Bard's 'It Goes to Eleven'

What prevents the Bard from using this on an ally? On a 10+, the ally deals his damage, presumably without having to roll HnS. The 7-9 effect is even more powerful.

Mechanically?  Nothing.  The effect doesn't damage the target or anything.  Narratively, man, this is a bad idea.  I mean, it causes confused flailing.  That means that the target isn't like, actively choosing who to attack.  They're freaking the eff out.  Friendly fire is bad news.  On top of that, a miss might mean deafness or a debility!  Dangerous and risky, but maybe your party is into that kind of chaos and madness.

On top of that, a miss might mean deafness or a debility!  Dangerous and risky, but maybe your party is into that kind of chaos and madness.

but that happens even if the attack is directed against an opponent. And these kind of effects are not specified in the move, so it depends upon the group. Maybe it actually needs a rewording, either detailing how dangerous and risky is (something much more than just "flails in confusion"), or allowing its use only against opponents. Or both.
or maybe I'm just being paranoid °L°

Haha! Awesome!
In the oneshot I played a couple of weeks ago, the Bard played his lute until it goes to 11 on the dwarf warrior, (described as incandescent blue lightning licking all over the strings \m/ ),  turning him into a whirling, headbanging agent of death! The rest of the party hid behind various dungeon dressings and waited, the elven bard incased in a beam of righteous musical cacophony, his head thrown back, long hair flowing, and his swirling cape awash with musical arcana as his fingers blitzed the fret board! F**K YEAH!

presumably without having to roll HnS

wait, I just re-read it. Who said that?! Is this true?

@ (not that) Adam -- It says '... choose a target who can hear you and roll +CHA. On a 10+ the target flails in confusion, dealing its damage to a creature of your choosing.' So I read that as it just deals its damage, no HnS roll required.

@ Skinnyghost -- 'On a 7-9 it deals its damage, but then takes +1d4 damage ongoing as the music invigorates it.' I don't read this as implying that it continues being confused after the first instance of confusion, but either way the 7-9 is really strong:

If the confusion persists, then 7-9 is strong because the party can stand back, Defending the Bard, and let the enemy monsters get ripped apart by their buddy.

If the confusion doesn't persist (merely invigoration, as the text reads), then 7-9 is preferred because you can cast it on an ally.

Gee yes, sorry, for some reason rereading the topic I was sure the move said "it attacks a creature of your choosing".

Yeah, the move actually pushes a player to use it on an ally instead of on an opponent, and that feels weird since it's clearly not how is intended to work, and all because the 7-9 effect is a boon instead of a "yes but..."

If it will ever be a problem in my games, I think I would fix it like:

on a 7-9, the creature's confusion goes out of control and attacks you berserker style.

Instead of having +1d4 ongoing damage.

Confusion doesn't mean it always attacks its enemies.  Or just attacks.  Confused creatures sometimes run away or knock stuff over or just cause chaos.  A lazy GM will be like "it's just like Final Fantasy and roll a d6 to see who it attacks" etc but a creative GM will cause all kinds of problems with this. 

Also, unleashing a crazy blast of confusing chaos music can do lots of other stuff on a miss.  THE GODS OF HEAVY METAL ARE LISTENING!

I'm starting to see what you say here... If you unsleash "it goes to eleven" against an ally, you can expect the gm doing some hard moves. The bad ones. Because you basically gave the gm a Golden Opportunity.

"'It Goes To Eleven' On Ally Considered Harmful"...

In all seriousness, I would (as MC) warn the players of the possible danger and then ask if they are sure. And then, yes, golden opportunity for sure.

I would just say "So, Fineas, you realize that unleashing music this powerful might, you know, give Bjorn some serious issues down the line?  I mean, this is intense stuff."

and they'd say "why yes of course, GM, I do so willingly and happily and oh I just missed my roll"

and I would smile.

And say my favorite 5 words in the game.

"But you gain an XP."

No other game generates the 'roh roh' look on a players face such as gaining xp does in this one. :)