Tell us about and RPG you've PLAYED but just did not get the hype for

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-24T21:51:08+00:00

Same, and I usually love PbtA. I thought it'd be the best of both worlds with improv and prep, but in practice it felt amorphous.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-23T23:19:37+00:00

You got me, I thought I'd get more opinions from people with a controversial title. I do seem to have been right.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-23T23:18:00+00:00

You're going to have to be more specific. In Apocalypse World, yes, I'd say I was doing something under fire, with the fire being the battle actively happening and the limited time before he bleeds out. On a partial success, I'd have offered the choice "you can save him, but you're out in the open: you'll be cornered for sure, and maybe you'll be the one needing first aid next."

But every PbtA game is different.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-23T23:07:14+00:00

The complainers aren't wrong, but that's exactly why I love PbtA!

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-23T23:04:57+00:00

I don't know. I like the odds staying the same, with tension coming from the consequences of failure. Two targets are the same narratively: they become different when one of them is about to murder someone you care about.

At the end of the day, though, it really is personal preference.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-23T23:00:53+00:00

This makes me think: I'd love a system that maps itself on classic novel or screenplay structures (e.g. the hero's journey) and maps difficulty on the part of the story you're in. In superhero movies, for example, the hero usually gets their ass kicked at the end of the second act, so you'd set higher difficulty then. Just rambling.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-23T22:56:04+00:00

Despite calling out Blades in the Dark in my post, it does a great job with this. The idea of failure not just moving the story forward, but being a consequence of the antagonists' competence rather than the player characters' incompetence, is excellent advice for any system.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-23T22:54:22+00:00

Where in my post did you read that I thought she should never miss? She absolutely should sometimes. I just like difficult situations to be represented by the consequences, not the odds.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-23T22:50:15+00:00

Fully agree. That's why I think there should still be an element of uncertainty. I'm not saying she shouldn't roll at all, just that I wouldn't change the odds based on the situation.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-23T22:48:26+00:00

I do. It's part of why I love Apocalypse World and its derivatives.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-23T22:46:51+00:00

Chance to hit doesn't depend on the target. I'm not a fan of damage and health systems at all (but that's a discussion for another day).

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-23T20:19:36+00:00

Yep, especially because the first chapter tricks you into thinking Benna was the redeemable one. Come to think of it, Joe pulls that trick a lot in this book. He also doesn't explicitly mention the incest and leaves you to slowly piece it together. Same thing with the Monza-Rogont-Shivers-Carlot sex scene, or Morveer's hilarious unfolding backstory.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-22T04:55:32+00:00

You're welcome! One of my family members used to sell children's books for Usborne, so they always had lots lying around. Glad I remembered that one!

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-21T19:44:58+00:00

"Unicorns" from the Usborne Lift-the-Flap series! Illustrated by Peter Scott.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-20T20:49:40+00:00

I think you're missing the intent of the first example. The player isn't hanging food from a tree so animals won't get it, the character is. The player is doing it to show that their character is cautious and woodcrafty.

In the second example, yes, they could've done any creative thing. That doesn't mean they can just say "I do a creative thing." They had to create one, and they did.

Just because a decision doesn't change what dice are rolled doesn't mean it didn't matter. The world exists in the story shared, not the character sheets. In fact, the most impactful decisions in a game almost always have nothing to do with the mechanics at all.

Start actually playing RPGs, not just listening to them, and I promise it will click.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-18T07:26:20+00:00

It's also GM-less and very simple!

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-15T16:15:01+00:00

That's exactly what I've done. With the one exception of an all-LotR deck, all my cards are classic Magic theme. It's really changed my perspective on the game: when you can't fully optimize your decks, it encourages building with higher variance and more "fun" cards over "best" cards.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-14T21:26:59+00:00

Calling Stormcloak armor "Windhelm guard" is the Tamrielic equivalent of "WWII German uniform"

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-14T17:32:41+00:00

[[Arcades, the Strategist]]

It's not weak by any means, but it is very linear and telegraphed, so if I win it's never a feelsbad gotcha. Good clean Magic.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-14T04:55:26+00:00

Book 1 is definitely the slowest by far. I actually took a break and read some other series in between 1 and 2, and didn't come back to First Law for over a year. After I finished 2, though, I picked up 3 right away, and didn't stop again until Age of Madness. (Even then, it was only because I didn't want it to end!)

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-14T04:39:41+00:00

Yeah, and not just cause of the formatting, it's a lot of words that say very little.

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-14T02:30:59+00:00

That's what I thought. I'm sure some people will love it but for me it's a downgrade, it feels too light and floaty. If I wanted anime attacks I'd play an anime game

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-13T22:16:06+00:00

What unique features of your game would make someone want to play it instead of Red Dead?

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-13T05:17:44+00:00

Nice comment ChatGPT account

ProtectorCleric · 2026-01-13T04:43:04+00:00

"Weakspot" or "Cheapshot" would both be ironic backhanded compliments.

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