nWoD 2.0 inter-sphere balance and mechanics
-
@Miss-Demeanor said:
Which Conditions apply which modifiers to which rolls? Oh right, go to the appendix. Then keep that page open for EVERY time a Condition comes into play. Want to remove your Condition? Act on the Condition or address the source of it. Nice and vague, WW, keep up the good work. Oh, but there's examples of how to resolve them. No, wait, those are just suggestions, you can solve them in other ways that aren't explained. And look! There's improvised Conditions, too! Lets run down this list...
- Get a Condition (or make one up on the spot).
- Track its effects through the appendix (or have it all written down somewhere because yours was 'improvised').
- Play out effects of Condition as appropriate (don't forget to explain the improvised Condition when nobody is able to figure out which one you have!).
- Decide to rid yourself of Condition.
- Use one of the example resolutions in the book (or make up your own!) and hope that whoever decides these things is in a good mood/likes you/etc.
...That is genuinely not that complicated.
EDIT: I'm not trying to be flippant, I just honestly think you're getting worked up over nothing. It's a simple plus or minus to a roll, which a lot of people were doing anyway in the old system, they've just made up an official system to categorize and track it.
-
@Wizz said:
...That is genuinely not that complicated.
I agree that it's not. I'm even a bit sold on the system after listening to @Coin and @tragedyjones drooling about it for so long.
However look at it this way maybe. A five pound weight isn't that heavy but if you lift it at shoulder level and hold it for a while it'll feel pretty damn heavy, right?
I think the same might apply to Conditions. No, they're not that complex especially after we get more used to using them in everyday RP. However if they need to be applied constantly - and they do - then that stands to interfere with many people's normal ebb and flow in RP; I can appreciate that sentiment because I'm one of the people who'll rarely look to use mechanics in scenes if I can help it.
This isn't a big overhead on its own but multiply it by every day you play the game, every scene you're in, and it adds up. That's not a question, it's a given - the only question is whether the benefits (which do exist) make all that effort over time worth it.
-
Still, we're not talking about 80's pen-and-paper tabletop where GMs have to physically flip through reference books and all that nonsense busywork they're trying to make it sound like. You could literally set the condition itself and its resolution as notes on a character bit that a ST or another player could check on the fly. Seriously, it is just not that hard for the end user.
-
Have to agree. Conditions are fast, easy, and don't actually slow down scenes much, if at all, once you get over the initial learning curve - which isn't that steep. They're also great. I've used lingering negative Conditions to prompt me what kind of RP to seek out (feeling Guilty? Time to find someone your character feels they can trust, and confide to them about that guilt), and are a delicious source of beats.
I'd really like to see automatic XP become a very rare or nonexistent thing in GMC games, because Beats are so very, very easy to get. Even if you only have two scenes a week, you can be getting at least 1 XP, provided those scenes are meaningful and dynamic. Aspirations, dramatic failures, breaking points, Conditions, surrenders, going with the flow in social maneuvers...XP's pretty plentiful all around, and doesn't require you to spend your life online. And, if you feel there needs to be more, then add more things that beats can be earned by - whether it's running a scene for someone else, or achieving a goal of your faction (or, more in tune with the system, /failing/ to achieve a goal of your faction), or hitting various plot milestones. Kingsmouth allows you to claim a beat for every scene you're in up to a certain amount, and then another if that scene has anything directly to do with the theme of the character you're playing.
-
Still not sold. But again, I don't care for the GMC/WoD 2E games overall. I don't find the new rules or settings to be all that interesting or enjoyable, so I have zero interest in investing the time and effort into figuring it all out. I don't even really care for the hybridization of NWoD/GMC that TR uses, but I'm already invested in the character that I still have there.
-
There's a considerable difference between "I don't like this, so I'm not going to bother to understand it" and "This is complicated and vague." You can personally dislike new things because they're new to your heart's content, but call a spade a spade.
-
@Wizz said:
There's a considerable difference between "I don't like this, so I'm not going to bother to understand it" and "This is complicated and vague." You can personally dislike new things because they're new to your heart's content, but call a spade a spade.
Agreed... And now I'm confused why it was even brought up.
-
I didn't bring it up is why. People just decided to latch onto my dislike for the new Conditions. And I can still decide that I don't like something because I think its complicated and vague. If I look at it and decide that it seems more complicated than I'm willing to put the effort into delving into, it doesn't make my opinion any less valid than your own.
-
Remember, kids, all opinions are created equal!
-
Unrelated to the Conditions discussion, but someone leaked a Beast playtest document on the 4chans.
Reading it now, will post more later.