A final(ish) version of The Youth! I’ve updated condensed a few things, updated “Not the Baby” to reflect a new method of leadership (based on whether or not people are nice to you) and clarified some wording.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Htnv5KQdEgOROsfkO7TbwvyfJTj6e43nf_t0vQcwhBM/edit?usp=sharing
Is it by default that there are 9 moves and not 6 like other playbooks?
I always like giving players more options, especially if they start with “take 2”. Also lets other PCs find things they like without stepping on peoples’ toes.
It’s just inherently more powerful then other playbooks in that way. That can be a deliberate design choice, especially if they don’t have another special thing but I feel like the core move already does that.
Will any actual character be inherently more powerful, though? They still get a limited selection of moves from this playbook ( 1 + 2 at creation, 2 more from advancements).
I rather like it, based on the idea it adds more options out there for other playbooks to dip into this concept.
The main downside I see to having more moves is that it might cut into the “pick up and play” aspect of Masks that it inherited from AW. If you start the game off by just showing and sharing the playbooks with a group, a long list of moves might cause analysis paralysis for some players, causing them to take longer than the people with only five or six moves. Masks has a point where everyone needs to be more or less finished to do “when we first met” and “influence.” If one player is still agonizing over which of their nine moves they want to take, it could slow up the game.
That hasn’t been my experience, Camden; generally the decision is “Do I want to play a Ghoul or a Vampire” more than “which move sounds cool”. I also wrote expansion moves for all the originals because frustratingly, it’s hard to revisit a playbook if you’re already played and taken 60% of the moves before.
It’s the same rough amount of moves as in Monster of the Week and Troublemakers, more than Monsterhearts or The Hood, fewer than Dungeon World.
I can see “choice paralysis” being a thing simply because The Youth will only get to take 5/9 of their moves, the paralysis coming in after selection of the playbook has already been made.
But Masks clearly lacks a “standard number of moves” – look at The Doomed.
I generally like what The Youth brings to the table, and i like that the extra moves mean another playbook has a few options to take on aspects of this playbook without stepping on whatever version is at the same table.
As for choice paralysis, the way i have overcome it is in realizing that i can always play again, and again, and again! No choice is final if i intend to make it again, later.
I’ve abandoned the desire to play long campaigns and stick to one character. Instead, i want to play short story arcs, “drive my characters like a rented car,” and then do it again. I play for volume and variety of social/gaming experiences over story/character integrity and gravitas. This has helped me focus on the importance of playing well, rather than playing “right.”
I also think with the “Playing the Youth” guide I explained what abilities work together and which may be redundant. They’re personality driven, so there are definitely heroes who would take “Can I keep it”, “Kid Logic” and “Hug” but would never take “Hero Worship”, as it implies you care about adults. But “Hero Worship” pairs well with “Eyes of Wonder” as one of the questions is “What would the hero I look up to do?”