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 What is Powered by the Apocalypse? Powered by the Apocalypse is a game engine invented by Vincent Baker. It was originally used in his post-apocalyptic role playing game, Apocalypse World. A great title that wowed gamers with its light nature, tight and narrow focus, and fluidity. While an amazing title on its own, Vincent Baker's love of open licenses lead to many great hacks being created for the system. What makes it special? The Powered by the Apocalypse engine is light and story-friendly. To quote Evil Mastermind, the best thing about the system is how it gets out of the way and let's players play. While I could get into the mechanics, it's best to first mention the underlying design philosophy: the Conversation. Vincent Baker posted:THE CONVERSATION This concept is what help build some of the best and most unique elements of the engine. The biggest and most prominent of which is "Moves." Moves permeate throughout the system and work as a great way of facilitating the conversation. Essentially, gamers just go about describing their actions. Once they reach a point where a move triggers -- all moves have a vague description of what triggers them in bold --, they resolve the move. These moves are made to reinforce the themes and nature of the game and lead to results that are appropriate. Think of it as a guiding hand for the narrative. Move resolution works off a simple formula, as well. Roll two six-sided dice and add a stat (valued between -1 and 3) and check the move. Generally, 10+ results in a success which leads to the character getting what they wanted. A 7-9 is a partial success and leads to the character getting what they wanted at a cost. The player gets to describe, with the move guiding them, how this partial success plays out. A 6- is a failure and results in the Master of Ceremonies, the systems term for a Game Master, making a move of her or his own. Jumping off that last point to clarify a common misconception, MC moves do not confine the actions of the MC. Instead, they are vague suggestions and reminders on what to do and are essentially what MCs do anyway as part of adjudicating. This, among other things with the system, leads to a Powered by the Apocalypse game having a back and forth nature to it. In every Powered by the Apocalpyse Game, there are additional mechanics such as ones to dictate relationships. That said, games with this engine -- good ones, at least -- make sure the system stays out of the way and only enhances the narrative. Titles using the engine  Apocalypse World The original, Apocalypse World is all about the post-apocalypse. It uses that setting to explore life after modern society has fallen and norms of said society have gone. To delve into a world without or, at least, less pervasive social expectations. It also deals a lot of with stuff straight out of Mad Max, if those elements are more your speed.  Dungeon World The first major hack for the system, Dungeon World attempts to elmulate Dungeon and Dragons style adventures. Specifically, Red-Box Dungeon and Dragons with a focus on the style of adventures PCs of level 1-5 of that system would encounter. A mix of New-School and Old-School, it can scratch that itch for players looking for a lite, story-first D&D system. For those who love homebrew, we have a rather extensive cataloug of it here on the forums maintained by our own gnome7.  Monster Hearts Logically, we've all been teenagers once...unless you're too young to be on this site. This title is an exploration of that confusing, messy time where we're all trying to find ourselves. It uses a series of monster metaphors to examine different "types" of teenagers. More in line with Apocalypse World in this respect, Monster Hearts has a focus on modern ideas of identity, especially gender identity, and is a rather progressive and unique piece for this choice.  Monster of the Week Ever watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer? This game is kind of like that. A bunch of people fighting off a supernatural monster of the week.  Worlds In Peril A game all about being big, drat heroes. With a focus on the Bronze and Modern age of superhero comics, this title focuses on being heroes with real lives. It's not all about being hero and the story doesn't always wrap up cleanly. Sometimes, just fitting in can be the hardest part.  World Wide Wrestling Wrestling is fake. We all know this as does this game. But that's the beauty of it. It works with the notion of trying to build heat with the audience and act out an interesting match to really give the wrestling experience. Even if you're not a fan of wrestling, you should give title a look.  Spirit of '77 The 1970s were a pretty lovely time to be alive and, sad enough, some people say the modern day mirrors in many ways. But this game isn't about that. No, this game is about the imagined 70s. What most people think of due to cultural osmosis. A rockin' time of funk and explosions. Where everyone knows kung fu is a bad mothe-shut yer mouth.  Urban Shadows There is another side to our world. A seedy, criminal underbelly where the corrupt rule and the virtuous perish. A tough place where one cannot survive with just their gun and their wits. This game explores gang and mafia tension through the use of supernatural metaphor. For those who need a snappy slogan, it's been described as the Wire meets Supernatural.  Night Witches In the 1940s, Russia had a division of all female pilots known as the 588th Night Bomber Regiment. Skilled pilots, they earned the moniker Nachthexen, or Night Witches, from their enemies. This title uses their story to explore many issues that still plaque us today. If nothing else, it is a story all about female heroes; a subject matter disappointingly and shamefully lacking in this market.  The Regiment There is no glory in war, only pain and death. A soldier's life is a hard one to bare. This title explores the, possibly short, but definitely painful life of men in arms. For those who fans of the Alien franchise, the original creator made a hack focused on playing Colonial Marines from James Cameron's Aliens.  Tremulus Howard Phillips Lovecraft was a 1920s author whose works lead to the creation of mythos that has remained rather popular to the modern day: the Cthulu mythos. A dark, nihilistic take on the universe and religion, the cthulu mythos is a place where the gods are malign and mankind means little. Tremulus, like many stories in the mythos, follows the adventures of those who get to too close to the truth and risk their sanity in the process.  City of Judas Tension, drama, and intrigue in an alternate version of medieval Jerusalem. A dark and gritty fantasy game where the religion of the Church of Christ fight against of Cult of Judas for the city. The world is abound with monsters of myth and horrors most vile. Who will you fight for? What innocents will die as a result of your actions? Can you even survive as a mercenary in this wretched, sad world?  Legacy: Life Among The Ruins What was great and powerful has been washed from our world. In it's loss, there lies the seeds of a new beginning. Humans who wander what once was on lands that was once other's seek their own destinies. From the remnants of the old world, a new one will arise from the toil and love of the families that will walk it. Will it be better world? A worse world? Something completely foreign? That is something for that only time itself can reveal.  Uncharted Worlds There is a big, wide universe out there and it aint friendly. From mobsters to the unknown, from sleazebags to the sleazebags who run things, the place is neither safe nor easy to live in. You got your ship, you got your crewmates, and you got a lot to pay off. Things are not going to go smoothly, but when do they ever? As long as you get out of this alive, pay off your debt collectors, and get on to the next mission, you can call it a job well done.  The Sprawl Corporations. Corporations are a business model where the business is a considered a separate legal entity, given rights, and those who own shares in the business have limited liability as to the actions of the corporation itself. On paper, it must sound not so bad. Just another way to do business. If only it stayed that way. Corporations, however, have the ability to grow capital at rates that excel passed any competing model and the allure of liability protection can make people more open to evil act. Left alone and without government intervention, the system festers like a cancer till your life, your country, and your world is run by an uncaring elite who only seek to exploit you for all your worth. Constantly monitored, constantly used, constantly exploited. Though, that isn't you. Well, maybe those last two parts. You're their hitman, their go-to, the person they call for wetwork. You sell your soul for money just like every drone in the corporation, but at least you don't have to wake up at 6:00 AM and stay shaven.  Masks All heroes have to start off somewhere and some get into the life young. From the Teen Titans to Young Justice, superteenagers have become its own subgenre in comics. Full of angst, relationship troubles, and inexperience, many find them a great change of pace from the grimness and/or silliness that dominates comics of older heroes. Masks is all about not only going back to being a messy teenager, but having to deal with the responsibility of protecting and saving a city on top. Your self-image will be morphed and mushed as you try to find yourself in a world of jet powered apes and time travel.  Fellowship The Overlord rises! Fear takes the land! Darkness Reigns supreme! But, even the darkest day has a stray ray of light: you. A fellowship of warriors, connected by bonds stronger than blood, stands stalwart against the tide of evil! Grow your fellowship, battle the Overlord, and free the land! But! Don't think the players are the only ones who get to have the fun, Overlord. You will build your own forces, prepare your own betrayals, and ready the world for the ruler it deserves! An interesting title by our own Gnome7, Fellowship is all about the journey, on both sides.  Kill 6 Billion Demons The gods have died, the angels shattered by the hand of man and all the 777,777 multiverses are spinning off the corpse of heaven. Try to survive as an angel forged of stone by humans, devils bound to mortal bodies through the power of the dread black flame, servants who were built to bring the universe to order or an ordinary human just trying to stay alive. Kill Six Billion Demons is a game of extraordinary and powerful wuxia beings and their struggle in the ruins of a multiverse inhabited by thousands of races and cultures and ruled by seven tyrant demiurges. It mixes the insanity of french comics and heavy metal covers with hinduist and gnostic mythology.  Impulse Drive You got your ship, you got your crew, you got a lot of debt. A game all about being a band of freelancers sailing across the galaxy, this game can just as easily be Firefly and Dark Heresy as it can be a Star Wars: Rebels season one or Mass Effect. You may have some big goal or its all a search for more money, but you will encourage strange alien oddities, overcome tough opposition, and try your best to survivor in the middle of the endless void known as space.  Epyllion Remember all those cartoon shows about talking animals discovering friendship in trying times? That's this. You're newly born dragons of dragonia tasked with helping your parents stave off an ancient darkness that may once again stretch across the land. Along the way, you'll grow, mature, and learn the true meaning of friendship.  Headspace "Headspace is a Cyberpunk roleplaying game about hyper-competent operatives fighting personal battles against the Corporations controlling the world. These unlikely heroes regret the direct hand they had in making the world the dystopian place it is, so now they’re going to try and change the world. Alone, they wouldn’t stand a chance. But with Headspace, an advanced technology to share consciousness, together the Operators can make a difference. But will their Headspace be able to manage the Stress of sharing skills, memories, and regrets? Armed with Headspace technology, no Operator is ever alone. The Headspace makes everyone in it greater than themselves, able to use each other’s skills with seamless efficiency. So long as one as one Operator can do something, they all can." There quite a few other titles for this system, but listing all the title and hacks here would be a task. Thankfully, a few lists exist online. Such as  this spreadsheet and this document.Titles inspired by Powered By The Apocalypse  Blades In The Dark In a world where the dead do not stay in their rest and criminals rule the city streets, you are, but another of the cities problems: thieves grouping together to for their own selfish benefit. Daggers in the night seeking forture, your group hopes to achieve riches and live a comfortable life. Good luck, thief and may you drown in your gold.  Undying You are a monster: a vampire of myth and nightmare. In this world of daggers and cloaks, you try to hold on to your humanity as the hunger slowly creeps in and wretches it away. While many from all walks of life would love to have your head on a silver platter, you have much to gain if you can balance your bestial desires for sustenance and your humanity.  Dream Askew Society builds norms over times. Accepted systems that all members in society are meant to abide by. Deviations from these system can garner one ire, isolation, and, even, direct assault. What if the world ended bit by bit and people were allowed to explore themselves free from the norms of modern society? What if we could explore our our sexuality, our gender, our identity without society's judging eye? Perhaps it is time to explore the apocalypse in a new light: a queer light.  Dungeon Bastards Write a description? gently caress that poo poo. Last time I checked I didn't owe you basatrds anything. All you needs to know is that this game is all about being the biggest dick in a world full of dicks. Too short for you? Bet you get that problem frequently. Fine, it's all about bastards and dungeons in a town. You are the bastards, that dickwad runs the game, and you make nasty poo poo happen in town to the fuckers who mess with ya. Got it? No? Too bad! Looking to make your own hack?  Then I highly suggest taking a look at Avery Mcdaldno's Simple World. Essentially, a stripped down version of the Powered By The Apocalypse Engine made so that a group of players could sit down and make their own game then play it. A great starting point for a Powered By the Apocalypse hack, talking from experience. Thanks for the reminder, Trollhawke Also, remember this thread and the Game Writing Workshop are great resources for review and critique. There are other threads for specific titles using this engine, what is the point of this thread? To be a place for more generic discussion of the engine. Previously, the Apocalypse World thread has been cluttered by discussions on different titles using the engine that don't have their own thread, discussions of the engine itself, or discussions of hacks being developed by SA members. Ideally, those discussions will move here and the Apocalypse World thread can focus on discussing the game itself. Covok fucked around with this message at 01:50 on Sep 27, 2019 |
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Jun 25, 2015 17:26
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Trollhawke posted:If you're looking to make your own AW game, I'd suggest reading through Simple world, found here: http://buriedwithoutceremony.com/simple-world/ Ah, that's a very good point. I'll add that to the OP. Edit: To help spur discussion, I guess I'll mention my own little AW hack: Justice Friends. It's focus is the Golden Age of DC comics. In other words, it's all about corny superhero adventures. I've had it looked at a few times, but it can't hurt bringing it up, I suppose. Still writing the Editor's section. Covok fucked around with this message at 02:19 on Jun 26, 2015 |
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Jun 26, 2015 02:01
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Ich posted:A few more games using the AWE are City of Judas, Uncharted Worlds, Tremulous, and Urban Shadows. Fenarisk posted:The Regiment! Which also has an Aliens (alien 2) hack! unseenlibrarian posted:Spirit of 77 should be in there somewhere too. Evil Mastermind posted:How could you forget World Wide Wrestling or Night Witches? It's not so much that forget them, but more so that I went "this post is a little long, I'll just link to a catch-all spreadsheet and google doc." But some of those are big names that should be added, in hindsight. I couldn't find City of Judas, Uncharted Worlds, The Sprawl and the Bureau nor have I heard of them before so I didn't add them. As for Undying, I'm on-the-fence of adding it like I am for Blades In the Dark. Definitely inspired by Powered By The Apocalypse, but not in-it-self Powered By The Apocalypse. gnome7 posted:Could you link to this post somewhere in the Dungeon World description? I was going to ask for a second post to copy it into/ask if someone wanted to maintain that post for me for the new thread but then you up and made this thread suddenly. Sure, no problem, but this is just a generic Pbta thread. Maintaining that post would be more for the new, if happening, DW thread. Covok fucked around with this message at 18:01 on Jun 26, 2015 |
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Jun 26, 2015 17:58
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Pththya-lyi posted:I might have to run a Monsterhearts game tomorrow and I need some ideas for dramatic stuff to happen. The game is set in 199X in a small town with a 100+ year old insane asylum, if that matters. You could always do what I do in situations like these: ask the players. Like, set a scene, but ask why they are there with guided questions, ask if their characters have heard of any rumors before the game starts proper, stuff like that. Might lead to some awkward interlocking of points, but, since the players mentioned the hook, you at least know this is what they want to explore.
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Jun 27, 2015 12:54
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That reminds me of something that came up during an Urban Shadows game recently. We had some replacement people in and, as a result, the entire "group" was separated during the entire session. The system worked great for this and, while I agreed they should meet up for story's sake, it did make me wonder if their desire to be together all next session is something I should discourage a tad. To be honest, even before we got the replacement players, we did parallel scenes to great effect. While people often go "don't split the party" in other games, it really works with this one and I think the game might lose some of the fun if everyone tries to stick together all the time now.
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Jun 28, 2015 17:41
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I get what you mean, but I mean more how, for now, the characters don't have a reason to stick together in the longterm for in-game reasons. Stuff could happen next session that changes all that and that'd be good and, for next session, the common threat could keep them together, but I just don't want them staying together just because that's considered trpg culture, but, instead, because it makes sense in-game. Also, not to change the subject, but I brought something up in the IRC for AW that I want to ask here. If you look at the web page for Simple World, you can see that Avery says that the intent of this the product is for a group to be able to make a game for a genre they want to play in 30 minutes. Now, I'm just wondering if anyone has ever taken her up on that claim and tried it. It sounds like something that wouldn't work, but, to be fair, I don't think the idea is you're making a "complete" finished game from this nor do you never tweak it from the initial creation thing if problems come up.
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Jun 28, 2015 19:58
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Evil Mastermind posted:Adam Keobel just announced that he's going to be writing the official Rat Queens RPG, using DW as a base. I really hope they change the basic moves and alter the language to better fit the license because I like the comic and DW itself doesn't fully match the tone. I might be talking out of my rear end, but the comic can't just straightly be ported onto DW without there being some issues. That said, pretty hype to hearing they're making an official rpg of the comic.
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Jul 8, 2015 05:51
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Luminous Obscurity posted:Urban Shadows just went up on DriveThruRPG for those of you who are interested. And, to backers, your free coupon for the download has been available since yesterday. Also, don't be afraid to split the party, start with the people separated and dealing with their own rumors in the moment, and keep things slow, investigative, and small scale. Until I started doing that, my Urban Shadows campaign didn't really get into high gear.
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Jul 23, 2015 20:27
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I'm curious what people think of Worlds In Peril.
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Jul 23, 2015 20:59
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My golden age superhero hack has reached its final In-Dev. I feel that, design-wise, it's pretty much at the end and no major edits will follow. I posted it before, but, due to my love of keeping older drafts as second documents, that one is outdated. It's a little different than most Pbta titles for a few reasons. The chief of which is its hyper focus on the genre. It's very much about Golden Age DC and really nothing else. It's not perfect, of course. Hell, it probably isn't even that good. I'm just curious if anyone would be interested in taking a look at the title. Giving their thoughts and all. Any feedback is appreciated. It can be found here. Also, one of my friends suggested I'd ask if anyone would be interested in playing it. Just as a curiosity.
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Jul 24, 2015 23:37
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Cyphoderus posted:I haven't read any golden age personally, only some of the more modern homages to it (Starman, JSA, The Golden Age, and The New Frontier). Thanks. Comparing it to World Wide Wrestling is a big compliment because I really like what WWW did. I guess my illusion didn't last too long against inspection, but I'm glad you liked it. One hurdle with Golden Age heroes is that they don't really get hurt. The worst is they get knocked out for a short time and wake up in a bad spot. So, I just rolled with it and made HP just how much bad poo poo gets in the way of your crime fighting. A thematic illusion. Hell, one could argue the same illusion the original writers were doing. I could pull back the exclamation points a bit. See, all my previous drafts were written very dry and like a textbook. Then, on a spur of the moment, I write another, PbtA inspired hack called Dungeon Bastards and write the whole thing in character. My friend really likes this and says it drew him into reading. I get this idea of "well, maybe I should do that in that old PbtA hack I used to work on" and re-wrote it in, ironically considering he didn't work in the Golden Age and works for Marvel, the voice Stan Lee used when doing monologues over Spider-man for the PS1 with some added camp. Well, at first, then it turned into it's own voice. I got a little carried away and started using exclamation points exclusively. I could use them a little less, but still very commonly. Get a similar effect without being tiring. Anyway, thanks for taking a look and giving your thoughts. That is very helpful to the whole process!
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Jul 25, 2015 19:26
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I added in City of Judas and a section titled "Titles Inspired By Powered By The Apocalypse" for Blades In The Dark and Undying. Anything else I should add to the OP? Edit: Also, is City of Judas any good? It looks a little complicated, but seems intriguing. Covok fucked around with this message at 06:17 on Jul 26, 2015 |
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Jul 26, 2015 06:08
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Tiger posted:Dream Askew! That's "Inspired by" as well. Alright, I added it in to the OP.
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Jul 27, 2015 08:02
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Flavivirus posted:Could I get Legacy: Life Among the Ruins added to the OP? Self-promotion and all, but I like to think it does some unique things with the AW system Sure, that's fine, I'll add it in. Covok fucked around with this message at 19:35 on Jul 27, 2015 |
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Jul 27, 2015 19:26
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I'll be honest, reading it up for the little marketing blurb I made, made me interested in it. I got no money because of college so I won't buy it for a while, but I am curious how this generation stuff works. Care to drop some deetz?
Covok fucked around with this message at 05:21 on Jul 28, 2015 |
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Jul 28, 2015 04:25
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Flavivirus posted:Certainly! Basically you have two playbooks - one for your family/clan and one for your character. Your character does character stuff - exploring ruins, making deals, finding strange remnants of the world before, etc. While they're doing all that you're also controlling the family as they act on a grander scale - sending out spies into other factions, working on grand engineering projects, going to war. That is a really cool and elegant way of handling it. The division does a great job of establishing that you are representing your character and her/his family, not just playing a character. It also ties the character into the world and grounds them in loved ones. The idea of jumping to your descendants is a great way for handling progress and growth and does something most tabletop rpgs don't encourage: the world to change immensely. By jumping forward four generations, you could go from cave people to a tribal society then even a feudal one with a large enough time jump. Unlike most games which focus on staying in a world that is static unless the PCs are involved, your game requires the world to move on its own which would make it feel more alive. What I'm getting at is that it sounds pretty frikken cool. Also, does anyone want me to change my descriptions in the OP? Tried my best to describe some games even if I never played them.
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Jul 31, 2015 22:00
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A little while ago, I uncovered an old idea I wrote down to do later. It's from a long time ago and I decided to write something up. It's not that good and it's not that pretty. It also feels unfinished, but can't put my finger on why. It's an AW hack focusing on Shonen battle comics. Yeah, I know. It's also in that awkward stage where it's very similar to AW which is likely to it's own determent since it doesn't stand out. But, my idea said to work on it when JF was finished and, since I had the time and am almost done with JF, I decided to write up a draft. The Agenda, Princples, MC Moves (called Mangaka moves), Stats, Debilities, Basic Moves, and Battle Moves (like the optional battle moves that I've never seen anyone use) have been rewritten and I made eight playbooks for it. The eight playbooks are:
The Beast: Kurama, Zangetsu, etc. Lives inside another PC. The Forever Young: Goku, Luffy, etc. The Jobber: loving Yamcha. Just loving Yamcha. The Mentor: Roshi, Piccolo, etc. The Punk: Ichigo, Yusuke, etc. The Rival: Vegeta. There are others, but it's Vegeta. The Straight Man (as in the comedy duo trope): Bulma, Sakura, Shinnpachi. Edit: First off, thanks shiinto for the much needed feedback. It really help me hash things out. Secondly, I've made a second draft of it. A few moves have been reworked, replaced and modified. Two new playbooks have been added: The Inventor: Dr. Stein, Bulma, you get the picture. The Tireless: On closer inspection, the Forever Young was more Luffy than Goku. The Tirless is more Goku and Rock Lee. The Straight Man: Not knew, but it has a much tighter vision. The Beast: Completely rewritten to work with an NPC rather than a PC for playability reasons. Treats it's host like the Driver treats it's car. It still feels unfinished and as if something is missing. Also, it's probably still crap in many ways. If anyone wants to take a look at the second draft, you can find it here here. Comments enabled as always. Any feedback is appreciated. Covok fucked around with this message at 09:43 on Aug 6, 2015 |
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Aug 5, 2015 05:03
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gnome7 posted:If anyone wants to get in on a playtest for my newest PBTA game, Fellowship, Covok is organizing one here on these forums: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3735106 I was wondering if it was kosher to advertise stuff like that in relevant threads, but, yeah, I'm totally organizing one for Saturday at 7:00 PM EST. I can't give out any materials till everyone is in the game itself because of the terms of the playtest so it's a very general and easy app to make. For the record, I'm a very easygoing, improvisational GM who likes to let player's be awesome, world build, and have fun, if that helps.
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Aug 8, 2015 01:48
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DemonMage posted:Also it's been mentioned since page one, but it's not in the OP still. Sorry about that. It slipped my mind. It's added in now as is the Sprawl. Thanks for pointing that out. Cyphoderus posted:On a related note, with so goddamn many AW hacks and variants out there, what do you guys consider the telltale signs of a poor hack? It's been so long since I made these rules, but:
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Aug 9, 2015 04:47
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Playing Urban Shadows. Player wants to find Ghosts. Says she wants to hit the streets. I ask her "how she does it, how do they hit the streets?" "With our shoes!"
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Aug 12, 2015 03:35
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What's the gooncenus on Uncharted Worlds? Is there any preview material out? If you're in my Urban Shadows game, don't read this: This session one of my players told a half truth to the rest of the party about the importance of a heist. He made a normal, routine weapon test out to be something much, much worse to make money off stealing some materials from it. Now, due to a mistake between me and this player, half the party didn't realize he was telling a half truth. We thought they knew that was the case and were just acting in character. They were not. This lead to some confusion and annoyance at the end of the session. This has been resolved, but the player thinks this might be an interesting avenue to explore in the future since some people might not follow him if they know the whole truth, but is rightfully worried it might annoy the rest of the party. To be clear, this time WAS AN ACCIDENT, but he wonders if it would be a good idea for the future. What do you guys think? We're both iffy on the idea since we feel out-of-character misinformation is rude, but we're both curious what other people think.
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Aug 12, 2015 06:04
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Totally unreleated, but a few days ago I completely, arbitrarily made up a categorical system for AW hacks in a middle of a conversation and I'm wondering if it makes any sense. Basically, it goes:
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Aug 13, 2015 06:59
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Tulpa posted:doesn't make sense, they all came out at the same time It's more style than chronology. Like, it comes down to it's defining features and less its chronological placement.
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Aug 13, 2015 07:11
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Impermanent posted:Those are good distinct categories but I don't think that "generation" works because it implies that that these are ordered by chronology, which isn't the case. Monsterhearts, for example, was actually published before Dungeon World, which solidly belongs in the second tier. Yeah, since Tulpa's post, I got the feeling that "generation" is a bad term, but I don't know good replacement word(s). Edit: Thelazyblank on IRC suggested "tier, circle, steps, etc." I liked Circle since it's neutral, non-judgmental, and doesn't imply chronology. What do you guys think?
Covok fucked around with this message at 07:26 on Aug 13, 2015 |
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Aug 13, 2015 07:18
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Remember that hack I was working on before? Friendship, Effort, Victory? The one that wasn't really all that good and kind of cringeworthy? Well, since the 2nd draft was enough of a proof of concept, I decided to move it from a first circle hack to a second circle hack.* As before, I've written out the Agenda, Princples, MK Moves, Stats, Debilities, Basic Moves, and Battle Moves. There are now ten playbooks and they have all been reworked. Since it's detached from AW now and is a standalone, the harm system has seen a complete overhaul to better emulate the genre. I've added in a guide to the 1st Session, rules for Arcs, and changed a few mechanics around such as adding Friendship/Enemy moves and Inspired/Awe. The ten playbooks are:
The Forever Young: Goku, Luffy, etc. The Host: Naruto, Ichigo, Maka, etc: people with monster's inside them. The Inventor: Dr. Stein, Bulma, you get the picture. The Jobber: loving Yamcha. Just loving Yamcha. The Mentor: Roshi, Piccolo, etc. The Punk: Ichigo, Yusuke, etc. The Rival: Vegeta. There are others, but it's Vegeta. The Straight Man (as in the comedy duo trope): Bulma, Sakura, Shinnpachi. The Tireless: Goku and Rock Lee. *To those who don't know what I mean, this is the arbitrary, dumb system I came up with for categorization: quote:
Edit: Also, I'd really love to get an overal impression, if possible. I have no idea if anyone of this is good at all. It'd be greatly appreciated. Be brutally honest, if need be. Covok fucked around with this message at 00:22 on Aug 17, 2015 |
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Aug 16, 2015 23:43
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unseenlibrarian posted:Huh. Bootleggers sounds up my alley but never heard of at all. It's by John Harper and I know he is a trusted name in game design. Unless I'm mistaking him for someone else.
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Sep 1, 2015 21:53
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What does everyone think of PbtA games that go stat-less? I did it for Justice Friends because I felt Golden Age Superheroes didn't differentiate themselves enough thus stats wouldn't work to the game's benefit.
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Sep 11, 2015 14:56
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Evil Mastermind posted:I can't verify since I'm not backing the Patreon, but rumor has it we're going to be getting a PbtA game based on Kill 6 Billion Demons. What's the comic about? Evil Mastermind posted:I'm going to go ahead and multiquote myself from the KS thread because y'all need to get up on this. There are also the five Conditions: Afraid, Angry, Guilty, Insecure, and Hopeless. They can be inflicted via moves (even from teammates), and each one gives a -2 to specific situations until cleared. [/quote] [/quote] The Doomed is interesting to me as its an interesting way to view a Raven-like character. In TT, Raven may have had a cursed fate, but the dilemma was always more about a bad father-daughter relationship and defying the future your parents plan for you. How does Mask compare to Worlds In Peril? From this post alone, I think it sounds better made.
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Sep 30, 2015 01:26
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I thought this would fullfill one of the missions for The Masks Kickstarter, but it appears I was mistaken. Regardless, I made a custom playbook called The Kid. The Kid is primarily inspired by DC's Captain Marvel (Not Marvel's Captain Marvel). For those who don't know, Captain Marvel main gimmick is that he is a child who gains the body of an adult when he uses his powers. The main metaphor for the playbook was that type of young adult who clings to the idea they're still a kid. Basically, that teenager who is refusing to grow up and become an adult. While I like most of the playbook, two of the moves are a little weak. Anyway, without further ado, here is The Kid v.1 Doc Any comments are appreciated.
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Oct 9, 2015 07:07
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Evil Mastermind posted:I love your move names. Did you post this on the G+ group or anything? Thanks for the feedback. First off, yes, I did post it on G+. Secondly, my reasoning for Freak instead of Superior is because you're a kid in an adults body and the assumption is few know. So, like the move says, you're appearance and antics are off putting and ergo confusing and weird. So, the move is trying to suggest the whole thing should be awkward and more happens out of your weirdness than any attempt at maturity. Ya know? What are your feelings after the explanation: keep it or change it? Also, every official playbook lists "Unlock Your Moment of Truth" twice. I think it's so you can lock two labels.
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Oct 9, 2015 16:20
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Last night, Error 404 gave me some suggestions so I thought I'd try them out. I also used it as a chance to replace one of the moves that I felt was really weak. Changes: -You now start with Uh, Fellow Adult Guy instead of Alright, Kid Power! -Reason: Error 404 suggested that it'd made more sense since the playbook should focus more on your weirdness being an adult in a kid's body and your interactions with the adult and child world. I concurred. -Remove "Explosive Outburst" -Reason: It just felt weak narrativel-y. It only really works if you transform like Captain Marvel or are Captain Marvel. It's hard to work narrative-ly if you aren't. It was also limiting. -Added "The Innocent Accusing Eye -Reason: It serves as a counter-balance to "You're Such A Kid." Kids might be woefully inexperienced in life and have simplistic beliefs that are dangerous for adults to follow, but they have knack for cutting to the heart of the matter and saying something that hits right in the heart because of their innocence and sincerity. -Swapped starting label value of Freak and Mundane -Reason: It works better to reinforce the idea people find you weird and off-putting. Also, Masks playbooks tend to make the starting, highest stat be the same stat in their automove. When switiching auto moves, it made sense to switch these too. -Added in Looks section -Reason: I forgot to include it before Without further ado, here is The Kid v2. Covok fucked around with this message at 17:58 on Oct 9, 2015 |
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Oct 9, 2015 17:38
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GodFish posted:Nah, it's because once you have 5 normal advances taken you pick from the second list of advances instead but they didn't want to lock you out of getting the Moment of Truth, so it's listed in each section. According to the creator, the intent is that you can do it twice.
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Oct 11, 2015 18:37
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I decided to write up a playset for Masks inspired by works like Tiger & Bunny and Ratman. Essentially, a world of heroes that is run by and centers around corporations. I decided to bother some ideas from Nathan D. Poeletta's World Wide Wrestling to add a new dimension to the game. I tried my best to make the playset play back into the concept of finding yourself by trying to establish that the corporation you work for takes away your identity (your own hero logo) for their own and, on top of the other alterations, a custom, adult move allows you to take your logo back. It definitely isn't perfect, or even good, and any feedback is appreciated.
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Oct 13, 2015 03:32
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Golden Bee posted:"Cut a Promo" doesn't translate well; it's intentional that most of Masks communication is Changing People's Self-Image and Provoking. Nuance and Empathy are an adult move. I really prefer your version of Play to the Camera. It's much more elegant than my version. I assume you meant "Take Advantage of Influence," not "Alter Self-Image." Regardless, I disagree. You can definitely take advantage of someone caring what you say to mislead them in a corporate setting and make yourself look better at their expense. Hell, I've seen it happen. The most important thing, of course, is for it to flow from the fiction. If you take advantage of your influence over someone to get them to say something candid about their boss then forward that information, you definitely made yourself look better at their expense. Though, I do hope that is more of an extreme example than anything that shows up in play. As for the Delinquent, I do plan to, if I have the time, to give every playbook a custom move to accommodate the changed setting that they just get automatically. I just wanted to see if what I had already was any good.
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Oct 13, 2015 06:23
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Anyone working a template for Masks playbooks? Would love to port The Kid over to something more game friendly.
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Oct 16, 2015 22:49
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Luminous Obscurity posted:Souls of Steel might be what some of you are looking for. Still in dev, though. How have I never come across this before? This is sooo up my alley.
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Oct 17, 2015 21:54
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Kai Tave posted:That's a cool sounding premise but man is that art awful. Yeah, I originally thought the CTRL+ALT+DEL guy was behind it at first since I think that's his "style."
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Oct 22, 2015 02:11
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Error 404 posted:Not everybody has an art budget! He shouted self-consciously at the thread. Trust me, if there is anyone who knows that, it's me: the public domain/creative commons or nothing dev.
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Oct 22, 2015 02:18
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What's the gooncensus on Uncharted World?
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Oct 26, 2015 01:34
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Josef bugman posted:Must admit got the "Definetly not world of darkness" apocalypse world hack and... well it didn't feel nearly as cool as either Legacy or AW, I am not sure why, could anyone write their own experiences with it or am I just judging a book by its cover a bit? Do you mean Urban Shadows?
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Oct 26, 2015 21:42
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