So, The Druid

sweet. Thank you. I'll make sure to post playtest feedback to the forums here.

I'm playing a 3rd level elf druid from the Emerald Isles and am looking to take Thing-Talker as my next move. I already have Elemental Mastery. What sort of cool inanimate natural things can you guys think of? I know it would work for plants, trees and rocks...but what are a few other interesting uses for this move? Does anyone have any other suggestions for a cool druid move instead of this one?Thanks.

I'm playing a 3rd level elf druid from the Emerald Isles and am looking to take Thing-Talker as my next move. I already have Elemental Mastery. What sort of cool inanimate natural things can you guys think of? I know it would work for plants, trees and rocks...but what are a few other interesting uses for this move? Does anyone have any other suggestions for a cool druid move instead of this one?Thanks.

Ocean foam, sea salt, sand, palms, lava rock, coral, banks of heavy fog.  I was actually just in Hawaii for a few weeks and it was very inspiring for these sorts of things.  I'd suggest doing a google image search for Polynesian islands or hang out on wikipedia.

It'll be up to you and your GM to work together to draw the boundaries between Thing-Talker and World-Talker - generally, Thing-Talker will still be heavily flavoured by the Land.  You're seeing things like pine trees and cacti and really specific elements like arctic ice or swirling desert sand vs. pure and unbridled elemental forms.

Flotsam and Jetsom

Thanks for the replies guys...I've got plentyof inspiration now. But, I was aslo wondering what are some uses for the move. I know you can use the move to talk to those kinds of things and turn into them but what would be some practical uses? What can you actually do once you are in that form? I'm trying to think of something clever and fun to do in game. I know it will all depend on the fiction, but any ideas on how to use the move for something a little different? In combat, in particular, what would be a good use of that move?

I was actually thinking of taking the move to cast cleric spells and reflavor them to be more like druid spells. I can think of plenty uses for these in a game but we already have a cleric in the game and I dont want to step on his toes, though he said he was cool with it. The Thing-Talker move is very cool and flavorful but I'm not sure how much mileage I'll get out of it in our game.

The most obvious uses are turning your hands into sharp coral or your skin into hardwood, giving you moves like "leave a horrible bleeding wound" (anyone who has ever cut themselves on coral will know how bad it sucks) or "deflect an attack".  The GM is the one that ultimately gives you the moves, but it's the GMs job to ask questions, right?  So your GM will see what you think, too. 

The Shapeshifter move specifies taking on a perfect copy of something's form. I think maybe it might need rewording if it's also supposed to allow partial transformation like stone skin or coral hands.

The Shapeshifter move specifies taking on a perfect copy of something's form. I think maybe it might need rewording if it's also supposed to allow partial transformation like stone skin or coral hands.

There may be some room for clarification, to be sure.  I envisioned Thing-Talker as allowing full shapeshifting into humanoid-shaped mobile forms made out of the stuff you shapeshift into - treants, swamp shamblers and the like.  

Consider this errata for the playtest version; "Thing-Talker forms can be exact copies or can be mobile, vaguely humanoid-shaped entities."

Chimera is the move that lets you mix-and-match.

I like that! I can't wait to be swamp thing.

Now you're talking, Skinnyghost! That's what I was trying to get at. I just couldn't think of too many useful reasons to actually become a rock or a tree or some other natural inanimate object. But with this new errata, it really opens up the possibilities. Thanks.

Another move that I took was Elemental Mastery. I've used it twice (because I'm scared I might lose control and endager innocent lives). One time I conjured a mini tornado to knock back a crazy mob of villagers that was threatening my companions. I managed to retain control but I was harmed and got thrown back by the force of the wind. The second time, I conjured a flame to light something on fire and again I rolled 7-9 and retained control but got burned. I am really dreading the 6 minus roll because I dont want to lose control some day. It makes for good tension.

But I have a suggestion. It seems that even if you roll 10+ you must pick the option that lets the effect come to pass. So on a 10+ you WILL either be hurt or lose control. I think it's a bit unfair. Maybe you can add one more option such as "you can use this move again today" so that on a hit your effect comes to pass but you still may be hurt, lose control, or not be able to use the move again. It just seems wierd that on a hit you have to actually pick that the effect happens. I think it should happen, and then you pick something esle.

Thoughts?

This is been already discussed about, if you are interested in reading the previous comments. I would totally agree with you if only I didn't have yet to playtest elemental mastery (the lazy and lucky druid in two sessions basically failed only 2 rolls and never resolved any bond! so he's the only one still at level 1 :| ).

Minor thing, but regarding Balance: I think it should say "When you deal damage during battle you may choose to do -1d4 damage."  Or otherwise indicate that it must be vs a foe.

Without that clause, a druid could arguably use this move while punching his willing allies.  If they choose to not defend themselves, the druid just does damage (no move required).  If he's unarmed, he "might do 1 stun damage."  If he then chooses to do -1d4 damage, that's 0 stun damage. He then heals someone for 1d4 damage.  And is the ally even stunned, since he took no damage?

Yes, this is easily prevented under the "don't be a tool" clause of your social contract.  And sure, you can say "you're unarmed, so you can't deal damage."  But that implies that I can't ever do damage unarmed (if I can't do it NOW, when no one's stopping me, when can I?).  Frankly, I don't want to have that conversation at the table.  Also, it's an easy enough fix to make.

Possibly a broader concern with the move: it's very mechanical.  There's no required fictional component, just the implied fictional component of dealing less damage.  Maybe make it something like:

"When you deal damage in the heat of battle and choose to pull your blow, do -1d4 damage and gain 1 balance..."  Something like that; maybe come up with a more  poetic or evocative phrasing than "choose to pull your blow."

Great feedback on Balance.  Thanks!

I'm currently running a game with three players, one of whom is playing a Druid.  There's been some situations where he has shape-shifted when there wasn't a fictionally obvious threat nearby and so I struggled to make a hard move that followed smoothly when he rolled a miss.

I'd just like to get a feel for what other GMs are using in similar situations, and also which of the following seem legit:

• The shifting goes wrong:  you turn into another form that you know (GM decides)  Put someone in a spot or Turn their move back on them
• The shifting only partly works:  you retain some features of your humanoid form (usually in a way that makes one of the animal's moves narratively unavailable, or creates some other obvious weakness) Put someone in a spot
• You distance yourself from the spirits:  -1 ongoing to shifting rolls until you rest (similar to the spell-casting 7-9)  Use up their resources
• You lose your mental grasp on the animal's form: can no longer shift to this form until you rest  (similar to the spell-casting 7-9)  Use up their resources
• You're distracted in some way that messes with "you and your possessions meld into a perfect copy".  You can shift, but when you shift back some item that you hold, named there and then by the GM, will have been destroyed  Tell them the requirements or consequences and ask
• There's also the easiest hard move: deal damage.  Perhaps the Druid injures himself in a painful American Werewolf style transformation....

I've also struggled a bit with working out appropriate moves to give out for each animal form.  Examples would really help!

I was thinking that a lot of the power of the animal transformation should come from fictional positioning, and maybe the hold should just be spent ad-hoc when you do something that is only possible by virtue of being shifted.  So you're a bear, awesome! Now you can completely block that doorway, or hit 5 goblins with a single Hack and Slash.  You're a rat, awesome!  Now you can Defy Danger to hide in shoebox, or find your bearings instantly in a sewer.  Narrate something that's only possible because of your form, spend a hold. That thing then becomes a move, so write it on the "animal moves" section of your sheet for future reference and consistency.

Tarnop, you have it all worked ou! Those ideas for a miss are all wonderful, and your thoughts on fiction first in relation to hold and the power of shapeshift are highly appropriate to the move (and all moves really).

All I can really add off the top of my head is that there is no onus on you to respond with your hard move as the very next thing you say on a miss. Ask questions first, establish why the shapeshift was important to the character or situation in the fiction and antagonise that intent.

Maybe on a miss you could say that the animal form is taking over and when spending hold the character needs to defy danger to overcome anything other than the form's instinct? The danger being that the character slips further in to the animal mindset and despite using up all of their available hold remains in animal form until someone they are bonded to brings them back...

You can always just advance a grim portent and show signs of doom too.