A couple quick move questions
First, in the Divine playbook, both myself and my player (who is spellslinger, but ‘took a move from another playbook’ on this one) have read and re-read the ‘what I need, when I need it’ move, and can’t decide if it means a single item is held at a time, or if multiple items can be stored at a time, and the one needed can be retrieved at any time, individually. Each time I think I decide, and I then blink and suddenly realize it must mean the other. I was just going to go with it being multiple items as long as she doesn’t go too crazy with it, but curious what the actual intent was.
Second, with a spellslinger’s combat magic, I’m having to make a lot of quick calls on the fly as to how things work… it’s all pretty clear, actually, until you start using the ‘wall’ base. So first, she has wall as a base, and force as an effect… so I’m reading that as she can make a wall with either 1 harm and 1 armor (the base), 2 harm and 1 armor (base + effect on base), or 1 harm and 2 armor (base + effect on wall), but NOT 2 harm, 2 armor (that would be base + effect on base + effect on wall, and there is a very clear OR in the effect… so this I think I’m clear on, but just wanted verification).
The bigger question is: if she can cast a barrier during a KSA using weird rather than tough (which makes sense if she is maybe defending herself when a monster corners into using KSA), what happens if she tries to use the barrier to help someone else… if she’s trying to use it to defend someone else, should that be Protect Someone (rolling tough, which is the rules to the letter), using protect someone (but rolling weird by extending the idea of spellslinger combat magic to Protect Someone), or Use Magic (rolling weird, because this is the spellslinger casting a spell which just happens to be protecting someone). I’m thinking Use Magic should generally be used when casting (with a possible Act Under Pressure addition if under stress, like when in the midst of combat), with KSA only a situation where the player is actually trying to (or forced to) get physical with the monster (and for a spellslinger, this allows for casting their combat spell, but for other playbooks, magic would not be an option), and Protect Someone would only be for physically intervening… since the barrier only provides 1-2 armor rather than fully preventing damage like Protect Someone (ideally) does, I guess it does make more sense that it isn’t a Protect Someone roll.
As usual, that’s what I’ve worked out while typing, some of that differs from what I was thinking before starting this post. So then it really just comes down to the fact that the spellslinger can probably use Use Magic to cast that wall at any time, while it is in Combat Magic to help them personally when cornered and forced into a KSA rather then Use Magic to help mitigate their own exposure?
Oh man, now what about Help Out? :p. Could you roll a Use Magic to act as a help out on another player’s KSA roll? Well, off the top of my head, I guess I might double the rolls, rolling a Help Out to try to aid the other and a Use Magic to determine the actual effect (where if help out was used with a standard weapon, it might just provide the benefit to the player helped plus possible harm of the weapon, help out with a barrier may provide the benefit to the player plus the benefits of the barrier (+harm and +armor)? So many options!
I guess, in general, I’m occasionally having trouble with moves that take effect during KSA, but that occur in situations where the player can act beyond the monster’s range or awareness… since it isn’t technically KSA if the target can’t reciprocate. But then it gets hard to write off why the player would perform better when under far more pressure and danger than when they aren’t… I’m fairly good at making spot decisions, but it would be good to be able to lay out somewhat consistent rules for players to be aware of so that similar situations don’t keep playing out using different mechanics just because I’m trying to figure it out on the fly. 🙂
Thanks for any thoughts on my long rambling!
-JM
That divine move is intentionally vague on how many items may be stored. Decide for your game & your divine.
For those spell-slinger questions, I’d let them use the combat magic (as if it were gear) for other moves when it makes sense. So, using a wall spell to protect someone? Makes sense (and they would get that armour). Throwing a fireball to help out a hunter in a fight? Also makes sense.
Oh, and regarding “stacking” moves: if a spooky or spell-slinger wants to help out by casting a spell, it’s fine for that to just be the description of the help. Roll use magic when the hunter wants one of those specific effects (which might be needed to enable helping, if the other hunter is in a different place for example).
You don’t necessarily roll kick some ass whenever you try to hurt a monster, and likewise you don’t necessarily roll use magic whenever you do something mystical.
I feel like renaming “Kick Some Ass” to “Trade Blows”
Michael Sands So the question becomes, what do they roll? If they use magic to “help out”, is it still +cool? Like I said, I sort of extend Combat Magic and allow them to roll +weird in that case, just sort of makes sense… and I get that if it’s working for me, that’s an answer, but curious if there’s an ‘official’ answer.
Also, super-side question, if they use magic under pressure, rolling both “Use Magic” and “Act Under Pressure”, can they mark 2 Xp for 2 fails, or should you really only mark 1 Xp per macro move?
James Meyer the combat magic move only changes what you roll for kick some ass, so any other moves stay the same.
I’m not sure what you mean with the second question. If they make two move rolls, of course they may earn two marks. But if you mean a hunter helps out and the player says “I use one of my combat magic spells to distract the critter” then I would (usually) only roll once for help out.
Michael Sands I am referring to to the note in Use Magic (I believe) which says that, if casting a spell under pressure, you may also need to make an act under pressure roll to see if it works as expected. That implies situations where you make 2 rolls for one action, so I’m asking generally about any such situation (multiple rolls to see what happens for one general action)
James Meyer right. the same thing applies. in that case the hunter has to separately act under pressure to deal with whatever is causing trouble for their spell and also make the use magic roll itself. No reason to say the experience mark for a miss somehow gets combined.
Especially as the Keeper just got two golden opportunities to create trouble for the hunter!