Declarations
Declarations are something I didn't so much change as formalized. Originally Declarations were primarily intended to be a way to create or deny "permissions" for certain actions. Got a speedy opponent dashing around, freeze their legs to the ground or pin them under rubble and their primary offensive/defensive Trait becomes useless, forcing them to rely on other Traits as a backup. Likewise, disarm a swordfighter and they've got to find some way to get their sword back or at least find a substitute.
However, with the introduction of Fighting Styles, there aren't any "backup" Traits anymore. Everyone has just one Fighting Style and except in the most unusual circumstances that's all they're going to be using. This means that shutting down an opponent's Fighting Style is just way too powerful, and being honest it was probably never a great idea to begin with as certain Traits were just too vulnerable to declarations. After all, if the only difference between being a sword-master and being a punch-demon is that the first guy can be completely shut down with a single Strike, then everyone is going to stick to punching. And don't get me wrong, I like myself some punching, but I also like big, giant swords and I refuse to tolerate a system that doesn't allow for big, giant swords.
 |
| Like So |
So, obviously shutting down Traits isn't going to work. But Declarations are also kind of essential (especially with the way Forms work now). So, I decided to work on an actual list of example uses for Declarations outside of shutting down Traits and by the end of it I was very satisfied with how effective they are. Especially the ability to explicitly create or trigger Obstacles and Hazards.
Speaking of Obstacles and Hazards, a small but significant change is the division of these into "active" and "passive" Obstacles. Passive Obstacles are environmental or situational effects that get in your way. Even if they were created by another character, they just sit there and are usually pretty easy to blast through (especially if you've got EP to burn). Active Obstacles are those that represent the actions of another character, someone able to adapt and react to your actions...meaning they can use Powers to boost the Obstacle's roll and can earn Strikes on the roll. Sort of like the difference between being caught in a net and being grappled by an opponent.
Clashes
Clashes in general haven't changed too much, although I did basically ditch initiative. It just wasn't fitting and in the end, deciding turn order is just not that big a deal. Now players choose which PC goes first (by any means they wish), then an NPC gets to act, then a PC, then an NPC and so on until everyone has acted. If one side runs out of characters due to being outnumbered then all the remaining characters get to take an action.
I also introduced the concept of a "refresh" at the end of each round. Instead of regaining EP at the start of your turn, everyone's EP just refills automatically at the end of each round and that's also when your Tension Meter ticks up as well. It alters a bit of the strategy now that everyone gets EP back simultaneously, but overall it simplifies things and makes tracking EP much less of a headache.
Just like with Declarations I formalized the Actions in combat a bit, now there are 3 definite actions: Overcoming an Obstacle, Attacking an enemy, and Psyching Out an opponent. The first two operate much like they always did, but Psych Outs are specifically a Background vs Background roll, bypassing the opponent's Fighting Style. The Tension meter increase also goes to whoever wins the psych out, regardless of who initiated it.
But, overall Clashes aren't too different. A few tweaks here and there. Got rid of the multi-attack option...just couldn't think of a good way to handle it that didn't deserve to be treated as a Power. So you can kill Weaklings en masse, but any tougher opponents have to be attacked one-on-one unless you've got a power to go after multiple enemies with one attack.
Next time I'll cover some of the changes made to Powers and their mechanics.
No comments:
Post a Comment