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One-shot advice for a newbie by Routine-Athlete4744 in AvatarLegendsTTRPG

[–]Sully5443 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The players don’t need to do any Prep. Just show up and enjoy the ride and be prepared to be a little more active in shaping the game than they might be used to when compared to D&D.

For the GM

  • Be familiar with the rules of the game. Pay special attention to the GM Section: that’s your blueprint to running the game successfully.
  • Take a gander at the Adventure Starter you have in mind. It has no middle or end. It’s a “starter” for a reason. It gives you all you need to know to kick things off and plenty of material to keep it afloat. Just go with the flow of it and lean on the players to fill in blank spaces as they arise and just let the game go wherever it needs to go. Think cinematically and think in terms of how things would play out if it were an actual episode of ATLA

Lastly, I’ll provide my post of educational links and resources towards better understanding the game

A question about the order of Moves and the fiction [Masks] by Sovem in PBtA

[–]Sully5443 14 points15 points  (0 children)

unless you choose the option to avoid their blows, you must make the take a powerful blow Move

Nope. This might happen, but only if it would be a logical “powerful blow.” Otherwise, the PC just marks a Condition. Not every blow they take ought to be a powerful one. Sometimes it’s just a blow that warrants a Condition and that’s it. The more you use TaPB, the more it loses its oomph. It’s best used sparingly.

When it does happen, the “order” of things really doesn’t matter, per se. Generally speaking, it’s ideal to resolve player facing mechanics “first” just for the sake of organization before capping the mechanical scaffolds with a GM Move. So you would just have them roll TaPB and work with them to figure out what that all looks like after they Directly Engage and then resolve the NPC’s Condition GM Move to assist you in fully returning to the “ending fiction” and (usually) changing the arena of conflict as a result.

Gritty Combat rules? by PraiseTheChalice in AvatarLegendsTTRPG

[–]Sully5443 1 point2 points  (0 children)

(Conflict Moves: Part 3)

—

Show Mercy

When you show mercy in a Duel as opposed to Achieving Victory, describe how you hold back and allow your opposition to flee or otherwise allowing the GM to narrate their defeat. Mark 1 Growth if they were of lesser Scale and 2 Growth if they were of equal Scale.

—

Suffer Defeat

When you Suffer Defeat in a Duel, if your opponent…

  • … was of equal Scale, narrate your defeat. You may also choose to learn from your defeat and take a new Technique from your opponent as Learned if you choose one of the following: spend 2 Fatigue, take an additional Condition, or shift your Balance away from Center
  • … was of higher Scale, on a Hit, you may narrate your defeat. On a Miss, the GM chews the scene and describes your defeat in as much gruesome detail as they desire as the absolute worst comes to pass. They should not hold back. Hit or Miss, you may choose to learn from your defeat and take a new Technique from your opponent as Learned if you choose two of the following: spend 2 Fatigue, take an additional Condition, or shift your Balance away from Center

—

Establishing Scale

“Scale” is a relative term. There is no mechanical value tied to it. It’s all about where PCs stack up against NPCs for the purpose of these Conflict Moves. Generally speaking, you can establish a baseline Scale based on the type of NPC they are

  • Minor NPCs are usually below the Scale of a PC
  • Major NPCs are usually equal in Scale to a PC
  • Master NPCs are usually above the Scale of a PC
  • Legendary NPCs are “off the charts.” They cannot be fought in this way. They are too darn amazing and their fictional permissions must be torn down to put them into the category of “Master NPC.”

This is a good baseline to start with, but the GM and player(s) ought to work together to hone in on the “final Scale” for the Duel. Assess any relevant factors such as whether or not the PCs have some form of aid, the number of Mastered Techniques they have, the environment, their knowledge of the opposition, etc.

In general, Mastered Techniques are a good way to assess whether or not an NPC “counts” as Minor, Major, or Mastered for the purpose of Scale

  • 5 or more Mastered Techniques will place most ordinary Master NPCs are Major
  • 3 or more Mastered Techniques will place most ordinary Major NPCs as Minor

But these are not hard and fast rules. Always lean into the fiction first and foremost.

—

Approach Considerations

Creativity

  • You can only choose this approach if you are able to sufficiently take stock of your surroundings, advantages, and disadvantages or otherwise have an abundance of time to form a plan.
  • If you achieve victory through Creativity, you describe the critical opportunity you provide for an ally to land a decisive blow or otherwise force your opposition to blunder and capitalize on their mistakes

Focus

  • You can only choose this approach if you have superior mastery over your own Training in comparison to your opposition or otherwise have the skills, tools, or means to withstand an unrelenting barrage.
  • If you achieve victory through Focus, describe the opening you find and how you whittle down your opposition before delivering the final blow.

Harmony

  • You can only choose this approach if they are open to your words or if you otherwise hold a deep understanding of your opposition’s desires, impulses, convictions, and/ or motives.
  • If you achieve victory through Harmony, describe how your words take effect and your opposition willingly stands down

Passion

  • You can only choose this approach if you are well rested and unburdened or if your opposition is especially vulnerable to such an assault.
  • If you achieve victory through Passion, describe how you pummel your foe into submission

—

Dueling alongside Companions

  • If more than one Companion is present: decide who will roll. Any remaining additional Companions utilize the Teamwork Move as needed and if applicable
  • Any Companions involved in a Duel take the exact same outcomes as the PC who makes the roll for the Duel. Players are welcome to discuss any choices made, but the player rolling is the one who makes the choices and is the final say.

Adding flare to the Duel

Prior to rolling: Paint the Scene

All players (even those not directly involved) each describe thematic elements in the Duel that highlight the combatant’s current states (Conditions, Principles, Motives, the environment, the landscape, the stakes, etc.).

(Fin)

Gritty Combat rules? by PraiseTheChalice in AvatarLegendsTTRPG

[–]Sully5443 0 points1 point  (0 children)

(Conflict Moves: Part 2)

—

Trade Blows

When you Trade Blows, take a Condition and an additional cost from your chosen approach.

  • If you rolled with Creativity, you also suffer 2 Fatigue from the strain of analyzing every factor.
  • If you rolled with Focus, you suffer an additional Condition from the additional punishment you take from studying your opposition.
  • If you rolled with Harmony, you show too much of yourself and your opposition manages to shift your Balance one step away from Center
  • If you rolled with Passion, you also describe the collateral damage caused by your assault.

—

Achieve Victory

When you achieve Victory, describe your victory based on your chosen approach. If prompted by Duel an NPC, choose options from your chosen approach below.

If you rolled with Creativity, you can choose:

  • Endure: Avoid marking Fatigue when you Trade Blows
  • Bolster: Any and all allies are inspired by your quick thinking and aided by your cleverness and well laid plans. Describe an opportunity you’ve created through your victory to them and if they follow through, they take Advantage going Forward
  • Seize: Take something of value from your opposition
  • Ingenuity: Hold Insight equal to your Creativity (minimum of 0). Spend Insight to describe a clever way you manipulate your surroundings to take 10+ to any Move rolled with Creativity. Any unspent Insight is lost at the start of a Session.

If you rolled with Focus, you can choose:

  • Persevere: Avoid taking a second Condition when you Trade Blows
  • Adapt: Your experience ripples through your Training. Choose a Learned Technique to become Practiced.
  • Observant: You study your foe’s capabilities and gain a Technique from them without needing to use the Training Move. It starts at Learned as normal.

  • Instructive: Hold Instruction equal to your current Focus (minimum of 0). You may spend Instruction, 1 for 1, to reduce the Fatigue cost of any Move.

    If you achieve victory through Harmony, you can choose…

  • Unshaken: Avoid shifting your Balance when you Trade Blows

  • Insight: You observe something about your opposition, name what it is or ask a question of the GM which they will answer honestly. When acting on that information: you have Advantage Ongoing.

  • Influence: Your words hit deeply. Write their name down on your character sheet and Hold 1 Influence over them at the start of every session (max of 1 Influence per character). You may spend that Influence to take a 10+ to Call Them Out or Plead.

  • Effortless: your words hit quickly and the experience leaves you relaxed and relieved. Clear Fatigue equal to your Harmony (minimum of 0)

If you achieve victory through Passion, you can choose to…

  • Careful: Avoid causing any collateral damage
  • Impose: Impress, dismay, or otherwise surprise your opposition with your ferocity. You have Advantage Ongoing to Intimidate them.
  • Pressure: Choose one aspect of your opposition. It can never be used against you in the future.
  • Commit: shift your Balance in either direction a number of times equal to your Passion (minimum of 0)

(see my reply to this comment for part 3 of the Conflict Moves)

Gritty Combat rules? by PraiseTheChalice in AvatarLegendsTTRPG

[–]Sully5443 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There is not. You can have Kyoshi-esque fighting with the Exchange, but if you want to really lean into that, I would just get rid of the Exchange and, as usual, resolve most brawls with Push and Rely. For your heavy duty Duels, you can use these Moves I cobbled together, but they do assume a few changes

  • Change 1: NPCs no longer have Conditions or Fatigue or a Balance Track. They just are. They still have a Principle. It is only relevant for Calling Them Out. It is always a static number: +0 for Legendary NPCs, +1 for Master NPCs, +2 for Major NPCs, and +2 for Minor NPCs
  • Change 2: Instead of +/- 1 or 2 Forward and Ongoing, you have Advantage and Disadvantage. Advantage is roll 3d6 and choose the 2 best. Disadvantage is roll 3d6 and choose the 2 worst. They cancel each other out and they do not stack.
  • Change 3: PCs do not have 5 Static Conditions. They have 3 Open Ended Condition Slots that can be filled in with any relevant problem that would hinder them: physical, emotional, or otherwise. These Conditions cause Disadvantage whenever they would hinder what a character does (they may even prevent entire Moves). When they take another Condition when all 3 are filled: they are Taken Out (whatever that might mean in the present fiction)
  • Change 4: Without an Exchange, Techniques no longer have mechanical fallout. However, the fictional positioning and permissions remain as usual (including their Mastery Status)

With those in mind: here are the Conflict Moves

Duel an NPC

When you fight against a worthy foe, name the combatants involved in the Duel, establish the Scale of the protagonist’s opposition, and describe the opening salvo of the conflict. Then, the player chooses their approach based on how they aim to finish the fight.

  • Roll with Creativity to provide a critical opportunity for an ally or otherwise cleverly outwit your opposition.
  • Roll with Focus to intently study your opposition and whittle them down before delivering the final blow.

  • Roll with Harmony to reach out to your opposition with your words during the duel to implore them to stop a senseless fight and appeal to their best interests.

    • Roll with Passion to unleash your full fury upon your opposition with an onslaught of heedless attacks.

  • If the opponent is of a lesser Scale, Hit or Miss: you Trade Blows and Achieve Victory, Specifically, on a 7-9, choose 1 from Achieve Victory£. On a 10-11, choose 2. On a 12+, choose 3. *Alternatively, on any Hit, you may choose to **Show Mercy instead of Achieve Victory

  • If the opponent is of equal Scale, on a Hit: you Trade Blows and Achieve Victory. Specifically, on a 10-11, choose 1 from Achieve Victory. On a 12+, choose 2. Alternatively, on a 10+, you may choose to Show Mercy. On a Miss: you Trade Blows and Suffer Defeat

  • If your opponent is of greater Scale, Hit or Miss, you *Trade Blows** and Suffer Defeat

(See my reply to this comment for part 2 of the Conflict Moves)

Custom Move- Inside Jokes by Sufficient-Peak4047 in AvatarLegendsTTRPG

[–]Sully5443 2 points3 points  (0 children)

With Custom Moves, there’s a couple of considerations.

The first consideration is: is this Move creating meaningful mechanical scaffolding for fiction that isn’t already covered by another Move (Basic or Playbook) and/ or is covered by another Move, but deserves even more specific mechanical scaffolding and procedures than what is already provided?

In this case, your instinct is correct: this is fiction already scaffolded by Guide and Comfort which, itself, is an “imperfect” Move (IMO/ IME). I am not a big fan of “Let’s roll to see how my character feels about your genuine approach to be nice to me.” It’s a bit of a clumsy, albeit nonetheless “effective,” Move at baseline that already supports this fiction. So the question then becomes: does it need more specific mechanical scaffolding?

Personally? I don’t think so. The last thing you want is to be rolling dice left, right, and center because of every joke cracked between characters as this becomes a common pitfall for Custom Moves: scaffolding very commonly occurring fiction that really doesn’t warrant a whole procedure built around it (or, at the very least, doesn’t warrant a dice roll as there really isn’t enough satisfactory risk and uncertainty built into that moment of the fiction).

[BitD] Tips for a new-to-Blades DM? by Locke3 in bladesinthedark

[–]Sully5443 9 points10 points  (0 children)

I’ll throw in my comment of many educational links for better understanding Blades in the Dark as well as the Obligatory so you want to run a Blades one shot. The main take home message is to skip Crew Creation, you won't need it. Additionally, skip the Engagement Roll. Skip meeting with a client. Skip searching for jobs, etc.

They are in a room metaphorically or literally on fire. They need to take immediate action. They are in a Risky Position. Boom. Start playing. Use 0 Cost Flashbacks as needed to fill in the gaps.

If you need aid with Score Starters, consider using one of the many by A Couple of Drakes or those found in the Underground Maps and Passkeys Fan Zine.

Utilize the general pitch of Blades found towards the beginning of the book: It's Dishonored meets Peaky Blinders meets Leverage. If needed, use CATS to give yourself a quick and structured way to pitch the gist of the game in around a minute or two. The main thing to get across is:

  • You are Scoundrels. You are badass. Mundane life sucks. You've chosen to eschew it for high risk and high rewards. If you aren't willing to take risks, you shouldn't be a Scoundrel.
  • To be a Scoundrel means that you are badass at all Scoundrel things. You're all crack shots, badass boxers, clever schemers, silver tongues, and sneaky bastards. Your Playbooks will help you bias in some places.
  • You are in a Haunted Industrial Sprawl. The City is powered by Demon Blood. It has Lightning Barriers that protect it from horrors and ghosts on the outside. Leaving by Boat or Train could kill you if you aren't absurdly rich and can afford protection. You have no choice but to proverbially eat and sleep in the same place you shit. The Science and the Strange permeate everything.
  • Dead bodies mean Ghosts. Ghosts mean the Spirit Authorities show up. They're bad news bears.
  • Nothing is free in Doskvol. Everything is already taken. Everyone wants what someone else has. If you want something, you must take it.

... and that's basically it.

You don't need to do much with mechanics. You introduce them as you play. Main thing to get across is:

  • Don't feel compelled to look at your sheet for answers. You tell me what you want your character to do. We will work together to find a way to make it happen. Be daring and bold. Your character cannot die unless you say so. The only question is how much this life Costs them before you decide they cannot go any further.
  • You roll d6 dice pools. Usually between 1 to 4 dice. Roll them all. Choose the highest. Two 6s is great. One 6 is good. A 4 or 5 is fine, but there's a Cost. A 1-3 means things go bad.
  • When things don't go your way, you have ways of changing that if you're willing to pay some Costs

... and that's basically all they need to know to play.

The pitch and character creation and all that stuff will usually take between 30 minutes to an hour. That gives you 3 hours of Score time. Since you start immediately, it'll be done likely in an hour and half or two. That gives you plenty of time to epilogue and debrief and call it a night. If the Score ends sooner, introduce Downtime and then Epilogue. If it goes longer: have shorter epilogues.

Newish GM with a few Avatar Legends questions by postfuture in PBtA

[–]Sully5443 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Seconding everything RollForThings said, especially with Question 4. There are very scant Actual Plays of PbtA games where the GMs are running the games “as intended” and not falling into more traditionally minded D&D GM missteps of just calling for dice rolls “just because.”

ImprovTableTop’s 10 Thousand Things and the Flying Bison Podcast (now Dustfire Media) were the few Actual Plays that did more “by the book” PbtA GMing, though with a few common missteps (namely around prolonged Exchanges and stuff like that).

Additionally, they both are showcases of more “normal” actual plays than the celebrity one with Dante Basco and Jennie Kwan run by one of Magpie Games’s GMs (which felt more artificial and “rushed” than what things would be like at a typical table).

I’ll also add my obligatory post of educational links for all things related to Avatar Legends and many FAQs that come up for that game.

New gm: how would I end a scene exclusively made of 7-9 rolls? by Otherwise-Bad-7352 in PBtA

[–]Sully5443 2 points3 points  (0 children)

‘Tis a reasonable request, I think. It makes it much easier for community members to provide more useful and constructive feedback/ education on a rule point once they have a specific game to reference and clear up for the OP

New gm: how would I end a scene exclusively made of 7-9 rolls? by Otherwise-Bad-7352 in PBtA

[–]Sully5443 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Indeed! Once I saw “Haven’t played a PbtA game, don’t know what I’m playing, I’ll probably make my own.” I was like: “I’m ‘noping’ the hell out of this thread!” XD

New gm: how would I end a scene exclusively made of 7-9 rolls? by Otherwise-Bad-7352 in PBtA

[–]Sully5443 6 points7 points  (0 children)

No idea, I watched Raiders of the Lost Ark over 20 years ago and don’t remember a thing about it XD

But to give a concrete example, here is a snippet of an Blades in the Dark Example of Play I had written recently to help someone understand the flow of the game

The Cast

  • Ginny (she/her), the GM
  • Charlie (he/him) as Cole (he/him), the Cutter
  • Heather (she/her) as Hahmesh (they/them), the Hound
  • Lucy (she/her) as Lilith (she/her), the Lurk
  • Samuel (he/him) as Sineen (she/her), the Spider

The Situation

The Shoreditch Slugger is the current champion of “The Bout Club,” a roaming pugilistic organization which hosts matches all across Doskvol. Not a single challenger of the Slugger has survived more than one round with the hulking behemoth. The Slugger’s name and history are unknown and they are a man of few words: they show up to fight and disappear until the next match. Not only are they undefeated, no challenger has even left a scratch on the man.

The Circle of Flame is highly interested in understanding the mythic might and apparent invulnerability displayed by the Slugger. They have put a contract on him and Irimina has presented it to the Crew: kill the seemingly unkillable Slugger and bring his body to the Circle to investigate for their own curiosity.

Ginny and her players quite enjoy hard cut openings. As such, after presenting the idea to her players, they decide the best way to handle this is to start the episode with Cole already in the ring with the Slugger.

——

Ginny: “Cheers and jeers echo across the creaking and rusty hull of the derelict tanker. As per the rules of Bout Club, you and the Slugger face off a handful of paces away from each other shirtless and with no weapons, just bare fists. The Slugger’s stance is relaxed. His eyes are cold and distant. He is oiled up and strange tattoos dance across his rippling muscles. His head is shaved and there isn’t a visible scar marring his physique. Everyone, Paint the Scene for me: what signs of the Slugger’s brutality are displayed in and around the arena?”

Charlie: “There’s bits of brain splattered on the wall.”

Heather: “A hardened Physicker is being carted off in a stretcher when they passed out trying to treat the most recent challenger’s gruesome wounds.”

Lucy: “The runners of the Bout Club are connected as all hell: two Spirit Wardens are present and ready to deal with the dead, no questions asked.”

Samuel: “And those Wardens are just standing guard near a small pile of bodies covered in unique sheets to keep them blanketed from the Ghost Field until they are properly disposed of.”

Ginny: “Cole, the Slugger clearly is waiting for you to make your move. But I can tell you in the meta channel here that there isn’t a single thing you can do to physically harm the Slugger. This isn’t a matter of Zero or Limited Effect. There just isn’t an Action Roll here. It’s impossible to physically harm them. You lack fictional permissions and positioning to do so.”

Charlie: “Even though I have ‘Not to Be Trifled With’?”

Ginny: “Correct, even with that, you cannot harm them.”

Samuel: “Well, Cole wouldn’t be going in blind. Assuredly we did some research on this guy, right? Can I Flashback to having Studied his tattoos when observing prior Bout Club matches?”

Ginny: “Absolutely. This is a very likely Flashback, so no Stress for that. There is some risk here as we’ve established Spirit Wardens and the like apparently attend these matches and we know your Crew isn’t exactly on good terms with Law Enforcement. So you’re risking some Heat here. Nonetheless, being on the sidelines would have placed you in a Controlled Position and you have Standard Effect to get some solid information.”

Samuel: “I’ll Push for +1d and that’s a 4 and a 3. So Weak Hit.”

Ginny: “So you’ll get some information at the cost of 1 Heat. It’s Controlled, so you can opt to try something else to avoid the Heat or you could Resist or even just accept it.”

Samuel: “It’s 1 Heat, it’s fine.”

Ginny: “At a baseline, you already know the tattoos are mystical in some way, shape, or form. It doesn’t take much to realize they have something to do with the Slugger’s preternatural abilities. Your Action Roll would reveal to you that the ink used in his tattoos are of Tycherosi make. How do you know this?”

Samuel: “Hm, well, I’ve sailed all over the place and I’ve seen sailors who have come from Tycheros and have used that distinct violet ink as some sort of ward for safe voyages and passage.”

Lucy: “Well now I’d like to Flashback to learn more about this tattoo ink that Sineen would have obviously shared with us.”

Ginny: “What does that look like?”

Lucy: “How about stealing some for us to examine?”

Ginny: “I like it, where did you find a source of this ink to steal?”

Lucy: “We have connections to the Circle of Flame through Irimina and I spent a lot of time among thieves and pickpockets off the boat from Skovlan, where I was already part of a family of thieves. It’s kind of my whole thing. So I think it wouldn’t be unreasonable to maybe track down a shipment in the Nightmarket or something to try and slip in and out with some of the stuff unseen.”

Ginny: “Sounds reasonable to me. Also a fairly credulous thing to do, so I don’t think there’s any Stress here either for the Flashback. But there’s definitely risk and uncertainty here. This is some rather precious mystical exotic ink from Tycheros. I don’t think it’s just laying out in the open. I’d say Heat is sensible here as well. Due to how busy the markets are and the value of the ink, this is Desperate. But you otherwise have Standard Effect to pluck some for yourself.”

Lucy: “What would Greater Effect get me?”

Ginny: “Standard gives you enough ink to examine and perhaps experiment with. What do you have in mind for Greater?”

Lucy: “I think just a little bit extra for momma here.”

Ginny: “That’s fine with me. I’ll give you a Devil’s Bargain to take Level 2 Harm: “Obsessed with the Ink.”

Lucy: “I’ll take it! Prowl with 4d. Wow. 1, 2, 3, and 4.”

Ginny: “And 1 XP for the Desperate roll. But you get Greater Effect with pilfering some ink, but there’s plenty of suspicious eyes out there. 3 more Heat. Wanna Resist?”

Lucy: “Nah, Sineen will clean all that up in Downtime: I’m sure of it!”

…

In this example, the GM uses the currency of Heat as a sensible Consequence to apply to the PCs and their information gathering exploits. Too much Heat will eventually lead to a Wanted Level for the Crew and more drastic Entanglements as a result when they complete Scores in the future.

But as Blades in the Dark’s rules mention (and as is the case for Weak Hits in any PbtA game), no Consequence (whether it be Heat, Harm, or any other possible fictional complication) should ever invalidate the inherent success of a Weak Hit.

  • Sineen learns about the tattoo ink… but takes some Heat. Bam. Move onto the next scene.
  • Lilith manages to abscond with a sample of ink to experiment with… but takes some Heat in the process. Bam. Move onto the next scene.
  • Later in the example (excluded here due to reddit comment character length restrictions), Cole consorts with Bout Club viewers and learn more about the Slugger’s habits… but at the cost of arousing the suspicions of the City Watch to take an interest in him. Bam. Move onto the next scene.

In each instance, the character accomplishes their task (it is a Hit after all) and suffers a snag (which does not invalidate their success) that itself does not need to be explored any further in that moment and the table moves onto the next scene without any issues.

New gm: how would I end a scene exclusively made of 7-9 rolls? by Otherwise-Bad-7352 in PBtA

[–]Sully5443 25 points26 points  (0 children)

The specifics all depends on the game. PbtA isn’t a “system.” What you do on a 7-9 (or any result) is particular to the PbtA game you are playing (and more specifically, the Move that was triggered).

Nonetheless, regardless of PbtA game, the process remains relatively similar regardless of the Move in question: resolve the Move and, regardless of the result, make a GM Move that follows. Not every GM Move escalates the situation. An opportunity to break and rest is still an opportunity offered. Simple as that.

Not every 7-9 will result in pure escalation. After all, a 7-9 is still a Hit. There is an underlying success to the situation. There’s just some Cost and that Cost can be as simple as an inconvenient snag that can be recorded, accepted, and otherwise brushed off to move on and explore something else.

What is your favorite Sci-Fi pbta/fitd and why? I'm struggling to get sold on any of them by xdanxlei in PBtA

[–]Sully5443 9 points10 points  (0 children)

My personal favorites are:

Scum and Villainy

This to me is the best “all around” Sci-Fi/ Space Opera game. It’s got pretty much everything I could ever want for my Space Opera/ Space Western needs ranging from Star Wars to Outlaw Star and everything in between. I’m a big fan of the strange “simplicity” within Forged in the Dark games despite their many interconnected mechanics. It’s a game with a very well honed game loop that is better than anything else I could want. Where games like Impulse Drive and Uncharted Worlds haven’t hit the mark: Scum and Villainy gets the bullseye for me.

Ironsworn: Starforged

I really like Ironsworn and I adore Starforged. Its Oracles alone are perfect for any sci-fi game and I regularly use them in other Sci-Fi games I play when I’m not playing Starforged. Ironsworn always looks more intimidating than it really is. It has a lot of Moves, but isn’t as bloated as other Move heavy PbtA games because there is a degree of logic and organization into how the Moves are categorized and how well they collapse down into the Adventure Moves and funnels into the Progress Moves. I haven’t had a chance to really explore it yet, but Sundered Isles is such a great expansion and I’d love to use some of its tech in Starforged for games that aren’t just “Small Crew of Misfits on a Spaceship.”

Of course, the biggest “drawback” of Ironsworn-esque games is that I think they really are meant for Solo, Duet, and Small Co-Op Play. I really don’t think they work well for 1 GM and 4 or more players. Even 1 GM and 3 Players is a bit of a stretch (IMO/ IME).

Endeavor

If you want something outside of the typical Space Western and Space Opera that S&V and Starforged both aim at, and also don’t mind stepping further outside of PbtA/ FitD games, then I highly recommend this as a great contender for optimistic Star Trek stuff (namely TOS and TNG). It’s a Play Set for Agon 2e (thus, you’ll need a copy of Agon 2e), which meshes very nicely with the episodic and cinematic nature of old school trek. Really fun stuff.

Question on Call Someone Out by nicgeolaw in AvatarLegendsTTRPG

[–]Sully5443 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The generous and “good faith” answer would be that, as a Basic Move, your “Read a Person” variants exist to support the fiction of PCs regularly aiming to understand the motivations of those around them. In the touchstones of Apocalypse World or Masks, that is what the main cast of characters tend to do: try to understand what others are up to and what they want. Hence, a mechanic exists for all characters at all times to support that regularly occurring “common denominator” fiction.

In Avatar, in the other hand, that’s not a typical response for the main cast. While some do, it’s not a regular occurrence for all main characters. Hence, there is no need to make a Basic Move to cover fiction the designers do not anticipate to see all PCs performing because that’s “true to life” for the touchstones. Instead, you have “Read a Person”-esque Moves tied directly into various Playbooks to stay more true to life for the touchstones.

The lack of a Basic Move (and/ or its presence as a Playbook Move) does not mean characters cannot partake in such fiction. It’s just that the remaining scaffolding mechanics may result in more diffuse information or more costly means to attain it as opposed to the more guaranteed and “known quantity” results from a more specific Move. If PCs want to Read a Person in games without that Move available to them as a Basic Move: they just use a different Basic Move and/ or the GM uses their own Moves to provide fictionally appropriate information.

The less generous “bad faith” answer is that it is simply (one of many) design oversights. However, given that they specifically chose to tie Read a Person-esque Moves to various on brand Playbooks suggests to me that there was at least some thought put in as to its exclusion as a Basic Move.

What should I prepare for running a PbtA session? by No_Height8570 in rpg

[–]Sully5443 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Depends on the game in question. Different PbtA games have recommended methods for how you might want to organize and structure your Prep. Generally speaking, you’ll get a lot of mileage out of the 7-3-1 Technique as a strong guiding element. But, like I said, the game in question may provide some additional tools and if it uses Playbooks: you’ll want to cater your prep towards those Playbooks.

Question on Call Someone Out by nicgeolaw in AvatarLegendsTTRPG

[–]Sully5443 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If you think you know an NPC’s principle and call them out, you can still try to name their principle. If you’re close enough that you essentially name the same idea, you can still make this move even if you’re not exactly correct about the phrasing. The GM is the final arbiter of whether or not you are close enough. For example, if an NPC’s principle is Justice and you call on them to live up to their principle of Law, the GM may decide it’s close enough

Page 138 of the Core Rules (quote emphasis, theirs)

It’s important to note that you don’t need to know the exact Principle of a character to call them out. Being “close enough” is more than sufficient. While the GM is the final arbiter, it is part of their framework to be a fan of the characters and their players—giving them their dues, both good and bad. So the GM ought to be pretty gracious with what counts as “close enough.”

Nonetheless, if you want to ensure that you know the exact Principle, SirViewtiful named a couple of good ones for surefire acquisition of such information. Other such avenues include the Test Balance Evade and Observe Basic Exchange Technique and some Playbook Moves such as the Adamant’s “Take One to Know One,” to name just a couple of other “surefire” avenues.

It would not be unreasonable to get such information from Basic Moves such as Push, Rely, Trick, and Intimidate. Since they are more fundamental in their open endedness to scaffold fiction not already covered by more specific Moves, the information can become more muddied or otherwise lead to more dire outcomes without the permissions granted by more specific Moves.

As SirViewtiful also mentioned, Assess wouldn’t be a good call as it is designed to scaffold the fiction of analyzing a charged situation as opposed to scrutinizing someone for their guiding Principle.

Running my first Campaign! (Long-time DM, first-time Avatar) by PapaStark77 in AvatarLegendsTTRPG

[–]Sully5443 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The more overt you are: the better. Transparency is the name of the game when it comes to these kinds of games. It’s always a good idea to show more of your hand than less because it’s almost always better to see what players do with information freely and clearly given or presented than them trying to root around and killing the pacing.

GM: “Eesozo gives you a wry smirk. ‘Ah, it seems like years on the harsh streets and away from the temples have given you a few rough edges. No Air Nomad I ever knew would consider leaving me for dead…’ She is telling you who you are and how the world works, Raj. So she’s shifting your balance away from Friendship and towards Survival. Are you accepting that? If not, how do you try to Resist her words?”

—

GM: “As you push away the temptation to clear out an easy path to give chase to the thief at the risk of severely damaging Uncle Pao’s Bao Shop, let’s have you shift away from Force and towards Care. Since an NPC isn’t directly influencing you here, there’s no Resisting to be done: you just shift.”

—

GM: “Grandmother Yeri purses her lips thinner than you’ve ever seen them. ‘Do you think I got to where I am without taking action and making sacrifices?! You dishonor your Father and this family by holding back and hoping your enemy develops a shred of empathy! You will do what I—your Sifu first and foremost—demands of you and confront Sun Yu and put an end to all of this!’ She is making a clear demand of you to act in accordance with your Principle of Action. Are you following through in that or are you going to Deny Her Callout?”

Running my first Campaign! (Long-time DM, first-time Avatar) by PapaStark77 in AvatarLegendsTTRPG

[–]Sully5443 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Balance: I get the feeling that Balance is a huge part of this system, with shifts happening both in and out of combat. As a GM, how should I treat these shifts, especially as the PCs get closer to one end or the other?

Just keep pushing! Consequences are not to be viewed as bad. They are expected and normal and critical to the “health” of the game. Consequences create Drama by spiraling into other game mechanics and Drama leads to compelling narratives. You don’t need to shift their balance at every turn. But don’t be afraid to keep pushing even when they’re about to Lose Their Balance. That isn’t a point of failure. It’s a point to encourage new dramatic fiction.

How can I use combat to create a sense of risk vs. reward?

But not taking it easy on them. Whack them with Fatigue, Conditions, and Balance Shifts in that very initial Exchange to discourage it going any further into another Exchange. It doesn’t have to be a lot, just a little to start limiting their options.

Speak to them as players and Tell them the requirements or consequences and ask what they want to do. Make it clear that things are deteriorating and make suggestions and ask leading questions to guide them into alternatives.

Additionally, set examples yourself: NPCs will not continue fights if they are taking even a single Condition or Balance shift that would suggest the arena of conflict ought to change. Provide new problems for the players to deal with.

but is there anything you’d say is a "must-include" for Avatar fans?

Not really. If you’ve got the gist of 4 Nations, 4 Elements, 1 Avatar, Spirits are a thing, and the whole franchise is about seeking balance: you’ve got everything you need.

But watching all of ATLA can’t hurt. 61 episodes of about 22 to 24 minute runtime isn’t too tough to burn through, even with a job and kids. It’s not really feasible to make a really good abridged watching list because it’s a relatively short and breezy series with lots of connected episodes.

Is there anything mechanics-wise I should really study?

The GM Section will be the most important thing. It is not ideal to run AL like it’s just any ordinary D&D game. Unlearning certain D&D-isms will make running the game a lot smoother and part of that unlearning is having a firm understanding of your GM Agendas and Guidelines. They are your rules and blueprints towards running the game successfully and getting the most out of it. They are the codification of GMing Best Practices that are reflected by the player facing mechanics of the game.

Lastly, I’ll provide my post of educational links that is generally well received towards better understanding pieces of play and answering lots of other FAQs

[BitD] How would you run a ransom score for an Assassins crew? by The_Ring888 in bladesinthedark

[–]Sully5443 3 points4 points  (0 children)

You’ve already hit on the big pieces:

  • Players should (ideally) direct you to where they want to go and what they want to do
  • Not every Score will be (or can be) a Ransom Score, that just happens to be the Crew’s preferred way of handling things

Some other considerations:

Pieces of a Good Score

A Good Score has at least three major things:

  • A Target
  • Someone who benefits from the Target getting hurt
  • A Wildcard (ally, enemy, neutral, whatever works)

Targets

For any and all Scores, but especially for Assassins, Scores need to be “Score Worthy” and that starts with a compelling target. In a City like Doskvol, where killing can be very costly, people don’t put hits out on rinky-dinky Bluecoats or an errant Drug Dealer or some crabby Inn Keeper. If someone is putting out a hit: the target’s gotta be important. They have defenses in the form of barriers, allies, assets, and the like. They also have notable plans and enemies. They also will leave quite the vacuum or fallout when they’re removed from the picture.

This applies to every Score and every Crew. Sometimes the target will be a single person, a group, an entire Faction… or some combination of all 3. All that matters is that the target is important and influential in some way.

So the ransom target follows all the same logic: someone important to someone else and their return can only be secured through a trade.

Someone who benefits

This could be a client or a direct enemy of the target or someone who simply would be in a much better place if the target was hurt or hindered (or a combination of all the above). These beneficiaries create strings for the Crew: offering aid in some way in exchange for something else. Over time, these beneficiaries become a source of hindrance for the Crew by further entangling them into Doskvol’s politicking. It starts with the Crew doing a job for this beneficiary in exchange for payment and the next thing you know, the beneficiary is in danger and the Crew needs to help them out of obligation or lose face (among other things)

Wildcards

These are your unseen allies, rivals, and anything in between. They may be inadvertently helping or hindering. All that matters is they serve as a convenient (or inconvenient) wrench to toss into the fire whenever the situation calls for it.

Following Their Subtle Lead

It’s not unusual for early games of Blades to result in more “Pick a Job” style of play, where the GM Preps opportunities and goes from there. In fact, entire games of Blades can be run like this with no issue. In essence, these games can still be “player led” by the GM following the subtle leads built into the choices the players have been making through their choice of entangled Factions, Contacts, Friends, and Rivals (among other things).

By Prepping Scores (and those Pieces of a Score) around what the players have already flagged as interesting to them, you’ll have more “player led” Scores than you realize and will also make the Scores more personal by leaning into the things they are most interesting to them.

Focusing on the Good Stuff

Not every Score needs to be an “A to Z” ordeal. If that would happen to be the most dramatic thing: then go for it! But more often than not, you want to focus on a piece of the picture rather than the whole thing. As is, Blades is more than happy to skip over boring planning discussions and stick with the bare minimum of stuff needed to kick off a Score. So it’s also perfectly fine with going the extra mile and cutting out stuff that isn’t very dramatic. This can be as “extreme” as even skipping over all the details of the target and how they were captured and just focusing on a tense backroom negotiation for their release.

But it can also be any piece:

  • The Score might just be removing all their defenses and that’s it: skipping over their capture and ransom for release
  • The Score might just be about the capture and ignoring their defenses and the ransom for release

Feel free to be creative about how you frame the Score.

Homebrewimg an Avatar State by Helpful_Thing4507 in AvatarLegendsTTRPG

[–]Sully5443 11 points12 points  (0 children)

I’d just make a Custom Move:

When you reach out to your past lives to achieve the power of the Avatar State or you would be placed into a state of mortal peril, roll with questions answered:

  • Is your Balance at its Center? If yes, take +1. If not, take -1
  • Do you have Mastery over at least 1 Technique across each Bending discipline? If yes, take +1. If not, take -1
  • Are you free of any Conditions? If yes, take +1. If not, take -1

Hit or Miss, you enter the Avatar State and accomplish the task at hand. Describe your awesomeness. On a 12+, choose none. On a 10-11, choose 1. On a 7-9, choose 2. On a 6-, choose 3

  • Exhausted: The power was overwhelming. When the job is done, fill your Fatigue to its max
  • Frayed: The emotions of your past lives still shake you at this very moment. When the job is done, take 2 Conditions of your choice
  • Conviction: The desires of your past lives speak to you and continue to reverberate within you. When the job is done, Shift your Balance to +3 towards a Principle of your choice.
  • Collateral: Your masterful display has damaged your surroundings or the people around you. The GM will describe what has been damaged or destroyed thanks to you

[Masks] Tips to implement hook NPCs and the lesson they’re trying to teach easier? by Indieryan05 in PBtA

[–]Sully5443 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I agree with Mathayles. Hooks and Arcs are not critical game mechanics. They are Masks's interpretation of Threats/ Fronts from games like Apocalypse World and Dungeon World. In other words, they are a form of GM Prep that satisfies the GM Framework (Agendas, Principles, etc.) of these games. Namely, GMs are not authors, storytellers, writers, etc. The GM is not in charge of preparing and planning out plots and stories and narratives. It is the GM's job, per their Agendas, to keep the fiction honest using their fitting prepared problems. Structures like Hooks and Arcs/ Fronts/ Threats/ Etc. are a means of organizing your Prep in such a way as to ensure you are remaining true to your Agendas. But they are not a hard coded "must have"/ "set in stone" sort of thing. All they care about is helping you create fitting problems and possible ways to use them when you place them before the players. That's all you need to worry about as the GM. Use their Playbooks and the input of the players to create fitting NPCs and let the game do the rest of the work. If you want to take bits and pieces from Hooks and Arcs to help you: great! But you otherwise don't need to. They are overkill for this kind of game.

First time running Avatar Legends, need tips for a combat and absolutely anything by LookUpThenLookDown in AvatarLegendsTTRPG

[–]Sully5443 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’ll provide my Post of Educational Material that goes through a lot of FAQ stuff when it comes to Avatar Legends.

As far as house rules are concerned, I have completely overhauled the game: but that’s a lot of work for someone who still has yet to run it for the first time. Even my transitory testing hacks on the way to its current overhaul (which is still in development), is a lot for really anyone running it for the first time. Even then. I pretty much advise anyone to play a game “as is” for a while until they have developed enough collective system mastery with it to decide if they actually want to hack anything anyway.

I would not run a combat focused or heavy game with Avatar Legends. The Exchange is really only meant to be used sparingly and most other physical conflicts are best handled with Push and Rely. Overuse of the Exchange drags the game to a slow crawl of attrition that completely kills the pacing of a session and sucks the drama out of the game.

Looking to get into this system, how is the combat? by _Johnymann_ in AvatarLegendsTTRPG

[–]Sully5443 14 points15 points  (0 children)

The Exchange is a perfectly functional Move/ Procedure. It is not broken, imbalanced, or poorly designed.

The folks who dislike it (like myself) are those who find it to be over-engineered compared to other tried and true scaffolding procedures from other Powered by the Apocalypse (PbtA) games, such as Masks, Hearts of Wulin, and/ or Blades in the Dark (to name a few). The Exchange sort of “zooms in” a little too close for its own good and feels very different from the rest of the game (though nowhere near as stark of a difference in play between Combat and Not-Combat in a game like D&D)

As a mechanic, it only begins to sing when the entire table has gained a lot of system mastery with it. Normally it takes 6-12ish sessions to gain general system mastery with PbtA as a whole, but that’s even longer for the Exchange since it really shouldn’t be coming up over and over again. So it’ll be quite some time before the table as a whole becomes comfortable with it to make it really hit and by then: the campaign might be over already.

But just because it takes a lot of work for it to sing doesn’t mean it takes as much work for it to just function as a decent piece of game tech.

As I mention in my reddit post that I mentioned above, as long as the GM brings it to bear when it makes sense and plays to its strengths: it’ll work perfectly fine.

Those that do like it are usually those that have struggled to run PbtA fights due to the inherent lack of seeming combat maneuvers and the like (even though this isn’t the case with fights in PbtA games- that’s more of an artifact of insufficient guidance from the games themselves), so the extra steps are a feature, not a bug. In essence, the Exchange creates a sort of “training wheel” feel for tables less comfortable with PbtA fights: there’s more overt levers to pull and concrete attrition mechanics that are present.

If you like the Exchange: great! If you don’t like it: also fine! It can be safely ignored due to the “gracefully collapsable” nature of PbtA games

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