'd be in the context of tending to wounded. I assume when you pack up your stuff and your patients are up and walking again? EDIT: oh, the healed person gains hold? Yeah I have no idea how that would work.
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Oct 30, 2014 01:55
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I think it's more just a semi-clumsy way to make certain choices more expensive than others. Most moves that are straight "pick X" have choices that are supposedly roughly equivalent. If you were to do it another way you'd have to make up a whole new mechanic. Going by that logic, it'd probably make more sense if it also had a trigger like "when you're finished tending to the patient, they lose all hold". e: Then again maybe I'm totally out of line and it's intended to be used preemptively. I guess just rule it however it makes sense to you.
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Oct 30, 2014 02:30
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I'm inclined to let players be stingy with Hold. Then again, I write moves that give the GM Hold. The GM doesn't actually need it, but I figure it cuts down on the complaining when the GM spends it while making a hard move.
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Oct 30, 2014 06:57
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Your players complain about hard moves? Mine are like "Oh wow, this sucks so hard. I love it."
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Oct 30, 2014 10:53
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When lovely things happen to my characters in D&D I get annoyed at the DM, but when lovely things happen to my characters in DW it's awesome because the stuff that happens is actually interesting and I can totally get behind how my Artificer tried to kick someone with his rocket boots but activated the wrong boot and went flying away. D&D sucks, DW owns
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Oct 30, 2014 13:08
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In the game I'm running at the moment, I've gone out of my way to let my players know that sometimes I am determinedly trying to kill them, particularly during boss fights or such. It's a fine line to both 'be a fan of the characters' and 'think dangerously' and I find I tend to stray more towards being a fan and not making things dangerous enough. Every now and again, shaking things up by having them come across something waaaay dangerous and they have to scramble to survive has given me some very positive feedback. The Dwarf also got something cool from his brush with Death and now the Orc is determined to die in combat and negotiate with Death as well.
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Oct 30, 2014 14:27
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I'm making a new class based on fire-wielding, but with a hint of spirituality instead of the pyrokinetic magic type of control (which some other classes already easily encompass). I've got most of the starting moves made, including the basic mechanic of Spark as the fuel for "wondrous" fire use, but it's missing a move to represent the rest of the time, the affinity with fire or being an expert at its use. Any ideas on that, and feedback on what I have, would be appreciated. Conflagrant Look?: Damage: d6 HP: 6 + Con Drives: What draws you to fire? • Pyrolatry - cleanse someone or something corrupt • Pyromania - get in trouble for starting a fire • Pyrotechnics - awe people with your control of fire Race or maybe method?: Bonds?: Starting Moves: Flame in Your Heart: When you center yourself near the warmth of a fire, set your Spark to 1. When you overcome a threat using fire, gain Spark 1, up to your maximum of 3. As long as you have a source of flame, you can spend 1 Spark to do one of the following: • Fire Breathing: Fire you're wielding has the near tag and can hit multiple nearby targets. • Cauterize: You can remove one debility from someone, but they take d4 damage. • Shape Blaze: When you take a moment to coax a fire within Reach, you can change its shape however you want: extend it farther, shrink it, increase or decrease its height, or even put it out entirely. Pure Flame (INT): When you use fire to cleanse something of a spell or curse, spend 1 Spark and roll +INT. On a 10+, you burn away the magic for good. On a 7-9, the magic is gone but choose 1: • It's only temporary - it will return a short while later • The magic acts as fuel - something unexpected catches fire, the GM will tell you what • Keeping the fire under control was taxing - you get -1 ongoing until you can recenter yourself Prometheus: Fire knows its own. Flames pass around your person, and you can walk through a wildfire or on a bed of coals unscathed.
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Nov 5, 2014 00:32
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Have you checked out Inverse World's classes, Alarumklok? The light warden does something similar.
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Nov 5, 2014 21:21
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Do you mean the Lantern? I'm looking at it now. Maybe a move analogous to Reveal the Way is what it's missing. I have Pyromancy (divination by fire) as an advanced move, I was just loathe to put it as a starting one because it shuts out an origin of fire control (pyrotechnics over spiritual affinity), but maybe I should double down on what I've got instead of trying to have the class be all-encompassing. Thanks for the idea.
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Nov 5, 2014 21:57
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"Pyromania" as a drive seems like it would be explicitly condoning That Behavior, which means everyone in the party are The People who hang with a Pyromaniac. I'd replace it, or games could detour into Sillyside Heights.
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Nov 5, 2014 23:33
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alarumklok posted:I'm making a new class based on fire-wielding, but with a hint of spirituality instead of the pyrokinetic magic type of control (which some other classes already easily encompass). I've got most of the starting moves made, including the basic mechanic of Spark as the fuel for "wondrous" fire use, but it's missing a move to represent the rest of the time, the affinity with fire or being an expert at its use. Any ideas on that, and feedback on what I have, would be appreciated. You may already know about this, but have you read the Immolator by Sage and Adam? It is coming out in their next book.
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Nov 5, 2014 23:35
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Golden Bee posted:"Pyromania" as a drive seems like it would be explicitly condoning That Behavior, which means everyone in the party are The People who hang with a Pyromaniac. I'd replace it, or games could detour into Sillyside Heights. Yeah, true, that's another reason why I should double down on pyrolatry and just cut out the fire nutter side. Teonis posted:You may already know about this, but have you read the Immolator by Sage and Adam? It is coming out in their next book. Oh no, I didn't know. Is it kind of what I'm going for, or is it more pyrokinetic? Either way I'll probably snag it later, thanks for the heads up. Edit: Okay, changes - No need for INT anymore, Pure Flame uses WIS instead. Drives: What draws you to fire? • Pyrolatry - cleanse someone or something corrupt • Enlightenment - come to understand a hidden truth • Pyrotechnics - awe people with your control of fire Starting Moves: Pyromancy (WIS): You can read the flames with a glance to let you know things no one else is privy to. When you successfully Discern Realities and consult a fire, you can ask an addition question from the list below. Additionally, when you Spout Lore about an individual after consulting a fire, you can use WIS instead of INT. • What is their real motivation? • When will the situation change? • What is a way I can better my position? alarumklok fucked around with this message at 02:36 on Nov 6, 2014 |
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Nov 5, 2014 23:43
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I am a complete noob to pen and paper RPGs, as are my friends, but we are thinking of trying one out. Lots of Google Searches to the effect of "Best Beginner RPGs" have turned up Dungeon World, D&D 5th, and Dragon Age. My group is not the type of player to sit down for 12 hours at a time, but rather a group that might have fun for 4 hours or so on a Saturday. Would DW be the game for us?
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Nov 7, 2014 05:35
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ScaerCroe posted:I am a complete noob to pen and paper RPGs, as are my friends, but we are thinking of trying one out. Lots of Google Searches to the effect of "Best Beginner RPGs" have turned up Dungeon World, D&D 5th, and Dragon Age. My group is not the type of player to sit down for 12 hours at a time, but rather a group that might have fun for 4 hours or so on a Saturday. Would DW be the game for us? Yes.
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Nov 7, 2014 05:45
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ScaerCroe posted:I am a complete noob to pen and paper RPGs, as are my friends, but we are thinking of trying one out. Lots of Google Searches to the effect of "Best Beginner RPGs" have turned up Dungeon World, D&D 5th, and Dragon Age. My group is not the type of player to sit down for 12 hours at a time, but rather a group that might have fun for 4 hours or so on a Saturday. Would DW be the game for us? Unreservedly yes.
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Nov 7, 2014 05:51
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ScaerCroe posted:Would DW be the game for us? If you're expecting structured combat (i.e. turn-based tactics) then maybe not, but otherwise I've used DW for everything my group used D&D for. Whole thing plays out basically like a conversation, really smooth and keeps people engaged. Highly recommend.
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Nov 7, 2014 06:04
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ScaerCroe posted:I am a complete noob to pen and paper RPGs, as are my friends, but we are thinking of trying one out. Lots of Google Searches to the effect of "Best Beginner RPGs" have turned up Dungeon World, D&D 5th, and Dragon Age. My group is not the type of player to sit down for 12 hours at a time, but rather a group that might have fun for 4 hours or so on a Saturday. Would DW be the game for us? Do you enjoy the idea of making characters inside of ten minutes, having lots of player input into the world, the plot and what's going on around them and rules-light, heavy on improvisation funtimes? If so, Dungeon World is probably the game for you.
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Nov 7, 2014 10:33
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ScaerCroe posted:I am a complete noob to pen and paper RPGs, as are my friends, but we are thinking of trying one out. Lots of Google Searches to the effect of "Best Beginner RPGs" have turned up Dungeon World, D&D 5th, and Dragon Age. My group is not the type of player to sit down for 12 hours at a time, but rather a group that might have fun for 4 hours or so on a Saturday. Would DW be the game for us? Hello. I would like to join the rest of the Dungeon World thread in recommending Dungeon World. (In all seriousness, though, it's far and away the best of those three for newbies. Go for it.)
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Nov 7, 2014 12:58
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Wow, all these responses sound great! Thanks for the input. Now to check if my local game shop has a copy.
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Nov 7, 2014 15:02
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If you end up ordering a copy and want to get a head start, or just want to check out the rules before you buy, you can read the full rules (sans pictures and character sheets) here: http://book.dwgazetteer.com/
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Nov 7, 2014 16:01
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Also grab the Dungeon World Guide, which has a lot of advice on how to run the game. https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/3269630/dwdotcom/eon-guide/Dungeon%20World%20Guide%20pdf%20version%201.2.pdf
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Nov 7, 2014 16:20
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Evil Mastermind posted:Also grab the Dungeon World Guide, which has a lot of advice on how to run the game. My LGS didn't have it, so I just Amazoned it with two sets of Chessex Poly Dice. Any other suggestions?
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Nov 8, 2014 02:37
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ScaerCroe posted:My LGS didn't have it, so I just Amazoned it with two sets of Chessex Poly Dice. Any other suggestions? 2. If you don't know a rule off-hand, just wing it, and look it up later. Nothing kills a fun game session's momentum like flipping through a book for one paragraph you don't quite remember. 3. Things are going to get a little crazy, and a little off the rails. That's fine. It doesn't mean you or they are doing something wrong. Quite the opposite, really.
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Nov 8, 2014 04:50
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0. read the part about agendas and principles and whatnot and actively use them. print them out and put them on your dming screen. engrave them on stone tablets like they're the commandments of your new god
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Nov 8, 2014 16:07
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Tollymain posted:0. read the part about agendas and principles and whatnot and actively use them. print them out and put them on your dming screen. engrave them on stone tablets like they're the commandments of your new god But also leave room for new ones as they come out in play.
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Nov 8, 2014 17:21
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Error 404 posted:But also leave room for new ones as they come out in play. I'd say you could leave room for new moves, but I rarely ever write new ones, especially not at the table.
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Nov 8, 2014 17:26
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Tollymain posted:0. read the part about agendas and principles and whatnot and actively use them. print them out and put them on your dming screen. engrave them on stone tablets like they're the commandments of your new god Error 404 posted:But also leave room for new ones as they come out in play.
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Nov 9, 2014 04:33
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Ich posted:This is solid advice. Eh, I worded it badly. I just tend to alter things as a game goes on to match the world as it develops. Stuff more specific and custom than portray a fantastic world, or fill the characters lives with adventure.
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Nov 9, 2014 04:42
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