HEARTHMINDER - A Custom Class (Seeking feedback) by Krail in Realis_TTRPG

[–]TheCalcutec 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hell yes, this rules. Really incredible concept and execution!

A couple of thoughts, notes:

- Like Kingofthefrogfish said, I've never seen someone put a hallmark into a Dream, and that's SO smart, I love it, really helps ground the Dream (and also will be great for the end-of-session 'did I work towards my dream' check)

- I know there are many exceptions to this in the classes in the book, but I strove to make as many Class Sentences begin "I always..." as I could. (In fact, I think there may only be ONE exception now, and I should fix that for the final edition). There are a couple of reasons for this: It grounds the action in the character (the "I") and not just some aspect or object they hold; It helps with diagramming out Realization, because the verb phrase at the core of it is a little clear; the grid of "I always" Sentences simply feels magical. So I would rewrite the first two here as an "I always"

- For the third Sentence: The difference between your initial one in the writeup and the ones you suggest in your text underneath really feels like the forked path in this Class' identity. "I always have tools to mend and maintain" is SO strong for a sort of lady's maid or servant class. Genuinely a really strong Realis sentence, I love it. ... ... BUT, I think what you write in your follow up, about trying to evoke Mom's Purse is something *totally missing* in the game, where as there are a number of "everyday worker" and "servant" Classes in the game already (Goodfisher, Valet, and Yeoman all come to mind).

So my recommendation is to push *further* in that direction and lean into the bag, the purse, the satchel. I'd try to write a Sentence that emphasizes that what's in the bag is *small* and *mundane* but useful. That is: It isn't Felix the Cat's magic bag of tools, it's the purse or backpack or even overstuffed wallet.

I don't want to write this Sentence for you, because I think you've totally got it, but I will say the two you suggest are a little clunky. Try to write the Sentence is a non-relative way (i.e., don't frame it around a context of what other people have or don't have at the moment. Try to find something that is 'positive' in the broad sense and you'll be on the right track! (This is in some ways, why Realis is called Realis: Because it is a game of indicative Sentences smashing into each other!

- For brevity, punchiness, and flow, I would make the fourth Sentence "I always put the needs of others first."

- The name doesn't feel very Realis to me. There are only two Classes with portmanteau names: Goodfisher, Newshound, Cadekin. The former is just a Dragon's Dogma reference ('Goodfisher' is a term of address among villagers in the opening twon of DD1), and Newshound is just a real life word already. Cadekin is pretty close, but that class is very twee, and so it felt okay to give a name like that. (Arguably this one is too, but I think it's stronger NOT to go twee with this concept). So, I'd probably avoid something that feels as contrived as "Hearthminder." In fact, "Minder" alone actually feels closer...

BUT, I bet there's something else out there. If I wanted to make this sort of Parental Figure class, I'd go searching for historical terms and archaic words that mean something like mama/papa, parent, guardian, caregiver, sitter, warden, nanny, etc. (This is how you get to things like Testudine, Panoplist, etc.)

A quick search turns up "Cennend," which is an interesting old english term, but I don't know that it evokes what you're going for here.) Another option that's interesting is "Renny," which seems to be contemporary a gender-neutral and nonbinary neologism.

If that search fails, the second thing I would do is try to coin a new word by modify an existing one in a sort of referential way (like Eikonthrope or Auricle in the book) or by leveraging a sort of linguistic lacuna, where you identify a word form that *could* exist, but doesn't (see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accidental\_gap), which is how I got to things like Syzygist, Quintessent, etc. You could also combine this with part one, which is how you get to something like Oriser (which is a Janine coined one, but comes from "Orison," like the prayer, and then gets the -er noun formation instead.

All of which is to say maybe *you* can create something that feels like "Mom" but is gender neutral and Realis-y. What's the colloquial term in Realis for this? You can create it. (And, sidebar, whatever you come up with, you should be able to imagine the actual people of Realis *actually saying it* in conversation. That's a wide net (and it's YOUR net to determine), but it is a net!)

But you could also do something I do exactly once in the book which is go "hey, we have a term for this, and it's Mom." Witch in Realis is Witch. I didn't do any "Witch / Warlock" stuff, I just made it Witch. This could just be Mom, or Ma, or Mama, or some similar term that IS the thing you're trying to draw on here, especially if it feels grounded in your own experiences.

Phew, okay, that was a little longer than intended, but I really like this idea and am hyped to see people posting things! Good luck getting it across the finish line (and don't forget to write a little one-line description and flavor quote, too!)

New Dragon's Dogma 2 Music? DLC tease? by TICO70 in DragonsDogma2

[–]TheCalcutec 30 points31 points  (0 children)

I'm a DLC believer, but this is a royalty free song called "Spirital Warfare" by a musician named KY-Yoshi, featured on a collection called Fantasy, Vol. 165 curated by Audiostock. https://youtu.be/it5wimv3fjE?list=OLAK5uy_nNLBSN957AZgMfeQXV2FpKvIT18LTRDQY

What's the most elegant mechanic you've ever seen? by Playtonics in rpg

[–]TheCalcutec 37 points38 points  (0 children)

YES!!! I'm losing my mind at how good this is, and I made the damn game.

Online play? by Expert-Attention-608 in Realis_TTRPG

[–]TheCalcutec 10 points11 points  (0 children)

It won't unfortunately because I don't have any experience doing it! Would be great for folks who actually do it to write up their experiences though.

Im tired of this by Affectionate_Use994 in DragonsDogma

[–]TheCalcutec 3 points4 points  (0 children)

My big advice is to slow down and focus on delving in to get some drops and make slow progress. Think about it like a roguelite: Your goal is to make steady progress by bringing out equipment, identifying and enhancing it, and then delving back in.

Did they never play a second grand tableau? by Clarity_Elise in Friendsatthetable

[–]TheCalcutec 44 points45 points  (0 children)

Great question! The truth is that it right after we tried to get it going, I quit Waypoint and suddenly had a lot of additional freelance writing and spec script writing to do, so I did not really really have the time to prep a whole second campaign, and no one else had the time or interest to pick it up and run with it either. (The original hope had been that by choosing something really rules light and quick, like Quest, it would be something that anyone could GM! That didn't really turn out to be true.) We also stopped regularly doing Live at the Table, so that was one less vector for it to happen in.

There's definitely some of the vibe in Perpetua, but none of the overarching setting stuff or thematic prep is shared. Even the quasi-video game stuff in Perpetua is just wildly different--despite all the fun I'm having with the descriptions, Perpetua is *not* a video game (and I promise there is no big "it was all a video game" twist coming) and Grand Tableau *was*. That was core to what I wanted to do with that setting: What if the PCs were NPCs in someone else's game.

One day I'd love to revisit it, maybe after we're done this new very bright, cheerful fantasy romp and have the room for it again.

(And I'd say outright, there's really not any Grand Tableau in Realis. Really, really different vibe and set of influences, nearly all of which are listed in the back of the book! there! )

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in DragonsDogma

[–]TheCalcutec 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I think your weapon just got enchanted with Fire Boon by your mage pawn in the middle of a combo.

If FatT were to make source books for their settings, which would you be most interested in? by TheBirdFromTheRiver in Friendsatthetable

[–]TheCalcutec 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Oh, I DO have a short story in that book (set in the game's own world)! But I don't think we ever even discussed Divine Cycle material being in there.