Dungeon World Zeitgeist

Game Master Sbodd

Anyone else doing anything, or shall we see what's behind the door?

Burke: My immediate answer would be "hire a runner", and to ask what means you have to verify the message is genuine; I'm open to another answer if you have one.

"What's that Adir? Timmy's stuck down the well?" Retzack chuckles as the owl transforms.

Of note, I think InfernalZero is taking a bit of a break. He's free to prove me wrong, but we may wanna bot him for a bit.

"Well, then it sounds like Burke needs our help. Shall we away?"

Adir looks at Retzack, puzzled. "No, it's Burke, and there's no well, just a hotel room. Who is Timmy?"

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"Indeed, we should. I have misgivings about leaving him alone, despite his ability to handle himself."

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"Brill, you say?" Adir growls, even in his eladrin form. "As unpleasant a man as any vermin crawling around the sewer." He will follow Burke in.

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If true, perhaps Zero can be our hotel room investigator?

Sure, Kappa can be covering the hotel room until IZ comes back.

Burke, as you kick in the door, you hear the sound of multiple pistols firing; fortunately, all the shots seem to go wide, one hitting the cobblestones at your feet, and two others thunking into the door frame by your head. Looking inside, you see a decaying lobby, with doors on three floors. Several of them are ajar, and could have been fired from; your guess is that two of the shots came from your right, one of those from a higher floor, and the third from somewhere in front of you.

What do you all do?

As the others follow him in, Burke stops. Three shooters.

He points. There, there, and there. Let's take at least one alive.

He briefly taps his badge with reverence as he moves forward towards the open doors in front of him. What here is evil? From my human move.

Tethys tries to channel her Power as a shield until she can see something to attack :

Channel: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (3, 4) + 2 = 9

So, +1 ice to her armor (total 2, now), and I'll take a complication :
"the GM will tell you of one or more complications, such as:
• The magic flows out of a different part of your body or is of a different element
• The magic has an unintended effect on the environment
• The magic causes a blast wave and you are thrown backwards"
I assume from the wording that other effects are possible, so have at it! :)

Tethys, what does your ice shield look like? How do you envision the hazard tag applying to it?
Burke, tell me about what qualifies as "evil"
for your paladin sense, please.

Before taking off to cover the hotel, Kappa slips a watertight container to Retzack. In hushed tones, he informs him it holds:
- A single stoppered vial (marked with a date from a few years ago) from a small box labeled "Invis."
- A handful of thunderstones.
- A piece of paper with a few addresses written on it in a slightly shaky hand.
"They had this in a box with a "Security" label someone had painted over, hidden with some uniforms and such. Make of that what you will."
"Do exercise proper discretion with these, would you? As ever, some things should not reach certain circles." Or Burke in general, for that matter.

Alright, potentially important/useful items transferred, continue as you will.

Adir shifts into the form of a snow leopard, leaping twice to land on the third floor railing where Burke indicated one of the shots was fired from.

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[dice=Shapeshift: Snow Leopard]2d6+1[/dice]
Move: Leap(?)
Hold:1

I think Evil=Lawbreakers/Criminals/Cheaters to Burke's sensibilities. We are not talking about evil in the angels and demons sense. But that might be too broad and powerful. What do you think?

"Gratitude, Kappa."Retzack states as he secures the package given him. He's sure such things will be important once they are given more time to examine them.

For the now, gunshots have a call to action all of their own.

"You certainly know how to start a party, Boom-Boom," Retzack says to Burke as he steps boldly into the room. "Oh, Propoket, thou art merciful as thou dost give us a great bounty in the midst of this hellz-cursed boring investigation," the apex predator intones solemnly.

Seeing Boom-Boom dart move directly forward, and the Adir-leopard jump up, that should leave only one shooter on the ground floor and to the right.

Retzack turns and struts powerfully forward. "Oh look, intruders. How entertaining. Or terrifying. Or both.

For them." The vampire's form seems to flicker forward in short bursts as he quickly closes the distance toward where the first shooter is.

Sprinting forward. But Vampires never sprint. They just cooly stride forward, but somehow go faster as they do it. ^_^

DM Sbodd - I envision the shield as coalescing out of the water vapor in the air and freezing into a shield in front of her.

Regarding the Hazard tag...well, the power says "choose two tags", and *all* of the other were attack-based, so Hazard was the only one left. Maybe...it condenses water vapor out of the air in a wider radius, covering the area in fog? Nah, that's a penalty for her too.

I'd be happy to just apply the one tag to this Power, if it's ok with you...Actually, the instructions *don't* say "two *different* tags", so could I take the Barrier tag twice for +2 Armor? Nah, didn't think so... :)

Tethys

I'm fine with just one tag. Doubling up a tag I think I'm going to say 'no' to - +2 armor, not a big deal, 2d8 damage would be more so :p

It's a very humid day, and you pulled more power through your conduit than you intended; your shield manifests, but there's also additional pillars of ice all along this block of the street - including one blocking the door your comrades just used to enter the building. You hear gunshots from inside, and a sudden set of footsteps from the alley on the right side of the building. What do you do?

Burke
I'm okay with that; how "sensitive" is it? Do you pick up starving kids stealing food? First time offenders? What about white collar crime?

Looking around at the lobby, you can tell - this building is used as a gang hideout; everyone here is likely to be a member.

You walk forward towards the door ahead of you. Two more gunshots come from inside, one flying wide and the other pinging harmlessly off your RHC badge. As you reach the door, you hear a misfire and a Crisillyri curse; whoever's inside flings a pistol at your head. What do you do?

Retzack

More shots fly as you walk toward the door; you can smell fear from whoever's inside. What do you do? Probably going to be a Defy of some sort to get close enough to open the door.

Adir
A 10+ on Shapeshifting gives you 3 hold, right? Or did you mean you were spending one hold for "easily traverse a steep surface"?
Bonus question: Your land is the Great Forest, and Risur is a tropical kingdom. Tell me, how did you learn to take a snow leopard's form?

You see the muzzle of a pistol sticking out from the door; it doesn't seem that the wielder knows you're there. The door begins to open wider; what do you do?

Retzack's form seems to shimmer and flicker as he coolly walks inexorably toward the door and the sweet, red, wine of life that someone else is currently holding for him.

Defy Danger Dex!: 2d6 + 0 ⇒ (5, 5) + 0 = 10

I've now entered a new location. I'm asking the GM for one interesting fact about the place. =)

Adir creeps up on the door and swipes at the hand holding the gun.

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Hack & Slash: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (1, 1) + 2 = 4 Or not...

Hold:2

Adir Lore: My mother hails from the Frozen North and I learned a few basic forms from her: Snowy Owl, Snow Leopard, and Polar Bear. I enjoy using them as a tribute to her.

Burke scoffs as he bats the peashooter aside with the butt of his Pistol and sprints through the doorway.

Defy Danger Dex: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (4, 1) + 2 = 7

Goal is to get close enough to this guy to pistol whip him unconscious.

Detect Evil: I'm tempted to say all criminals from the most petty to the most egregious, but that is overpowered. Let's exclude the extremely petty theft, etc. Is that defined enough?

Tethys takes a quick look around, and asks herself "Where's my best way in, out, or through?" to get to the alleyway where she heard the footsteps. And, while she's at it, "What can I see that no one else can?".

And not to belabor the point, but *all* the other tags can easily be paired with another one (one type-of-effect, one damage tag), because they're all damage related. What if I could only double up on Barrier, because it's so odd? Last time I'll bring it up, I promise...

Retzack
You glide smoothly towards the door, your path neatly avoiding the incoming shots without any apparent effort on your part.

As you enter the room, you suddenly recognize it - years ago, when the first factories were being built, a serial killer was caught here, with the partial remains of a dozen victims stuffed into the floorboards. You can still smell it...

Now, there's just one terrified tiefling inside; his pistol lies discarded on the floor, and he's pulling a knife. What do you do?

Tethys
Alright, double barrier is fine.

The alley you could just walk to; anyone else might have trouble with the icy street, but you'll have no problem getting over there.
One other thing strikes you as odd...a few blocks away, there's a policeman looking in your direction; it should be obvious that something's going on where you are, but he's just watching.
What do you do?

Burke
Works for me. Got a few edge cases that come to mind, but we can clarify if/when those come up.

You bat the thrown weapon aside easily, and burst through the doorway; inside, a man snarls "Git outta here" as he stands there, brandishing a small sword in one hand and a safer in the other. From his stance, your guess is he knows how to use them. What do you do?

Adir

Just as you move to strike, the door opens wide and the woman inside rushes out. You claw her hand, but the impact with her sends you flying over the railing, back down to the ground floor. Her pistol drops to the second floor landing.

She knows you're there now, she's two floors up, and you can see her reaching for something on her belt. What do you do?

Deal your damage, and also take 1d6 yourself from the fall.

Burke doesn't hesitate.

Volley: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (4, 1) + 2 = 7

Reduce ammo by 1

Damage Pierce 1 (shooting to disable if possible): 1d10 ⇒ 4

Retzack's face splits into a mirthless grin, showing canines overly long to be human. "A knife. How cute. The ArchDemon father that spawned you must be so _very_ proud of your power. That knife doesn't even reek of dried blood from a dozen lost souls murdered alone. In the dark. Is it perhaps simply stolen from mother's cutting board for you to play big warrior? Hahaha, it is isn't it?

What say you?"

Parlay!: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (3, 1) + 2 = 6

'That could've gone better.'

Tethys runs out into the street, looks over at the policeman and shouts at the top of her voice "RHC! We could use your help over here, NOW!" and points back into the building she just left.

Maneuvering the icy street with ease, she dashes around the building into the alley, to discover...what?

Adir hits the ground with a loud thud. Standing up and stretching the sore muscles, he leaps back up next to the woman.

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Damage:Dealt: 1d6 ⇒ 2
Damage:Self: 1d6 ⇒ 6

Move: Leap

HP: 10/16
Hold:1

Retzack

The guy drops his knife, and drops to one knee, hands behind his back. "Alright, just... don't hurt me! We're....with the Hand. Boss wants to shake down the factories around here, said we should set up here to...watch the area, pick out a good first target, make sure the Ravens aren't still in the area." He fidgets as he watches you closely.

What he just told you is a lie; this has never been Raven territory. He's scared of you, but even more scared of something else - presumably, whatever the real reason he's here is.

What do you do?

Tethys

The policeman doesn't appear to react immediately, beyond an acknowledging wave. As you head into the alley, you see four figures scurrying away, carrying a small but seemingly heavy box between them; when they spot you, two of them stop and walk towards you, drawing blades. One of them says "Turn around if you know what's good for ya," as the other two keep moving, struggling with their load. What do you do?

Burke

I see autocorrect mangled something in my last post; the guy in front of you has a sword and a dagger.

You fire, and the shot connects; before you can get a second shot off, however, he's on you, slashing with blows you just barely avoid. What do you do?

Adir

You leap back up to the balcony, and the woman there has drawn a baton, the end of which is sparking with electricity; getting hit with that will probably hurt, and might leave you stunned. She brandishes it at you as you face her on the balcony. What do you do?

Burke engages with a smile on his face as the Pistols whip out at the criminal's head.

Pistol Whip H&S: 2d6 + 0 ⇒ (6, 1) + 0 = 7

Damage: 1d10 ⇒ 6

Retzack nods sagely, as if believing every word the man said. "Mmm. Ah. So, you are saying that Lord Borak himself set you to look after an abandoned area. One that has little value, and you were only waiting for us, in ambush positions, by shear happenstance, eh?

Of course, I never did promise to let you go."

Retzack's mouth gapes open and his face contorts into an animal's snarl as he LAUCHNES himself at the dishonest man!

H&S!: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (2, 2) + 2 = 6

Alas, his muscles have not yet reshaped into their normal form, and after so long in torpor his reflexes have much ground to make up.

Adir snarls and runs at the woman, but leaps at the wall, pushing off, and attempting to knock her over the railing.

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H&S: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (2, 5) + 2 = 9
Damage: 1d6 ⇒ 1

Tethys drops the Shield and tries to make the ground under the two ruffian's feet icy and slippery :

Channel: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (2, 4) + 2 = 8

She'll stop the overflow of power by absorbing the damage herself :
Self damage: 1d4 ⇒ 1

Assuming they slip and fall, she'll run by them fast, before they can recover, maneuvering over the ice with ease.

HP = 25/26

Retzack

You bend down towards the kneeling man, and his arm flashes upward, a gleaming silver dagger leaving a wound on your left arm. He scrambles back and away from you, dagger outstretched.
Take 1d6 damage. The dagger is silvered; what effect does that have on you?

What do you do?

Tethys

How does the forceful part of Icy Ground manifest? I'm picturing you basically spraying ice like a firehose from your hands, is that about right?

You coat the alleyway in ice, and the force of your channeling shoves the two people sliding across the new ice into the wall. You glide between them, gaining ground on the other two. They curse, drop their load, and one turns to face you as the other pulls something out of his coat and kneels down, placing something on the ground near the box. They're about fifteen feet ahead of you; what do you do?

Burke

You trade blows Take 1d10 damage, landing a solid blow to his head but taking several cuts in exchange. He stays in close to you, not giving you room to fire, but you can see him starting to look for an exit, even as he spews forth a stream of threats. What do you do?

Adir

Your ploy works, your bounce off the wall is unexpected, and you catch her off guard and send her over the railing, down to the lobby floor. She manages to tag you with the stun stick as she falls, however; your nostrils fill with the scent of burning fur, and you're stunned Mark the debility. As your head starts to clear, you see the woman limping towards the exit. What do you do?

My damage: 1d10 - 2 ⇒ (1) - 2 = -1

Burke laughs as the blows rain down harmlessly on his armored duster. He fakes another Pistol whip and instead lashes out at the suspect's groin with a steel toed boot.

Boot & Bits: 2d6 ⇒ (1, 6) = 7

Damage: 1d10 ⇒ 2

Grrr.

Silver damage!: 1d6 - 1 ⇒ (2) - 1 = 1
Retzack himself, in an age when he was feeling bored and honest, wrote in his book "On Immortality" that the irritation brought on by the Forbidden Materials was usually proportional to the amount of the material present. A candle or a sliver of sunlight was merely akin to the irritation of having a bad cold, whereas approaching a bonfire could be like a human trying to cross a river of lava.
A single weapon made of the stuff made it harder to kill them. A dagger, the smallest serviceable weapon, brought on the smallest noticeable effect.
-1 to H&S to opponents wielding one-handed silver weapons.

"Impudent cattle!" Retzack snarls as the knife slices along the ancient ring mail that he wears under his finery. "I should have known that Lord Borak would equip his peons against my intrusion. Ha! He must think very little of you to give you so small an instrument. I have not fought against so devious a foe in many, many years. This will be fun.

But not for you."

Yoking his iron will to head in against the silver-wielding opponent, his hands contort like talons trying to clutch the man and hold him still.

Hack and Slash but not really and mostly just grappling!: 2d6 + 1 - 1 ⇒ (6, 4) + 1 - 1 = 10

Roll damage, Retzack!

Hee. It's never been really put into concrete rules, but I've usually played that if a Vampire succeeds on a H&S, he just gets to drink 1 point from the opponent (Apex Predator). So all he loses right now is one point of blood. After two points a normal human goes unconscious, and is dead at three. ^_^

Sbodd - that sounds about right!

Thinking that what worked before should work again, she repeats her efforts at the forceful, ice-coating blast :

Channel: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (2, 3) + 2 = 7

And again she'll stop the overflow of power by absorbing the damage herself :
Self-Damage: 1d4 ⇒ 4
And grunts as the pain hits her.

HP = 21/26

Adir watches the woman, certain that he should pounce on her to stop her, but can't quite figure out how to make his limbs work. He shouts a warning to his comrades, not realizing that all they hear is, "Meeooowwrrr!"

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Defy Danger(Int): 2d6 - 1 ⇒ (6, 1) - 1 = 6

HP: 10/16
Hold:1
Debility: Stunned(INT): That last knock to the head shook something loose. Brain not work so good.

Adir - what was that DD roll for?

Retzack

Fair enough. Sounds like that probably doesn't work against armored opponents?

You manage to grab him, and take a nice, long, warm drink. Your victim cries out, and eventually pushes free, pivoting to put his back to a wall. He starts edging towards a window, keeping his dagger pointed at you. What do you do?

Tethys

You cover the next segment of the alley in ice, and the two men in front of you go sliding away, along with their box. They're prone, but close to the next cross street at this point. Behind you, you hear the first two thugs trying to regain their footing. What do you do?

Burke

He reads your kick, and pivots to take the blow on his hip; he then catches your foot, and drops you on the floor Take 1d4. He calls out "Get over here!" as he limps back through a door, slamming it behind him. For clarity, not the door to the lobby. You hear running feet behind you. What do you do?

Adir

As you focus on not stepping on your tail, you're vaguely aware of your quarry below; a curse drifts up as she finds the door blocked by ice. She pulls something out of a pouch, and the room below begins to fill with smoke, and you hear her running away from the building's front door. Your head's beginning to clear (no need for further DDs for being stunned) , what do you do?

My Damage: 1d4 - 2 ⇒ (2) - 2 = 0

Burke stands, reloading one of his pistols as he does. He then leaps in pursuit, following the swordsman through the door.

Defy Danger Dex?: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (1, 1) + 2 = 4

Haha, goal was to pursue the guy and shoot him in the leg as he flees, so that could also be a miss on a volley. Let me know if that roll counts for XP purposes.

Tethys quickly slides over her icy walkway towards the two prone men, with the intention of grabbing the box and continue sliding away.

Huh. I've never really thought about that, but, yeah, that does make sense that someone armored up in full plate, or even a full suit of chainmail, would be proof against biting. Huh. Hadn't thought about that.

Retzack smacks his lips and dabs at the corners of his mouth with his archaic ruffled sleeves. "Ah, oh, yes. Delicious! It's been awhile since I've had adrenaline and fear in such a delightful concoction. I thank you, my host, for setting such a fine, fine table. Alas, the first course has not slaked me, but has only sharpened my thirst for more.

You will accept my apologese if I make a pig of myself and go back for second helpings. You can at least take comfort in the complment that you taste so very, very flavorful."

Retzack's mouth opens wide and he hisses like a cat as he launches himself at the man again!

Wild fight scene! Fangs v Dagger FIGHT!: 2d6 + 2 - 1 ⇒ (3, 6) + 2 - 1 = 10

Poor kid. He just wasn't meant to win this one. 2 pts. Unc.

Adir lines himself up with the front door and leaps down from the balcony into the smoke. He rushes out the door after the woman.

Adir, the woman was running back into the building, since the door was blocked.

Sorry, comprehension fail.

Adir leaps onto the woman from above, attempting to pin her down.

H&S(?): 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (3, 5) + 2 = 10

Tethys

You reach the box, but one of the men manages to scuttle over to it and gets there at the same time you do. He's draped over it, and you won't be able to just ice-hose him off the box (if you tried, the box would probably go with him). There's also an odd piece of rusted metal - curved, about two feet long, with some hinges or something on it, a couple of feet from where you are. The two ruffians behind you have regained their footing and are (slowly) making their way towards you; the last of the four is crawling away, towards the street that's still in front of you. What do you do?

Retzack

He fought hard, but not well. Another drink, and the poor prey slumps in your grasp. Behind you, you hear feline hissing, cries of pain, breaking glass, and the lobby's filled with smoke - you can't see anything. Ahead of you, there's a back room to the former apartment that you're in. What do you do?

Burke

I'm certainly not going to deny you some sweet, sweet XP. Mark it!

The door resists your first attempt to open it. Before you try second time, you hear shattering glass from the room beyond, followed by a loud, wooden thump. You smash through the door, and the room beyond appears empty, aside from some decaying furniture; a broken window opens into a narrow gap between this building and the next, and the air in the room is filled with dust. What do you do?

Adir

Given that the room was full of smoke and you couldn't see her, I'd go with that roll being a DD+...Wis? to locate her. In this case, though, the outcome is basically the same :p
You correctly guess where the woman was headed through the smoke, and catch up with her as she reaches the doorway Burke went through earlier. Her back's to you as she peers into that room; you've got the drop on her if you act now. What do you do?

'Well, there's no use going back that way,' Retzack thinks as he sees the smoke billowing from the lobby. Thinking that his current victim prisoner can't go anywhere too soon, he coolly makes his way to the back room and sees if he can't come around and catch the rest of their quarry from the flank.

You will not continue to elude me. I am the hunter and you are prey. Adir leaps onto the woman from behind, knocking her over and pinning her down.

Tethys tries to deftly slide the man off the slick, frozen box :

Defy Danger, DEX: 2d6 + 1 ⇒ (5, 1) + 1 = 7

And succeeds, but with a penalty.

Burke leaps from the window and searches for signs of a blood trail, or any other sign of his quarry.

Discern Realities?: 2d6 + 1 ⇒ (2, 1) + 1 = 4

Retzack

The back room doesn't appear to contain anything of interest - old furniture, mostly. A window on the side of the building opens on an alley; you hear some grunting, and note that the alley appears to be covered in decidedly unseasonable ice - likely Tethys' handiwork. You also hear another noise, possibly footsteps, but they're oddly muffled and it's not apparent where they're coming from.

What do you do?

Tethys

It's tough to get leverage, but you manage to shove the man off the box. As you do, he grabs some kind of metal shape off one side; you suddenly feel ill, weak and nauseous, and the man you shoved off looks like he's not faring much better. The other three pause in their approach. What do you do?

Burke

You leap through the window, without quite enough care, and pick up several cuts from the glass take 1d4 ignores armor. Outside, your best search turns up no sign of your quarry; no blood trail, no footprints, no sign anyone other than yourself has been here in some time. What do you do?

Adir

You strike from behind, knocking the woman to the floor. She struggles, cursing at you ("Get off me, you blasted cat!"), but not immediately able to throw you off. What do you do?

Can I hear Tethys' struggle?

Damage: 1d4 ⇒ 1

Yes - you can also see part of the ice-coated alley in that direction.

Your boss told you this could be interesting, and from the look of things, he wasn't wrong. Blood has pooled at the base of the embassy's wrought iron fence. A window shattered on the upper floor, and the shards gleam in the garden below. The body of the young woman who was impaled on it is being taken in the embassy's doors by a pair of workers, while the security head is speaking with a district sergeant. Behind you, a crowd of witnesses is starting to disperse. What do you do?

I'd like to run a Dungeon World campaign inspired by the Zeitgeist AP from ENworld.

The short pitch: the PCs are a squad of the High Constabulary (think Scotland Yard/Homeland Security) of a fantasy nation in the throes of an industrial revolution. The setting is steampunk - early trains, firearms, steamships, along with magic and fantasy races.
The initial hook will be urban/mystery, but where it goes from there is "play to find out what happens". (For those familiar with the AP, I'm planning to use the opening of the second part, The Dying Skyseer.)

Want to play? I'm looking for 3-4 players. Available playbooks include the core classes (no Immolator or Arcane duelist), Grim World (no Slayer, Templar, or Necromancer), and Inverse World (no Captain). if you have something else, I'll take a look, but those are the ones I have access to.

I'm looking for players to make about one "content" post most days, and will generally try to post at least one substantial post per day myself (with maybe a couple of lighter posts to answer questions, etc.) Recruitment will be open through April 2nd.

I'd wildly guess that the initial setup will take 3-6 months to resolve, but since this is my first time GMing PbP in a very long while, and my first time GMing DW, that could be wildly off.

If you're interested, post which playbook you'd like, any major decisions (race, alignment, and e.g. cleric diety), and a couple of sentences about who your character is. Also tell me a little about how you came to work for the High Constabulary. Why are you trusted with the defense of the nation?

If you're interested but don't have a clue what Dungeon World is: it's a lightweight ruleset based on Apocalypse World. Most of what you need to know is on This Page, and that page also has links to the core classes.

There's a lot of detail in the published campaign setting, but I'm going to establish just a few bits as fact from the start; anything else is open to be defined during play.

Setting Summary
The PCs are currently residents of Risur, and members of its High Constabulary. Risur is a tropical nation with strong Druidic traditions, and a major global power. The recent introduction of several technologies (gunpowder, steam power, steel) has started an industrial revolution that's provoking significant societal conflict.

Flint, the city where we open, is a port city that's a major hub of development.

The embassy in the hook is that of Danor, which Risur just got out of a shooting war with.

The overall setting is fairly high magic; the working class can't afford much in the way of magic, but minor enchantments are available to even the modestly well off.

If you're interested, I look forward to seeing your character! And thanks!

Dungeon World is such a cool system. And the Zeitgeist setting is cool, too. Dotting in.

Is gunslinger ok?

Slyness - I look forward to seeing your character!

Castle Blades - got a link? The idea is fine, but the first hit I get on Google is a fairly bad draft of a playbook.

http://www.d20pfsrd.com/classes/base-classes/gunslinger/

I'm running Dungeon World, not Pathfinder. It's an entirely separate game; a link to the core rules is in the OP if you're still interested.

Sorry

Are you planning on doing anything with the Zeitgeist character themes/mini-classes?

And I think I'll try Druid.

I hadn't initially planned on adding the Zeitgeist themes explicitly - both to reduce the amount of text in the OP, and to avoid locking in all the details that go along with them. If there's a particular one you like, we can come up with a background move or a compendium class for it.

Quick bump for the weekday crowd - anyone interested?

Are you familiar with the Lords and Lore sourcebook?

The "Dark and Urban" setting just seems to fit so well with a Vampire. =) The old Elizabethan noble is always a-wonder and a-gasp at how the New World has changed.

(I promise not to play him cheesy. More Louie and less Lestat. But maybe a teeny bit Tom Cruise. Because why not? =)

Haven't looked at it, but it appears to be PWYW, so I'll give it a quick read tonight. I'm a little skeptical of the concept - my default preference is more heroic-fantasy, not all that grimdark :p hence the Grim World playbooks I ruled out.

How are you picturing this vampire earning/holding a position of trust? Would the rest of the party know? Your boss?

*chuckle* I've always had an unconventional view of vampires/necromancers. Sure, they usually are evil, but by no means do they -have- to be.

The sausage-making part of it would be as you thought best, but we can go many ways with it.

To make it easier on you, sure they know. Retzack has a good reputation, by day, as a happy fellow, always quick with a joke or to help a friend out of a jam. But he's a vampire. He says he'll never drink from an unwilling friend, as as yet he's kept his word.
By night he feeds mostly on a group of groupies that relish the rush that The Kiss brings, and the blood loss from just a nourishing sip is healed after a good night's rest, so no harm done.

He also is allowed to drink fully from condemned criminals, thus saving the cost of bullets for a firing squad, and saving others from the inevitable trauma that comes from being an executioner. He relishes the rush from a full belly, and it's a dirty job, so everyone is glad that they don't have to do it, thus it's a Win-Win.

The recent murder is, simply, bad for business. Retzack thinks that it -might- be a "traditional" vampire who lost his battle for his Humanity (and then went broke buying d10s). Retzack is anxious to put down this "rabid dog" since it might upset the careful balance that he's created in forging a good life for himself.

How's that? =)

For the Zeitgeist race Eladrin, would you allow a custom Racial Move for the druid? It corresponds to their Fey Step ability. If you want, it can be limited uses per day like the original, or some other limiting factor.

Eladrin: You can teleport to a space you can see within 30 feet.

As for themes, the Skyseer definitely interests me.

Atlas2112 - alright, I think I could work with that.

Slyness -

For Fey Step: per-day uses seem a little off in DW to me, but some limit seems appropriate. My immediate thought would be roughly:

Roll +(stat). 10+ you're there. 7-9, choose 1:
You were a little too slow
You left something behind
Something else came with you
your connection to the Dreaming fades, can't Fey Step again until you make camp (in the wild?)

I'm open to tweaks or alternate suggestions, if you have them, as well as your thoughts on what stat would be appropriate.

For the Skyseer background, what about something like the base Oracle move from Class Warfare - either as an available advance, or replacing (say) Spirit Tongue?

Truth and Consequences
When you examine the strands of possible futures, describe an event that is yet to occur and roll+WIS. On a 10+, name three
people, groups, or social institutions. On a 7-9, only two. On a miss, name one anyway, in addition to whatever else the GM tells
you. For each subject you name, the GM will tell you what sort of consequences this future event will have for them. You may only
examine each event once.

I agree with the limited uses per day not quite fitting. And I think you came up with an awesome alternative. Since it's fey-based, perhaps Charisma?

Re: Skyseer, sounds cool to me.

I'm excited, so join up, people. =) Dungeon World is very fun and collaborative!

Interested! I'm a big fan of DW, but have only ever played IRL. I'm very curious how it would translate to PbP, since there aren't turns per se.

I'm also not familiar with the Zeitgeist setting at all.

I'm thinking of maybe playing a bruiser-type cop; probably a fighter, or possibly a paladin.

In my last DW game, we came to the conclusion that the standard Fighter playbook was kind of uninteresting compared to many of the other playbooks. We started using the Improved Fighter playbook instead.

The big change is the inclusion of a new Fighter basic move "Battle Instincts," which lets the fighter know about her opponent's strengths and weaknesses, or allow a tactical advantage. (On a success, gain hold to choose from a list of effects.)

Let me know what you think of that playbook!

Here is the player's guide. None of the crunchy stuff will apply, but you can obtain a sense of the steampunk-y setting.

Welcome, Haladir!

The playbook looks OK. Str seems like an odd stat for Battle Instincts (feels like Int to me). The "negate a move" option sounds like it could cause some problems, especially in a PbP context where retcons can mess with the pace. Do you have any examples for how that option got used in your game?

As far as DW in PbP, I've been a fan from the player perspective. The lack of turns eliminates one of the biggest pacing killers from Pathfinder/d&d PbP.

Slyness - thanks for linking that. I'd also add that (aside from the items mentioned in the OP) the details in that are all malleable; I'll probably draw from the setting heavily when I'm posting, but anything that hasn't been stated in thread is open for changing or discarding.

Also, if any of you see a character theme in there that you like, we can come up with an appropriate move.

Are you full up yet?

Nope, definitely still have room! I look forward to seeing your character!

Slyness linked a doc about the setting, though that's strictly optional reading - I'll pull from the setting for some things, but anything that hasn't come up in thread is fair game to change.

What about a dual wielding gun toting paladin? I'm thinking sort of like Christian Bale from equilibrium. Believes in Druid traditions (source of magic) and worships the Law as if a religion unto its own.

Haven't seen the movie, but the idea sounds fine. As a warning, it's likely that "druid traditions" and "the Law" will come into conflict, so you may end up with some hard choices to make there. Definitely not saying you shouldn't go with that if that sounds appealing, though!

Hi there! =)

(Character submission from Atlas2112!)

I, ah, I believe MCKhaos may have a passing knowledge of this character. ;)
(Also, Gun-Fu rules!)

One of the things I most like about DW is how "off the rails" it can go sometimes. To take full advantage of that, might I be allowed a minor racial move?

And since I'm going with "human" it seems that something odd and entertaining and possibly not useful at all might be called for.

I've compiled a few suggestions, in no particular order. Just tell me the one you like the best and I'll just go with it. =)

It is one of my favorite terrible movies.

Maybe "Law" isn't the right concept. More "the Status Quo." Fights to keep things the way they have always been, without much consideration to the way things should be.

This goof.

I did see that movie! It was pretty terrible :p

And that rework should be fine, MCKhaos.

Retzack - my gut is to go with long-lived on that one. ("We don't understand" feels a little off, since you fit in well enough to have earned a position of trust. Don't worry, I'll still be asking you plenty about that foreign country, The Past!)

This is Burke. Righteous defender of the old ways. Or, at least what those in power claim are the old ways.

Still, the High Constabulary has found use for a man blessed with fanatical loyalty, a misplaced sense of self-worth, a dash of superiority complex, and a generous helping of confirmation bias.

Here is Adir, my first draft of the druid. Let me know if you have any questions, thoughts, etcetera.

Burke - looks good. Got an alignment in mind?

I didn't have particular rules for firearms picked out - do you just want to have
Dual Pistols (near, loud, reload, 1 piercing)
for your weapons? Are there any particular rules you've used/want to try out?

Slyness/Adir - looks good.

Haladir - are you still interested?

Could I sell you on Reload 2? So, can fire both pistols before having to reload them?

Should I advertise?

Ive done a couple of Dungeon World Pbps before, and while they didnt last, I had some good fun playing them, so definitely interested.

Both of my previous plays were as a Pirate (One time as an actual pirate, the other using the class for a dwarven gunner) so ill probably have to try something new this time (Though the class as a whole appeals so much to me I just might go for a third.)

Im also contemplating playing a "group leader" type, possibly a cleric, something akin to an Inquisitor in Warhammer 40k. Just, you know, without the absolute power to order the others around of course.

Bastian Kray, Hjalmar! Good to see you.

I'm MCKhaos, Morley, and Lyntel.

DM, could you open the gameplay thread so we can dot it for updates?

Also, I'm thinking Good alignment.

Bastian Kray, Hjalmar! Good to see you.

I'm MCKhaos, Morley, and Lyntel.

How about that, small world huh? Holla back at ya!

Hey there, Sbodd! Laguna here. Or to MCKhaos, Greas.

Now judging from the allowed classes, what's already taken, and the quick summary I have available to me, I am convinced the most appropriate choice of class to pitch is Rainlord.
I'm sure this raises many questions. Which is good! I'll do my best to answer them as soon as I can figure out what they actually are.

Hopefully this sounds alright to you, because I'm finding myself quite interested in being a weird liquid person.

Greas! How's your campaign going?

Doing good! Had a couple of players that I needed people to take the places of, and I have improvements to make on my end, but when your crew managed to set a magical library on fire and later collectively create a place in which time and space are twisted up which I just cannot wait to use to mess with them, I'd say it's all going well.

Also, I have the alias and sheet stuff for the Rainlord done already. All things considered, I found myself quite amused by the fact I could get a "badge of rank" from my gear list considering the circumstances of the campaign here.
Yeah, I grabbed that rather quickly.

I think I'm going to have to pass at this time... I've got some RL stuff I have to deal with.

Geez, I stop checking for a few hours and the thread gets busy! :p

Burke - reload 2? Makes perfect sense. Sold.
And I wasn't going to open the gameplay thread yet - going to leave recruitment open through Sunday; once I've picked PCs (might have to down-select at this point, I really don't want to go over 4 players) I'll post questions in the discussion thread and open the gameplay thread for dotting, expect that Monday morning.

Deliverance - Howdy! Let me know.

Infernal Zero - between Black Kappa and Retzack the Vampire, the RHC may turn out to be somewhat weirder than I'd been imagining. :p

Haladir - thanks for the interest, and good luck with the RL stuff!

I'm relatively new to DW, but I like it, and I like this setting. I also like the "post every day" attitude!

How about a Channeler from the Grim World playbook?

ZenFox - welcome! A channeler sounds fine!

Now that I've looked it over more completely, I have a question about summoning elementals : how long do they stick around after my Control goes to 0? Is there any way I can "dispel" it?

Would a background be enough to decide selection, or do I need to come up with a completed PC by tomorrow?

Background :
Tethys Araquinal was an ordinary child until she hit puberty, at which point her powers became manifest. Her family had to move out of the village she grew up in, when she lost control a couple of times and nearly destroyed the village. So she and her family moved around a *lot*.

When she became of age, she set out to see the world. Traveling a lot, doing odd jobs here and there, she started taking on jobs that others wouldn't, knowing she could use her powers to get out of scrapes.

Finally, she started doing un-lawful things, more for the thrill of it than anything else. Being over-confident, she eventually got caught, but after just a month in jail, someone from the High Constabulary approached her, offering her freedom in exchange for being part of a special team of misfits that was being assembled, to go on special high-risk missions.

How could she refuse?

As I read it, how long they stick around isn't defined. The Channeler has advanced moves to dispel it, but they require you to still have at least 1 Control. So the exact answer we'll figure out, but it's probably "long enough for me to use them in a hard move if I feel like it" at a minimum :p

And that background is good for now. What are you picturing as your primary element?

I haven't decided yet - still trying to figure out the dis/advantages of each element type. I'm half-tempted to do fire/eyes ala Cyclops, but that feels a bit cheesy...

Also, I'm wondering (based on some discussion posts) whether the Channeler's Techniques only require the CON-based roll to activate *and* take effect, or if a second roll would be required. Like, does a 2 Piercing Projectile automatically hit on a 10+, or would I also need to roll a Volley to hit?

In the game I'm playing a channeler, it's channel-only. The second roll would feel pretty strange to me; the Wizard doesn't have to Volley for Magic Missile, after all!

That's what I thought too - the discussion post was regarding a Channeler PC who was "too powerful", and a second roll was suggested in order to tone him down.

I've been thinking about my element, considering things like Wood or Stone, but I think I've finally settled on Ice.

So far:

ZenFox42: Channeler (concept)
Infernal Zero: Black Kappa:
MCKhaos: Burke
Deliverance: Bastian Kray
Atlas2112: Retzack, the Black

That's 5. Oh come on, DM Sbodd! You can take us all! =D

Pretty sure Bastian Kray's not his pitch for this campaign. He could be used here, but I don't think a version of him has been pitched for this one yet.

And you forgot Slyness! Or as I know them, Shyness! Hey, it's Sora!

So, the list looks more like this:

ZenFox42: Channeler (concept)
Infernal Zero: Black Kappa
MCKhaos: Burke Hoffa
Slyness: Adir Bloodmoon
Deliverance: ???
Atlas2112: Retzack, the Black

Which assuming all the characters crop up, is 6. Still in feasible range if I was judging, though I wouldn't go for any more. In the end, it's Sbodd's call though.
It'd be great if we all made it though - I know just about everyone here!

ZenFox - I can see where that might be a concern, but it'll depend heavily on how things get defined in the fiction. If it becomes an issue, we can figure something out when it comes up.

Black Kappa - that's the list I have, as well.