Platest report 1Playing in Swedish, over google documents. An example of how it looks when we are playing is
hereSetup continuing earlier playWe are playtesting the Playtest One version of the rules by continuing exactly where we were when we paused playing with the First Look rules. This meant a variation on the setup in the Playtest One documents.
Previously on...Previously, we had created a teenaged Outlaw Heir and a middle-aged Troll-Killer that had allied in the struggle to take back the throne from the Heir's brother, the king.
We started play outside an inn at an important crossroads, which serves as a safe house and winter hearth for our heroes since the family that runs it owe their lives to the Troll-Killer. A fight with bounty hunters we thought were after the Heir, but the Troll-Killer revealed that she had belonged to and left a monster hunter sect and that they were actually after her as punishment for leaving.
I tried, as I usually do when MCing, to follow the characters around to get to know them, and managed, as I usually don't, to not escalate everything to an end of the world level right away.
The duo talked and sang through the evening and had a training session the day after, with the Troll-Killer instructing the Heir in close combat, using different circles on the ground to train fighting at different distances. Very fun. Not completely clear what moves we should use, but we decided to call it going into battle in order to try out the rules.
Then they started north into the Songswood, a mystical forest, to try to get an alliance with the bandits living there. There they met undead, whom only the Troll-Killer's cursed sword could harm.
That's how far we got before the previews of the new rules came. We're playing online, via Google docs, so this was about the equivalent of two table sessions.
Oldish New playbook: The Outlaw Heir We decided to remake the characters with the new rules, so I proposed an Outlaw Heir looking like this:
High stat: +2 Strong.
Rights:
- Special: Add 1 to your Bold, to a maximum of +3.
- Special: Add 1 to your Strong, to a maximum of +3.
- Your foremothers were queens of the Old Blood. You have these rights:
- To fitting tribute and recognition from all your neighboring queens.
- To bind warriors and sages to your service by oaths and blood rites.
- To solemnize the turnings of the seasons and the bonds between the the Human World, the Natural World, and the Other World.
- When you inflict harm, or lead warriors who inflict harm, you have the right to inflict 1 additional Harm.
- When you give someone an order or a warning, you have the right to roll Strong. On 10+, they choose 1 of these:
- They follow your order or heed your warning.
- They freeze or back slowly away.
- They attack you.
On 7–9, they choose 1 of the above, or else 1 of these:
- They scoff, but hesitate.
- They demand proof, an assurance, or an explanation.
On a miss, they dismiss your words and continue on their course. - When you judge someone strong or weak, enemy or ally, you have the right to treat it as sizing them up, but roll Strong instead of Wary.
- You have the right to seize authority over a counsel of war.
- You are beautiful and doomed. When you enter into a new social setting, you have the right to roll Bold. On 10+, choose 2 of the following. On 7–9, choose 1.
- Someone here falls in love with you.
- Someone here is afraid of you.
- Someone here must meet you.
- Someone here is a friend of your family.
On a miss, choose 1 of the above, and in addition:
- Someone here will try to kill you.
Map and groups/peoplesThe map of the land is
here.
From our setup with the old rules, we had a map, populated with groups, which made the next step, writing down peoples, interesting.
I have noticed that some players have reported confusion with the small numbers in the options for peoples, and many seem not to have used the Or as you choose option for bigger areas or towns and so on.
Here, I will have to do that, since we already have groups of people defined from before, with thousands and thousands of souls defined by the Heir’s old playbook. To stay true to the fiction, we will keep those numbers, and then add subgroups when, for example, play focuses on a village or something.
We have farmers of the lowlands, clans in the highlands, robbers and other woodspeople in the forest, townspeople on the coast, the royal house, and other groups mentioned on the map.
I’m currently torn between writing up more of the groups, because it makes things concrete and that is generally good, but writing up too many groups at once that have not yet been on screen will just be confusing. So at the moment, I’m writing up a few groups in detail, and noting the others with just headlines and vague numbers for later, or for when the players feel like filling in the blanks.
The groups that are written up in detail are:
Farmers of the Saroan lowlands5000 souls, 600 households, 800 warriors. Bronze-brown and gold-brown, stocky. English names.
0 Rites, -1 War, +2 Wealth.
Known for their patience in suffering, their loyalty, their rich land, their beauty and their feasts.
The Filled Bellies InnThe people living in and around the inn. 25 souls, 4 households, 3 warriors. Mostly bronze and golden brown Saroans.
+1 Rites, 0 War, +1 Wealth.
Known for their vigilance against monsters, their veneration of priests and priestesses, their crafts and their cuisine.
The robbers of the Songswood40 souls, 4 households (they are a bit spread out), 20 warriors. Most are bone-white or pink, a few are dark brown, some are lighter brown.
0 Rites, +2 War, -1 Wealth.
Known for their insularity, their advanced tactics, their mercy to the defeated and their hospitality (to those few who manage to get it).
The royal houseOne family, worshipping the Old gods, descendants from a mythic queen. Have a secret, ancient language. 5 or 6 living persons. Persian names used within the family, and more common, English or Latin, names used otherwise.
Very dark brown skin, almond-shaped eyes, short and slender.
+1 Rites, 0 War, +1 Wealth.
Know for their powerful, but dying gods, their devotion to the old law, their mercy, their rich land, their generosity.
The Circulus SerpentisSworn together by holy oath (obediance and slaying monsters). 30-40 souls, 1 households, all are warriors.
Variety of colors and looks. Dress to blend in. Snake tattoo. Latin names, or local to blend in.
+1 Rites, +1 War, 0 Wealth.
Known for their fearlessness, their vigilance against monsters, their blood-vengeance, their skills at arms and their crafts.
Groups that are mentioned but not defined are the highland clans, the townsfolk of Viserto, the people and vassals of the north-west coast, and so on.
Some commentsSince starting with the new rules, there haven't yet been many rolls for moves. I bet they will come, though.
We havent made new maps since changing to the new rules, so we haven't yet used the Voronoi sheets.
The rules for creating peoples and NPCs are very inspiring.
The same group is playing a space game, with rules that are inspired by Uncharted Worlds, but that are mechanically
very close to these AWDA rules. That game has been moving faster, and our experiences from that game is also that the groups/people rules are great, that the system with moves divided between domains is very nice since it makes it so easy to tailor a playbook after a character concept, and that there is a bit of confusion between the moves Size someone up and Win someone over.
Um...Um, that’s a kind of report. Not sure what to say now, and it’s long enough, so I’ll stop until either someone asks me to expand on something, or I think of more to report.
We have great fun playing, though!