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Legendary Sidekick

Legendary Sidekick

Staff
Moderator
It doesn't matter which weapon you choose. Damage is based on how much you out-roll your opponent's defense, at least by Fate rules. We can stick to that since the amount of HP I gave everyone is more or less how much you'd have in Fate (if you add up all your physical stress/consequence boxes).

Using the Zelda hearts isn't really a game-changer. It just cleans up the HP display (considerably). I'm trying something new by hinting at enemy health. Let me know if you like that. Also, the next map will have different "names" for each enemy. For example, S. Ass-Hat and H. Ass-Hat. ("S." has a spear; "H." has a hammer.)




But getting back to Ariel…

If you want her to shoot from below the cliff, she can do that. Let's assume there's a drop-off in the foreground so characters can't run several yards away from the enemies and pick them off. But they can stand a few feet away from the cliff's edge and aim up. In fact, I manipulated Ariel's art to show her aiming ~45˚ up in case you want to shoot from below.
 
Legendary Sidekick

Legendary Sidekick

Staff
Moderator
Current Battle(s)

If everyone's ready to jump in, I'll update on Wednesday and attempt a Monday-Wednesday-Friday, but of course I can be flexible and even update each map at different paces if that's the best way to accommodate players.

I'm finishing an edit for a short story right now, so admittedly, I haven't been very active online myself lately—aside from checking for updates in RPG threads.
 
Legendary Sidekick

Legendary Sidekick

Staff
Moderator
No problem. I figured everyone's insanely busy. Catch up when you can. Ireth and I can play Dragon's Egg while we wait, so I won't push ahead until others post.
 
Ireth

Ireth

Mythic Scribe
It's Canadian Thanksgiving this weekend, so I won't be able to post on Monday. I'll be at my parents', and anyway the library will be closed.
 
Devor

Devor

Fiery DEATH!
Moderator
I shouldn't have a problem getting a post in tonight, but this weekend is my anniversary. I'll be out for a couple days.
 
Legendary Sidekick

Legendary Sidekick

Staff
Moderator
I'm experimenting with PhotoShop techniques. Today I drew a character entirely in pencil, scanned in true gray, then used the "multiply" feature to color right over the lines. I found that duplicating the outline layer several times darkens outline, and you can merge the layers so the character won't blend in with the background. (I still have to cut out the white, but that's fine since I need to get rid of pencil smudges.)

The character below is an 80's version of the brawler class called the "street punk." His female counterpart will have punk hair. Probably a colored mohawk. This guy is more like a cross between the protagonists of Double Dragon and Big Trouble in Little China. (No Chinese words on the wife-beater, though… his fist got in the way!)
80s_street_punk_by_legendarysidekick-d82poho.png
 
Legendary Sidekick

Legendary Sidekick

Staff
Moderator
Mariya must have been near my house to post in-person, because lightning took out my internet!

(It was lightning and thunder almost at the same time... second-closest I've been to where lightning hit. The closest ever was my neighbor's backyard, and I was able to discern where the bolt hit by cross-referencing from my neighbor's POV. We both guessed wrong, making the bolt ~100 feet closer to us than each of us thought when we first saw the flash--and immediately heard the BOOM! In fact, that experience is the reason I use a pink glow for Mariya's spells when I actually draw them. All I saw was a bright, pale pink as the thunder sounded. The entire world went white or pinkish-white!)

Anyway, I'm hoping that all is fixed at home. Ruby PM'd me, so I know she'll post when she can. As long as no players have an issue with the slow pacing, I'm fine with it as I can see everyone is insanely busy.

For Devor and Ruby, I kinda slowed their corner of the action a bit. Fenella moved on her last turn and I had her movement prevent an attack on Mariya. Furtano's opponent broke the wall but didn't roll his attack. I'm trying to run the game in a way that doesn't make a character ineffective because a player was busy. (If I don't have a justifiable creative solution, there's always post-two-turns-next-time or GM-rolls-PC-action.)
 
Legendary Sidekick

Legendary Sidekick

Staff
Moderator
Since we're paused again (and honestly, I've been insanely busy so I don't mind that)...

...I was thinking about how this play test was supposed to be Fate vs. d20.

For me, it doesn't matter how or why dice are rolled. A die roll is just a randomizer to see if your attack/move works out or not, and nothing more.

Is anyone interested in just rolling the d20 and keeping all the stats stuff behind the scenes?

@Ireth, Noma, Ruby... since you were playing that way before, do you have a preference (Fate vs. d20)?

I'm wondering if the Fate system is part of the reason posts are slowed, especially for people who were playing the game before.

I'll admit that I was intrigued by the Fate system, but where I run into trouble is when it comes to rolling different skills. I have to look at my character sheet to find out what my bonus is, and I don't want to look at my character sheet. I just want to post my action then roll to see if it worked or not.

There are plusses to the Fate system. I REALLY like that Lily is a jock, not a fighter. (Physique and Athletics are her +3s, and she's a beast-rider so Drive is her +4. To make her that way, Fight had to be +2... and I love it!)

With the d20 system, it's more like you roll and there's a certain number your character needs to succeed. You don't know what the number is. (Hint: 1-5 almost always fails; 13-20 is almost always successful... and magic requires a 10 for success unless you opt to "charge" the spell. I actually liked the magic system that way.)

What's most important to me is knowing what you, the players, want. I don't want to revisit which randomizer is used once the play-test is over. (Three maps: the current two, plus the third where everyone will meet to take on the big boss.)



PS- No matter what you decide, don't reroll your turn. If we do switch to d20, I'll figure out how to deal with your rolls. Mariya definitely hit.
 
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Ruby

Ruby

Dark Lord
Hi Legendary Sidekick,

I've just DMed you to say I prefer the old system. It was SO much easier to roll the dice without having to first consult a card in the thread here.

We were still able to role play as the scores were simpler to interpret.

Sorry I haven't been on here much lately - I'm preparing for NaNoWriMo which starts in a few hours! :eek:
 
Legendary Sidekick

Legendary Sidekick

Staff
Moderator
Okay, that's 3 votes (I chatted with Aspasia yesterday.), and I get the feeling Noma would prefer charging magic the old way. Stats will be tied to the class to make life simpler. Player preferences (strong body, quick limbs, sharp mind) pretty much aligned with what I had in mind for the class anyway.

Anyone who hasn't rolled yet can roll 1d20 (Rolz default). Noma and Ireth… I'll figure a d20 equivalent for your rolls (based on probability inaccurate fuzzy math). Noma's 6 is better than average, putting her d20 equivalent in the teens, so Mariya zapped her target. Huntresses are good shooters, so despite Ireth's slightly below average roll, Ariel grazed her target.
 
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Legendary Sidekick

Legendary Sidekick

Staff
Moderator
Seeing how everyone who's played the old way prefers it, yes definitely.

I'm even thinking it can be simpler than it was. You've already given your preferences for stats before, so I'll just stick those to the class and give Dila huntress stats. I'll post what those are if you're curious, but basically if you have a strength bonus, you're better at performing feats of strength than those who lack the bonus. I don't feel the need to have increments that players can tweak. The only class that will have different bonuses than others are pixies, since the immense difference in size would affect strength and stealth, and it also affects defense since they're hard to hit. (And yes, this means Vincent's telekinesis is as strong as a brawler's arm—or an amazon's.)



I would like to do two things differently:

1. COMBOS

If you roll a 13-19, you can hit 2 enemies (or more if you play a certain class -OR- you rolled 13+ with a charged spell). Fighting nuns and brawlers can always combo if the roll hits, and samurai can potentially hit 3-4 enemies.


2. SPECIAL MOVES

If you roll a 20, attempt something insane. As long as it's within the realm of possibility, it'll work.

Example of what is within the realm of possibility:
* Deus ex crap, like Ariel conveniently remembering that exploding arrow Lily gave her for emergencies.
* Comboing more than normally allowed: Fenella spins around, hitting every enemy in a 5-foot radius with her sword.
* Total bullshit: Dila sneezes, and her crossbow misfires. The bolt strikes Balance Rock, which teeters for a few seconds, then comes crashing down. Conveniently, it only lands on bad guys.

What will not work:
* Mariya grabs an enemy's hair and rips off his head and spinal column. (The GM post would have Mariya with strands of hair in her hand, and the annoyed enemy looking up at her.)
 
Ireth

Ireth

Mythic Scribe
Exploding arrow? That sounds interesting... :D So shall I henceforth specify what kind of arrow Ariel uses for each Shoot attack, as Addy did in Ep. 2? The only special one I know specifically that Ariel has is the one Lily gave her as a Maiden's Day gift. Not sure what sort of birds she'd find on Roku-Roku to make arrows with, or what she might have bought/made prior.
 
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