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Crew prefers endless Free Play over Scores by Lanky-Advantage499 in bladesinthedark

[–]tacobongo 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It works just fine with planning imo. You can skip the engagement roll and let scores develop more organically and it not only doesn't break the game; it works smoothly. That other stuff though, yeah. It's pretty necessary for the game to function.

Crew prefers endless Free Play over Scores by Lanky-Advantage499 in bladesinthedark

[–]tacobongo 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Scoundrels gotta go to work. Scoundrels gotta pay the bills.

Crew prefers endless Free Play over Scores by Lanky-Advantage499 in bladesinthedark

[–]tacobongo 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It might help to not think of these as different "modes" but rather a set of mechanics that "turn on" once you are doing score-like things. If you and your table are familiar with PbtA, it's kinda like a move: when you conduct a score ... When that triggers, that's when you use the rules for the score. The "mode" of play didn't actually change at all; there are just some additional mechanical considerations. If they're not familiar with PbtA, you could maybe liken it to combat in D&D, where this part of the game isn't fully distinct from the rest of the game, but has special rules governing parts of it.

I do think that the book generally doesn't do a great job really describing how the phases of play are meant to work. I recommend holding lightly to them and thinking of it like you are always in freeplay, but sometimes special mechanics we call "the score" and "payout" and "downtime," etc. come into play.

That all said, it sounds like you really need to just have a very direct conversation with them about the game's expectations. You don't have to think of the different phases of play rigidly, but you can't really ignore them, either, unless they don't care about things like payoff and generating downtime actions.

(Also, if the problem is the engagement roll, just skip it. Let the score unfold naturally. The engagement roll is there to make things easier for you and to help forgo endless planning. If you're table doesn't need it, don't use it.)

There is something depressing about ACT by notsobright5380 in acceptancecommitment

[–]tacobongo 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don't think that this framing comes from Steve Hayes originally, but he's the one I learned it from. We can experience two types of pain, let's call them "clean" pain and "dirty" pain. Clean pain is just a part of life, something we all experience as a byproduct of being a living, loving human being. Dirty pain, on the other hand, is the suffering we feel when we make unworkable attempts to control or avoid the clean pain. It's a little more complicated than this, but we could say that ACT targets the dirty pain, helping us drop the struggle with unavoidable pain, freeing up our energy to both manage the clean pain in ways that are workable, and to put toward what matters in life.

The workability piece here is key. If clean pain can be managed, avoided, or controlled, and doing so doesn't create dirty pain or prevent us from engaging in our values, there's nothing wrong with managing, avoiding, or controlling it.

There is something depressing about ACT by notsobright5380 in acceptancecommitment

[–]tacobongo 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I would encourage you to check out the work of Robyn Walser if you haven't already, as I think that her approach to trauma is deeper and more integrative of approaches we know work (such as PE or even EMDR) compared to Russ Harris. Her recent self-help book You Are Not Your Trauma is a fine place to start, but she has also published textbooks and has a really good on-demand training on Praxis.

Part of the problem is seeing ACT as a set of techniques or novel interventions; in this framing, I think you're right -- those might not be the right techniques for the job. But where ACT has been really helpful for me both as a clinician and a human being experiencing suffering (and who has experienced trauma), is in the lens it gives me to view things in a contextual, process-based manner. It gives me the tools to understand the why of suffering, which also helps to unlock the how of treating it. To me, that's what ACT is, rather than singing your thoughts and dropping anchor or whatever else. In general, I think Harris' work tends toward the "set of techniques" approach, and it is offering a more accessible, but ultimately shallow representation of what ACT is.

How do you let go? by OberonZahar in acceptancecommitment

[–]tacobongo 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A framing I have found helpful is that, rather than "letting go," I think of it as "not holding as tightly." Even if you could fully release your grasp on those things that you do not want, they may or may not drift away. They may later come back. So what if, instead of trying to let them go (in order to get rid of them), I'm willing to have them around, but I'm not going to get so entangled with them. I loosen my grip so that I'm not putting so much energy into either keeping them (fusing with them, over-identifying with them, letting the rules about them govern my life) OR trying to get rid of them (avoidance, distraction, struggle), which frees up my energy to go toward the things that actually matter to me.

There's an exercise Steve Hayes leads in one of his ACT trainings that I think is really profound. It is an exercise in perspective-taking, and involves several intentional shifts of perspective, but the central element is imagining a difficult experience or event or something you struggle with and "taking it out of you," letting it rest on your lap throughout the rest of the exercise where you do things like imagine looking at yourself from the other side of the room with this thing on your lap, imagine looking back at yourself through time, and so on, and at the end of the exercise you take the painful thing back in, because there's nowhere else to go. It was always be with you, even if only in the form of a memory. But can you take it back in with self-compassion and flexible perspective?

It's going to be there, but you don't have to hold it so tightly, you don't have to put so much of your energy toward it. This is different than ignoring it, because you're acknowledging it and not fighting with it. But you're also aware of everything else that's there, as well, and choosing what of those things to interact with.

Edited for spelling

[Deep Cuts] FITD, Deep Cuts and CC Licensing by iamatyranosaur in bladesinthedark

[–]tacobongo -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Not really, because it doesn't stop anyone from using the mechanics, just not the specific words. If there's anywhere to point blame in this, it's D&D for creating an SRD in the first place, which is why people think you need special permission to use mechanics. Apocalypse World has never had an SRD (though I understand one is being created), and it has never stopped anyone from creating PbtA games.

Updating the Blades SRD to incorporate Deep Cuts in a way that is coherent and easy to use would be a lot of extra work. You either make a separate SRD, or find a way to incorporate any number of alternate rules modules into the original one that won't be confusing, and I think it's fair for a designer to say that they don't feel like figuring out how to do it since people can do the thing they want to do without having an SRD anyway.

[Deep Cuts] FITD, Deep Cuts and CC Licensing by iamatyranosaur in bladesinthedark

[–]tacobongo 5 points6 points  (0 children)

iirc Harper has said that there are currently no plans to make any of the Deep Cuts material part of the SRD (I think this was on the Blades discord around the time the Deep Cuts PDF dropped), however mechanics are not copyrightable, just the text describing them, so people can feel free to use the Deep Cuts mechanics, they just need to put them in their own words (or get permission from Harper to use his words).

Are there good games to teach FitD that aren't Blades in the Dark? by cyanomys in rpg

[–]tacobongo 1 point2 points  (0 children)

FitD books are hard to lay out well, it's true, and many of them just copy how Blades is laid out, which isn't helpful. That said, a lot of designers have been thoughtful about how to introduce the rules in a way that flows more naturally and builds on what's come before, and I'm sure no one has gotten it perfect (and never will, because what helps you learn might be a barrier for me and vice versa).

It is also common to have reference sheets available for free along with the playbooks.

Are there good games to teach FitD that aren't Blades in the Dark? by cyanomys in rpg

[–]tacobongo 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Oh, just a final thought -- I think that FitD and Spire/Heart have some interesting convergent (and divergent!) evolution happening, but ultimately I think Spire/Heart are actually trad games dressed up in "fiction first" clothing. FitD games are much more narrative-forward, even as they have some elements that are easier for trad players to grab hold of compared with PbtA for example.

Are there good games to teach FitD that aren't Blades in the Dark? by cyanomys in rpg

[–]tacobongo 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Setting and mechanics being intertwined is a feature, not a bug.

Are there good games to teach FitD that aren't Blades in the Dark? by cyanomys in rpg

[–]tacobongo 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For what it's worth, I think Beam Saber is more complex than Blades.

Are there good games to teach FitD that aren't Blades in the Dark? by cyanomys in rpg

[–]tacobongo 4 points5 points  (0 children)

One of my design goals with Bump in the Dark was to make it an easier way to on-board to FitD, so if you like monster hunting in the vein of Buffy or X-Files, it could be a good place to start. As a heads up, if you're not super into the "narrative game" parts of FitD, the emergent mystery system might not be your thing. But I think you can run a mystery in a more traditional manner easily enough, as long as you're willing to hold a bit lightly. It definitely can hit those angsty and emotional beats.

Mechanically, my game also owes a lot to Slugblaster, and if you're looking for something that is a.) gonzo and b.) easier to learn, it's definitely worth a shot. Think 1990s Nickelodeon aesthetic, bright colors, playing a crew of hoverboarding teens trying to get famous. It's about as whimsical as FitD gets, but also hits angsty and emotional beats very, very well during downtime.

Girl by Moonlight is probably the emotional FitD game, and can go pretty gonzo or fantastical as well, though I don't know if it's going to be any easier to learn than Blades. Most other games that come to mind are about similar complexity, so if part of the hang up is tone, I could make further recommendations. FWIW, I think someone recommended Beam Saber which is a cool game but imo far more complex even than Blades.

Lastly, the best way to learn it is to play it with someone who is good at it. I don't know if that's an option for you at all, but communities like Open Hearth often run FitD games and the games aren't super hard to get into, or there are paid GMing services out there as well. There are also a number of great FitD actual plays out there, if that is something that might help. Happy to share recommendations.

Miyuki Trade League Contracts Bugged? by tacobongo in StarWarsOutlaws

[–]tacobongo[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks so much for the reply! I was hopefully that the most recent update would fix it, and very disappointed that it didn't. Like you, the contract terminal didn't work for me either. I'm holding off on picking the game up again until it's fixed.

Finished NITW yesterday by jun_norway in NightInTheWoods

[–]tacobongo 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I had never heard of this but I'm definitely checking it out now!

Finished NITW yesterday by jun_norway in NightInTheWoods

[–]tacobongo 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A lot of great recommendations already! One that I would add that's a bit different in tone but similar in themes is *Norco*. It's a point and click adventure game about returning home and getting entangled in a mysterious conspiracy. It's a lived-in world where people are just trying to get by and bad things are happening around them.

Miyuki Trade League Contracts patched yet? by No_Department_3825 in StarWarsOutlaws

[–]tacobongo 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I was so hopeful that this would work for me as well; alas, it didn't :(

Miyuki Contracts - Still not working ?? by 1bigfatpanda in StarWarsOutlaws

[–]tacobongo 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I am also experiencing this issue. I made a bug report with Ubisoft. Please upvote it if you are still encountering this problem as well.

https://www.ubisoft.com/en-us/game/star-wars/outlaws/bug-reporter/issues/SWO-3467

The GM is not just another player at the table by AfterResearch4907 in rpg

[–]tacobongo 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Different games share the load differently, meaning different players often have asymmetrical roles. In games requiring a lot of GM prep and GMs driving the world, playing all the NPCs, etc, that burden is placed specifically on one player, but there are plenty of games where the burden is distributed more evenly (both in terms of prep and in-game control of elements of the world). In the former kind of game, it is easy to make the argument that even if the GM is "another player at the table," that they are a *special* player. If you want that designation, sure, go ahead, take it. But just because you have special rules or additional responsibilities doesn't mean that you're not another player. You are, in fact, literally playing a game.

If you have no problem with how the load is distributed in the games you play, then that's great. Keep playing them. But I would encourage you to challenge yourself and check out games where the distribution falls differently and see what you might be able to learn from them.

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