(no subject)
Aug. 21st, 2012 04:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
seekingferretPlaytest went okay. Needs a fucking skill system that makes sense. Not that I would use it correctly most of the time, but it'd give me the guidance I'd need to actually do logical things with noncombat dice use. There was a lot of fumbling "Uh... yeah... give me a dex roll, I guess? And if you can justify any of your skill bonuses, go ahead!"
It also needs monster creation rules. I was going to have to borrow and fudge the bear stats from a different system if my players decided to fight my bear. Fortunately they ran away.
Mostly, as Alai put it, the rules got out of the way and let us play. Which was fine, but I was never clear when that was because of the rules and when that was because I didn't know how to use the rules. Either way, we had a good time, but this game still has a lot that dissatisfies me. And I don't feel like we adequately playtested it in the sense of pushing it to discover the specific problems with the system. Further research required.
I like this setting I invented in thirty seconds, though. The Mannheim Vale is a vale that is geographically isolated from the major political entities of the continent. It has several small goblin villages, along with a few longtime visitors that have established good relations with the goblins by leaving them alone, trading fairly with them. And now there are rumors of adamantium ore in the hills! It's destabilizing the political situation and putting the autonomy of the vale at risk. And I was able to hint at all of that politics subtly enough that the players got that things were going on, but also got that these weren't necessarily plot hooks and didn't need to be chased down immediately. Sometimes I've found as a DM that if I include stuff for flavor, players will decide it's important and I'm forced to make details up fast to either build plot hooks off of their interest or quickly discourage them from pursuing it without being railroady. This time, I struck that balance well. The players didn't approach the scenario as I'd imagined they would, but they never caught me completely off guard. And the stuff I'd stuck in as red herrings was entertaining enough that I don't think they minded wasting their time. My oracular dwarf hermit sage amused people more than he frustrated them, at least.
I've been pushing for a couple months for us to get together a Google hangouts one-shot of the month club with alternating GMs. I decided to view this as a soft launch for the project and at the end of the night asked for someone to step up to take the next alternation. Alai volunteered, so... this might become a thing! I am excited.
It also needs monster creation rules. I was going to have to borrow and fudge the bear stats from a different system if my players decided to fight my bear. Fortunately they ran away.
Mostly, as Alai put it, the rules got out of the way and let us play. Which was fine, but I was never clear when that was because of the rules and when that was because I didn't know how to use the rules. Either way, we had a good time, but this game still has a lot that dissatisfies me. And I don't feel like we adequately playtested it in the sense of pushing it to discover the specific problems with the system. Further research required.
I like this setting I invented in thirty seconds, though. The Mannheim Vale is a vale that is geographically isolated from the major political entities of the continent. It has several small goblin villages, along with a few longtime visitors that have established good relations with the goblins by leaving them alone, trading fairly with them. And now there are rumors of adamantium ore in the hills! It's destabilizing the political situation and putting the autonomy of the vale at risk. And I was able to hint at all of that politics subtly enough that the players got that things were going on, but also got that these weren't necessarily plot hooks and didn't need to be chased down immediately. Sometimes I've found as a DM that if I include stuff for flavor, players will decide it's important and I'm forced to make details up fast to either build plot hooks off of their interest or quickly discourage them from pursuing it without being railroady. This time, I struck that balance well. The players didn't approach the scenario as I'd imagined they would, but they never caught me completely off guard. And the stuff I'd stuck in as red herrings was entertaining enough that I don't think they minded wasting their time. My oracular dwarf hermit sage amused people more than he frustrated them, at least.
I've been pushing for a couple months for us to get together a Google hangouts one-shot of the month club with alternating GMs. I decided to view this as a soft launch for the project and at the end of the night asked for someone to step up to take the next alternation. Alai volunteered, so... this might become a thing! I am excited.