@Retreater
Thanks for posting that. I’m going to respond only to the UaPJ for now to keep he conversation focused. We can move to the Parley and Combat once the UaPJ thoughts are resolved.
My thoughts are two-fold:
1) Regarding Rations. You mentioned “over-preparing” (presumably meaning they bought and stored much more than they need).
a) All aspects of equipment are meant to be enduring “pressure-points” on play. Encumbrance/Load is one way this is handled. That gets mitigated s bit with two high Str characters, but make sure that is handled appropriately (DW makes this low overhead, so that shouldn’t be trouble like other games).
b) Beyond Load, there is only so much space to put stuff in packs. So both you and your players have a say in this. Your say is “guys, it’s a backpack...a full days allotment of rations is probably 3/4 a lunchbox for full grown, beefy warriors like you. This isn’t modern day where you’re packing huge calories and nutrient density into small meal bars”. You just can’t carry that many rations in your packs! Their say is “we’re going to sacrifice some space for torches/adventuring gear/poultices/etc for an extra days rations”. To which you say “fair enough”...knowing now you have a more vulnerable pressure point to attack on 7-9 and 6-.
2) If these guys are inherently combat-centric in their builds/load-outs, then consider making obstacles/dangers (for UaPJ and others) be different. Consider non-combat Dangers for UaPJ as the bulk of results. Perhaps a Scout 7-9 yields:
* A Discovery. Some new, shiny, interesting locale with a promise of treasure on a short window of opportunity (maybe the moon is right once a year to separate the waters of a deep lake and reveal something...or a portal appears suddenly and shimmers as if it’s bout to blink out) which creates an interesting decision-point. Alternatively, maybe the scout stumbles upon an lamed Bear/Wolf/Leopard who may turn into a Cohort if they can get it out of its trap and heal it..and survive the violence that it fights with due to its fear and injury.
* A non-combat Danger that they have to immediately act upon lest it manifest against them:
- An aberrant altar erected by a cult of some Far Realm horror. Laying eyes upon its writings and portents twists the mind and turns you against your nature!
- A surveying team for a mineral site or a new trail to connect streadings is in dire peril as a mudslide has buried half their team...most of their gear...the night is gathering and predators loom. The problem is, the site is completely unstable due to all of the rains...a slide of this area to the valley below is imminent given grumbling of the mountain/hill!
- A very young, Demon-Possessed (or feral?) girl has left a trail of rats that she has been feasting upon as she is starving to death...Seeing the meaty Barbarian she stalks him and jumps upon him from an overhanging branch!
- A horrific hailstorm has emerged out of nowhere! They better find shelter or the softball sized hail (and maybe a tornado?) will damage their armor/ruin their packs(upon which time they’ll have to decide which gear to leave behind)/injure them (or worse).