Thoughts on BSG moves

I'm not working on a whole hack yet myself, figure I need to see the whole game first, but seeing BSG mentioned elsewhere got me thinking of what a few setting-specific moves might look like.

Command Decision
When you make a hard command decision, weighing risk versus reward, and you or your subordinates act on it, roll+sharp (or whatever stat is appropriate in the hack). 10+ gets you all three of the following, 7-9 you choose two, 6- you choose one and the MC makes a hard move.

• Objective achieved
• You suffer no significant losses
• There is no significant collateral damage

Dogfighting
When you and your wing are in a dogfight against gut-wrenching odds, roll+hard. Choose options. 10+ gets you three, 7-9 gets you two, 6- gets you just one. Choose well.

• Objective achieved
• You return to base
• All birds stay in condition to fly again
• All pilots are unharmed

Okay, that's just two for now, to get me started. Thoughts?

Well, I think these definitely get at the BSG flavor. The one thing I'd say is that with the "Command Decision" move, since making 'command decisions' is such an integral part of what BSG is, I don't know if I'd wrap them up so neatly in a single move package (kind of like how someone pointed out on Story Games that a move "Play the Game of Thrones" for a Song of Ice and Fire RPG would probably be taking too much of the 'in play' action away). I think maybe I'd focus it on the *fallout* of the command decision, like your second two choices, maybe something like this:

On a 10+, choose 3. On a 7-9, choose 1. On a miss, the MC tells you what happens:
* Your subordinates fully support your decision
* There is no significant collateral damage
* You suffer no significant losses
* The public support your decision

(this is entirely off the top of my head). I *really* like the "Order hirelings around" move out of Apocalypse D&D, as it forces you to pick 3 "bad things that aren't true" out of 4 on a full hit, and they're really hard choices!

Yeah, I think these moves are a little too close to the bone to be basic moves. Regular AW doesn't have a "survive in the wasteland" basic move, for example.

However, I can see something like Command Decision being used the way a Hardholder's wealth move or a Hocus's fortunes move works. A way of establishing a new baseline for the action after a period of downtime. As is, it's almost like moonlighting already, and that's probably a good sign.

I really like the clauses about subordinates and public opinion that you added, Jeff.

Good points there.

I was going to say that I think we should separate the 'leading your people through a tough spot' and the 'making hard decisions that will put important things, like civilians and every fighter we got, in danger', but I see that the subordinates and public opinion options play to that nicely.

John, how do you mean that using Command Decision like Wealth could be implemented?

Well, it's possible to imagine the fleet as a holding, and Adama as its hardholder (oh man, the ownership of that holding changes hands a lot, huh?).

So, the fleet would have surplus and wants. Probably wants like hunger, desertion, mutiny, infiltrated, lost.

Between sessions or after some downtime -- when Adama's command is secure -- his player can make a wealth-style move to determine the outlook of the fleet. You'd hit and get surplus, or a mix of surplus and want, or just wants (on a miss).

Probably making that move also means you're issuing new orders to the fleet. Which might put your orders in conflict with the needs and goals of the other ship captains, in which case a pack alpha style move might be called for.

When you organize CAG missions and such, that's probably working gigs, like moonlighting.

I'm just spitballing here, not really designing. A BSG hack will have its own particular vision and call for its own moves. But the rough shape of it is there under the skin of AW, for sure.

Sounds nice. As I might have said, I'm just feeling my way here, trying to get a feel for the parts of the game and what to do with them. Missed the chance of looking at the playtest rules in their entirety. :)

Oh man, something about talking about how the leadership changes hands so much made me want to come up with different side effects if you secure your rule with 'hard' or with 'cool' (or their BSG equivalents). Not sure if it's something that should be compressed into 'just a move', but I think a BSG game deserves a meaningful way to address the tension between the military and the civilian government being in charge.

I'm not sure the Galactica is a Hardhold so much as the Home Front. The other ships are hardholds. The the Viper pilots and Marines are Gangs. As I see it Adama is a Battlebabe.

My feeling is also that the Galactica would be more of a home front than a hardhold. Presidency over the fleet would probably be what gives access to wealth style moves.

The kind of command decisions I was thinking about might still be a move for when in play, so to speak, for Gordian Knot situations where you decide to blow up a civilian ship possibly carrying an armed nuke, or venting a part of the ship to get rid of fires, risking the lives of your crewmembers. That's why I put the objective achieved option in.

Phrased well I don't think this would be of a scope much greater than for example the go aggro or seize by force moves.

What about the dogfighting move, any specific thoughts on that?

Oh, and would you say Roslin is a Cool or a Sharp style leader?

The dogfighting move looks good so long as you aren't interested in a game where lots of dramatic stuff happens in dog fights. I think it suits BSG to make the dogfights just be "something that puts stress on peoples interactions" rather than something to get into the nitty gritty on.

And that's a good question! I'd have to say she's sharp, because she's so calculating sometimes.

Nah, I think what happens between people is the hot stuff in play and dogfights aren't really between people. Dialogue when flying, sure, but the dogfight itself should do well as a move that gives consequences and might achieve specific stuff at best. At least when the odds are gut-wrenching. When they're not it's probably just descriptive play. Nitty-gritty dogfights = not fun.

So there needs to be some sort of leadership move based on sharp for the civilian politicos...

Oh, and CAP runs should definitely be a gig that removes want:harassment attacks or want:insecure or something from the fleet/ship/hardhold. And ship security policing might do something similar.