Maybe.  That was the worst case scenario.  I've played/run in four groups and haven't seen a hardholder or a hocus yet so I don't have experience with that. 

Still, scarcity is a pretty fundamental part of Apocalypse World, yeah?  Until they have the capability to make allies, (at least the 6th or 7th session in), every NPC the player characters come across is a "Threat."  Maybe malicious, maybe just needy.  Some of them should definitely be saying stuff like, "You want my help?  Well I'd love to, sure, but man I haven't eaten in two days and I haven't had any fresh water in, like, this year.  Hook a brother up?"

And any time you try to manipulate someone and get a 7-9 they need some concrete assurance right now.  In many cases I think that should be barter.

I blame that swamp game at GenCon for poisoning people's minds with wetpocalypses.

I think Wetpocalypses have been a natural alternative to a default "Mad Max" type setting from the get-go:

http://direstraits.wikidot.com/

;)

I agree this game sounds very hot.  The characters look cool, 'specially Uncle and Brick from what you've written.

I own it.

I need time to read rather than only browse it but I love this genre and I think this is gold:

When you Wield a Blade with Deadly Grace roll +Beauty
On a 10+ pick 2, on a 7-9 choose 1:
You wound someone’s pride
You wound someone’s body
You remain unharmed

Lots more great stuff, but this stood out.  Mostly because I see myself always picking the first two at the cost of being harmed.

1)  All three of the MCs I've played with (and now me as MC) allow helping rolls after-the-fact and so help most often occurs when the players see that the intial roll is sitting at "6" and just needs one more +1 to get to a weak hit.  That has a strong mathematical impact on the case you present above.

2) I like what the risk associated with helping others adds to the game, both the play dynamics and how it informs the genre.  But I and some others have allowed the highlighting of Hx in one form or another to further encourage help rolls.

3) Some AW characters might choose to be self-destuctive but I wouldn't derive that as a general case from the rules or from the play I've experienced so far.

Our first two sessions of In The Wake have been relatively low key in terms of plot advancement; I am still in the process of revealing all the places the PCs are not in control and building PC-NPC-PC triangles.  It may be that I am not pushing enough.

In any case one of the things I am really enjoying about the game so far is AW's psychic maelstrom in play.  There is already good textual guidance on things the MC can do when characters open their brains to the maelstrom but maybe we can collect additional instances from play in this thread.

One thing you can do is use the player's response to the question you ask them to frame your response for the reason they're tapping into the maelstrom to begin with.

An example from our last session:

The brainer Jackson is being tailed by Torn, a workspace assistant to the group's savvyhead.  Jackson ducks into an abandoned storage facility on the docks and opens his brain to the maelstrom.  He wants to know about why Torn is tailing him, what harm he intends.  Jackson hits with a 10.

I ask Jackson, "What's the worst thing that's ever happened to you when you opened your brain to the maelstrom?"  Brendan thinks for a few seconds and describes a time when Jackson was relatively young and some dock roughnecks held his head underwater and he opened his brain, how trapped and helpless he felt, etc.

I interpret Brendan's query more more broadly as wanting to know more about the whole conspiracy behind Torn's following him.  His roll gives me the opportunity to convey it.  I describe how Torn feels trapped as he follows Jackson, that he has a similar feeling of being held, of being violated against his will.  (He is an unwilling agent being directed by another NPC)

Part of the reason Torn is following Jackson is connected with two men from a rival hardhold being held prisoner in the nearby tower of Sagrada.  I hadn't thought previously to the specifics of where they were being held, but now I know; they're being held in a cell under the surface of The Wake, the "Under" regions of Sagrada.  Through the maelstrom Jackson can see them now.  They too feel trapped and helpless.  Their cell window looks out into black waters.  He can feel their fear.  They are close.

So basically immediate reincorporation if the player's response to your questions seems fruitful and relevant.

Where do you get that scenario?  It's referenced several times in the rules but the book doesn't include it...

How are people handling fights where the PCs have NPCs on their side?  I think I'm headed into a fight where two PCs have three or four NPCs on their side up against a small gang.  I am considering having the NPCs cumulatively be able to do one Harm every tick.  The NPC's lives will depend on the rolls of the PCs whenever I give them ugly choices.  What rules might I be missing or what rules should I keep in mind?

Also, a small gang (~15 souls) is treated as such for all purposes until they are reduced to one or two guys, yeah?

Looks like Vincent's added them to the apocalypse world page.  Thanks!