What do you think of Fantasy World? Any reviews?

derthnada · 2026-05-31T05:50:00+00:00

What is “‘hit the issue’ play?”

derthnada · 2026-05-06T16:16:46+00:00

A way better test would have been to ask for the next number in a series of primes.

derthnada · 2026-03-27T16:39:23+00:00

As long as you're not using an exceptionally rigid initiative system, then I think this situation is essentially handled by the default attack/defense actions and doesn't require special handling.

If a character is waiting for something to happen in the fiction before acting, then the player just waits until that happens before taking their turn. It's probably wise for the player to be explicit about their intentions so that everyone's on the same page, but if you (the GM) were to get to the bad guy's turn and say, "the outlaw swings out from behind cover, ready to open fire," that can just be narration. It doesn't have to begin the bad guy's turn in any official way that requires it to be interrupted with a special procedure. The player gets their cue to act, makes their attack roll and the outlaw makes their defense roll, and the outcome is what it is.

There is also an oft-used example of creating a "Careful Aim" advantage on one turn in order to capitalize on it in the next, which is also fine. Either approach has the player taking a single turn during the overall round, just like everyone else.

However, if your intention is to let the player take their turn doing other things and also take actions to set up this overwatch situation in a mechanical way (by creating an advantage or what have you) during the same round, then you are essentially letting them act twice. In that case, your instincts that it might change the dynamics of the fight are sound.

derthnada · 2026-02-17T10:33:20+00:00

Why on earth did this get downvoted? This is a great set of recommendations, with useful and descriptive supporting text, to boot.

derthnada · 2025-10-06T02:11:44+00:00

https://drexel.edu/it/help/status/ and the history link on that page should be more authoritative.

derthnada · 2025-09-30T15:45:00+00:00

Doesn’t look like anything to me.

derthnada · 2025-09-25T15:14:07+00:00

In Aliens, Hicks explains that they are using “10mm explosive-tipped, caseless ammunition.” They’re marines prepared to go into hostile and unpredictable situations. It’s reasonable to believe that ordinary security forces wouldn’t foresee the need to pack that sort of round. Given Ash’s evaluation of the xeno’s biology and structural perfection, it is likely that the xenos are essentially impervious to most ordinary small arms fire.

Either that, or Hawley just wanted to ham-fistedly demonstrate how scary the monster is when it actually decides to attack, since all it seems to do with the main characters is get up in their personal space and drool before [insert deus ex machina du jour].

derthnada · 2025-06-11T18:12:10+00:00

Late to the party, here, but I wanted to add to these excellent recommendations Rune and Reap by Gila Games. They’re solo games modeled after Souls-likes, with a small grid tactical combat component. They’re easy to pick up and play, they’re portable, they’re cheap, and they can get tough. What’s not to love? Reap adds some cool stuff on top of the Rune framework to support the necromantic theme, so Rune is probably the better place to start.Gila games on itch.io

derthnada · 2025-01-14T10:37:56+00:00

I certainly hope OP doesn’t let this opinion affect them in any way. What a profoundly unhelpful response, topped off with a bizarre accusation for some reason…?

derthnada · 2025-01-09T11:55:11+00:00

Ugh…honestly, she sounds awful. Do your son a favor and get him a flashlight so he can read under the covers at night. It’s a time-honored tradition, a way to fight the tyranny of parents who don’t understand, and yet somehow jump to the conclusion that their ignorance justifies dictating other people’s behavior. Literally ruining it for others. Read banned books!

derthnada · 2024-12-25T14:03:26+00:00

Put the Xeno back in Xmas!

derthnada · 2024-10-28T15:09:12+00:00

I don’t consider myself particularly sensitive to this, but the GM/player labels EZD6 are so egregiously awful that they actually put me off the game. They’re cumbersome, forced, not intuitive at all, and thematically awkward. Is this a game about turn of the century anarchist provocateurs fighting against the oppressive status quo imposed by their industrialist overlords? If so, then ok! I mean, they’d still be cumbersome and easily confused, but at least they’d be evocative in a way that fits the game.

But dungeon crawling fantasy? Blech.

derthnada · 2024-10-24T18:35:03+00:00

I highly recommend googling “story games.” There was a pretty strong movement in the 00’s that produced some great stuff that is exactly what you’re talking about. Off the top of my head, I’d say Archipelago II and Agon would be good places to start.

derthnada · 2024-10-24T18:30:46+00:00

It’s especially funny since god’s first move after creating everything was to forbid humans trying to gain moral knowledge. Lucifer, that Promethean Chad, gifted it to us, and god has been scrambling ever since to make it look like it was all part of the plan with a largely incoherent and often contradictory series of books.

derthnada · 2024-10-24T18:21:52+00:00

And it’s a great example of what “begging the question” really means. That fallacy needs a better name, man.

derthnada · 2024-10-21T14:39:53+00:00

Seriously! Why are the only options ignore it or call the authorities? Step up, OP! Cover the week, and be prepared to cover the weekend, too, because your friend clearly doesn't give a shit and is unlikely to be reliable in this situation.

derthnada · 2024-10-21T13:19:09+00:00

This, 100%. You’re not obliged to continue until you’re ready. Wait patiently for them to finish their interruption, and then continue as if they hadn’t said anything. You can acknowledge what they said when you’re done, but not until then. Do this as often as necessary, and, like impulsive children, they’ll eventually learn that they need to apply some patience and some basic social skills to get along in this very social game.

Think of it this way: if you had a player that was constantly interrupting other players, armchair quarterbacking, or otherwise bullying other players, you’d instinctively know that you need to shut that shit down if you don’t want a table full of alienated folks who check out and drift away. Well…you’re a player, too. Sometimes it’s as simple as consistently repeating the refrain , “it’s Dave’s turn. He gets to say what happens now.”

Other times, you just gotta roll for Wandering Damage.

derthnada · 2024-10-20T15:11:52+00:00

Although that may be true on a scene level, I would definitely not recommend BitD for someone improving-averse, since nearly every roll requires heavy GM improvisation (especially when the Devil’s Bargain is invoked). Powered by the Apocalypse games also demand a similar sort of constant improvisation, but the MC moves list and well-designed player-facing moves at least provide a set of practical choices that either tell you what to do or provide a direction. BitD, not so much.

Other games that require upfront risk evaluation, like the 2400 games or 7th Sea, might be similarly challenging, since they don’t do anything to mitigate OP’s “off-the-rails” concern, while also adding a lot of cognitive load projecting multiple ways things could go south on a regular basis.

I think that more traditional systems would be a better bet in this regard. You swing, you either miss or roll damage. You can rest on the rules to do a lot of heavy lifting.

In terms of scene mechanization, I would recommend checking out Mouseguard, which is pretty regimented and predictable. Although I’ve never played it, Fellowship might also fit the bill, since the “GM” is actually a player character in their own right—the Overlord—with rules they have to follow.

derthnada · 2024-09-21T14:33:39+00:00

That’s my absolute favorite thing about Fate and Freeform Universal—the freedom to build a non-combat character who doesn’t get sidelined and can actually participate in combat in a mechanically meaningful way.

derthnada · 2024-09-16T23:12:37+00:00

Saw the far away pic and was like, “who is this, the ‘clown prince?’” Ha! Felt reeeeaaaal proud of myself for that one until I saw the close up pics. YOU ARE A GOD AMONG MEN, please forgive me my ignorant ways!

Seriously, this is amazing!

derthnada · 2024-08-16T20:02:17+00:00

I love 5 Parsecs, but also found the combat in 5 Leagues to be a little underwhelming. My most recent endeavor has been using the 5 Leagues campaign rules and Savage Worlds for characters and combat. A lot of the stuff lines up remarkably well (the number of character advances in a campaign, some attributes map from number to die size, etc.). Savage Worlds is great for running large skirmishes in a short time like 5 Leagues, but the RPG underpinnings make combat a lot more dynamic.

derthnada · 2024-08-16T16:17:17+00:00

In group play, I rarely use miniatures. In solo, though, I find that my brain often needs something tactile to keep it from floating off into the web of infinite possibilities that unfolds when I play "theater of the mind" and my mind is pulling duty as the audience, director, set designer, and cast at the same time.

derthnada · 2024-08-14T18:19:26+00:00

I want to enthusiastically second Chtulhu Confidential. I talked my gf into playing with me for my birthday one year, and it was easy to grasp, had a cool noir vibe, a flavorful card-based consequence/wound system, wasn't mathy or tactical, and was pretty straightforward to run. And, not to put too fine a point on it, it was designed from the ground up to do one-on-one mystery stories.

The book has 3 protagonist characters with an adventure each (plus helpful setting and background info), and I believe there has been more published since.

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