I love the fact that Daggerheart isn't exactly like D&D! But also, here are my houserules to make it exactly like D&D.
Daggerheart General Thread [+]
- Thread starter overgeeked
- Start date
overgeeked
Open-World Sandbox
Class-specific lore, yes. D&D in general, no. As far back as AD&D you have the Hammer of Thunderbolts which was very much a mjolnir knockoff.
doctorbadwolf
Heretic of The Seventh Circle
Well that just isn’t true.
Since when do clerics have a remit of spreading their god’s faith? Defend the faithful, fight the forces that the god opposes (lie fiends and undead and servants of evil gods), maybe lead the faithful in an ecclesiastical sense, but…5e certainly doesn’t make “convert the heathens” part of any class.
And I can’t recall ever in 30 years of consuming D&D media And playing the game ever seeing any cleric or paladin try to convert anyone by the sword, and even the extremely rare stories or games where someone gets “ministered” to its more about encouraging them to find faith, regardless of why god or gods they decide to serve, or helping someone reclaim lost faith, etc.
Conversion at the sword? Nope. Not a pet of any D&D class. At all.
I’m coming at this from a theoretical perspective as I haven’t run it yet, so take my ideas with a pinch of salt…
It seems to me that this just needs the same GM table management skills as you would typically apply in a non-combat scenario. Watch the table, make sure Spotlight is being shared, keep an eye open for people who want to come in but aren’t loud about it.
Keep in mind that, ultimately, a player states an action then makes a roll to see if they succeed or fail. But by default, narrating the result falls to the GM although they may ask the player to do that. This is especially true in combat where the players won’t know the damage thresholds and HP of monsters, or if they have reactions which trigger. So the GM has the reigns at the conclusion of every specific PC action and can ask what the other characters are doing while the action is unfolding,
I think players will also get into the habit of sharing spotlight time in the combat, just like they hopefully do in non-combat scenes. If that is something a table has been poor at in the past, then an upfront conversation about the importance of doing this will probably be very beneficial.
The first session of CR’s Age of Umbra campaign has just dropped on YT so that seems like the one to watch for ‘best practice’ advice right now?
It seems to me that this just needs the same GM table management skills as you would typically apply in a non-combat scenario. Watch the table, make sure Spotlight is being shared, keep an eye open for people who want to come in but aren’t loud about it.
Keep in mind that, ultimately, a player states an action then makes a roll to see if they succeed or fail. But by default, narrating the result falls to the GM although they may ask the player to do that. This is especially true in combat where the players won’t know the damage thresholds and HP of monsters, or if they have reactions which trigger. So the GM has the reigns at the conclusion of every specific PC action and can ask what the other characters are doing while the action is unfolding,
I think players will also get into the habit of sharing spotlight time in the combat, just like they hopefully do in non-combat scenes. If that is something a table has been poor at in the past, then an upfront conversation about the importance of doing this will probably be very beneficial.
The first session of CR’s Age of Umbra campaign has just dropped on YT so that seems like the one to watch for ‘best practice’ advice right now?
overgeeked
Open-World Sandbox
Try any of the CR Daggerheart actual plays. The first episode of Age of Umbra is now on YouTube.
nyvinter
Adventurer
Yes. Coming from games that usually run like this, I actually think the guidance in the book is slightly wrong. The GM needs to control the spotlight and move it around, but be open to people who chimes up or signals a "me me me". If it's up to players to decide who goes first, it will stop the momentum at most tables. It's a skill to learn, but it's one that don't take a lot of time to do so. IMO.
Yes, and also remind players they can hand the spotlight off with a bit of fiction to another player!
“Jon yells “Kyree, can you fix them in place like that last group?” as he hunkers behind his shield” is a totally valid response to being spotlighted, and when you have a group that’s adroit at doing this sort of thing - pulling each other into scenes or handing the baton off when they don’t want to act right now but in an in character and appropriate fashion, scenes crackle with cinematic energy.
Running initiative-less combat is honestly a lot easier then it seems at first but is a paradigm shift. Easiest thing to do: unless you’re spending fear to be a bastard or because they’re ambushed, set up the fight and pivot to a player. Often the player that you pivot to is obvious: the first around the corner, the “leader,” the quick witted rogue with a bow in hand, etc.
Once players are stating fiction and making rolls, things have a pretty obvious cadence. Roll with fear? The opposition is reacting right here and now. And remember that you can like, just do your GM Moves if they’re in keeping with the adversaries tactics - they succeed with fear on a melee attack vs a creature that’s got a tag relating to capturing/fearless? Maybe you narrate the foe reaching out and grabbing on to their arms in a struggle for control and tell them they’re restrained.
Stuff where you put a party member in peril and ask what other people do is a great natural pivot and feels so good.
zedturtle
Jacob Rodgers
One of the better ideas from the subreddit has been the idea of 'spotlight buddies' so that when the players keep the spotlight there's a sort of automatic 'if I just went, I should hand the spotlight to my buddy' that can keep things moving. And the GM can also provide a subtle nudge to keep things moving around the table.
It seems weird to worry about the players not sharing the spotlight. Everyone is there to play. What is driving this idea that it is a problem?
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