Category: Urban Shadows RPG: Discussion

Considering Transit Moves…

In our Boston game, we have a custom move for getting around the city using a magical subway line controlled by Power. It has been handy for getting from place to place instantaneously, and also giving an opportunity mark a faction easily, but we’re now at a point where everybody is terrified to ride the Gold Line for good reason. So, I’m considering how else folks might get around the city. Options include…

1. Skip over transit time entirely. Just cut to them being where they want to go. Kind of eliminates some tension and ignores just how hard it is to get around this city sometimes (in real life!), though, and makes it unlikely they’ll ever use the Gold Line again.

2. Narrate transit only briefly to indicate how annoyingly long it takes (“A Red Line delay and a short Lyft ride later…”), and advance one of the threats in the Storm. (If only they’d risked the Gold Line, maybe they would’ve gotten there in time before the werewolves started their assault!)

3. Offer alternative transit moves for other factions based on what’s already established in our setting. All told, they’d probably look like…

When you ride the Gold Line, roll with Power. On a 10+, you travel instantaneously to any location connected to it, no problem. On a 7-9, you leave something behind, or you owe Braithworpe a Debt. On a miss, you wish you’d waited for the next car.

When you rely on mundane transit, roll with Mortality. On a 10+, you get where you’re going in about as much time as your Maps app predicted. On a 7-9, you still get there, but the GM will tell you what you missed thanks to the delay. On a miss, you get an unwelcome reminder of what it means to have a commute or a day job like any other mundane chump.

When you use the Silver Branch to take a shortcut through Tir Na Nog, roll with Wild. On a 10+, you get through in minutes, no problem. On a 7-9, somebody spots you who you wish hadn’t, or you exit not quite where you expected, GM’s choice. On a miss, walking into another world turns out not to be a shortcut after all.

When you take a shortcut through Night-controlled territory, roll with Night. On a 10+, you get there much quicker than you would’ve on the T or in a cab, that’s for sure. On a 7-9, it’s still a quick ride, but you need to call on one of your gang contacts to make it through; consult with the GM on who you might owe a Debt. On a miss, you walked into the wrong neighborhood.

Thoughts?