Fortune cards.

[delericho]

TSR did one just before it went under. It was called "SAGA" and used Marvel and Dragonlance as supported campaign settings.

Yeah, I remember that. Unfortunately, they made the disasterous move of attaching the SAGA system to the Dragonlance setting (and hitting it with a DL-Changing-Event to usher in the widely-hated Fifth Age). That soured a great many people on the whole concept of SAGA, and pretty much assured it would flop.

From what I heard, it might have actually been a fairly interesting system. Oh well.

 

[delericho]

I find it intriguing, though, that WotC recommends you break open a new pack for each session - the idea being that this way you won't know what's in the deck before you use it.

Can you cite this? I haven't been able to find any comment to this effect. It's notable because it's at odds with the product description, which talks about collecting the cards, and building and trading decks - not much point in those activities if you can't reuse the cards!

(Not that I'm doubting you; I'm just keen to read the rest of what they have to say about the cards.)

 

[Vaslov]

I have been using a similar concept for some time. My deck is similar to what barsoomcore posted on these forums years ago. I cannot find bar's old post, but below is an example of what he had.

http://www.scratchfactory.com/Resources/SwashCards.pdf

I only allow 1 card a game session which can be played at any time. Every group I have ever introduced them in loves them. Once introduced I have never been able to pull them back out of the game. I pulled them out when I first move to 4e and the players were unanimously asking for them to be added back in.

As a GM I love them as it throws plot twist my way which makes me think on my feet. It's a challenge I get a lot of satisfaction from. The players love them as they love to see the DM squirm and get a kick out of the unplanned twist this brings all of us. This forum talks about Rat Bastard DMs? I have Rat Bastard Players and I love it!

Are some of them "combat win" cards? Sure. I have one in my deck that says reinforcements show up. This card shows up at least once every four sessions (Murphy's Law and all) and often has turned a planned tough fight into a cake walk. The fun was figuring out what that meant when the party was miles from civilization in a swamp or far into a lost shrine of undead was tough for me to figure out. In those two cases I had an alligator flank the bad guys in the swamp and a spirit that was looking for redemption help in the undead lair. Both experiences are events that have been talked about fondly for years.

Can I see some groups not likely the extra boost? Sure. I get it. To each his own. Kudos for WotC for coming up with a product that for some groups will be a lot of fun. I'll stick to my own cards as my group have become attached to them. That said, I hope they make gobs of cash at this which they can use to invest in products I do want.

Good gaming to you all.
Vaslov

 

[bastrak]

I haven't bought anything from WotC apart from tiles and minis since 3.5 was dropped but even if I was running 4e I would not buy Fortune Cards. I really dislike the concept of randomised collectable cards having anything to do with an RPG.

 

[Aberzanzorax]

In my opinion:

That they are random is fine; That they are collectible is not.

That they are optional is fine; That they are NOT optional for LFR is not.

That they are "a neat little addon" is fine; If they became a core part of 5e is not.



That they cost $4 for 8 cards is not fine. I mean, compare that to the cost of a book. 8 pieces of paper for $4...that would make a 200 page book...$100.



I think there WAS room for this to be a cool and classy move, and an interesting new product. Instead, I'm left with distaste and concern for the reasons above.

 

[CharlesRyan]

A lot of people seem really hung up on the word "collectible." Instead of looking at the booster pack as a collectibility mechanism, look at it as a randomization mechanism.

Someone said there was no reason for these to be sold in random booster packs (other than crass commercialism). They're wrong: The booster format allows you, for the cost of a few bucks, to dip into a random assortment of hundreds of potential results, without having to buy the whole lot.

The truth is, a mechanism that lets a game have hundreds of random elements with a relatively small consumer buy-in, and creates a situation in which players may frequently encounter effects they've never come across before, is a really interest game mechanic. The fact that it's been used before by CCGs doesn't change that.

If this doesn't sound like it'll float your boat, don't buy it--just like you might not buy any other D&D supplement that doesn't interest you. But getting all bent out of shape because it resembles the CCG model says more about your hangups than WotC's.

 

[Aluvial]

I don't know if it will be a good idea or not... but it is so easy to duplicate at home, I don't see the point. So... when the cards come out, you get a look at the ideas on them... make your own ideas, tweak what you want, and then, print something on cardstock, and you're done.

I can see buying the minis (since I own every one from every set...)(and am close to divorce over it) but the cards are just WAY TO EASY to make on your own. If I could make plastic sculpts as easy, I would.

Also, you can control what you give to players to use... I would also allow each enemy to have one as well.

Aluvial

 

[TheFindus]

I have been using a similar concept for some time. My deck is similar to what barsoomcore posted on these forums years ago. I cannot find bar's old post, but below is an example of what he had.

http://www.scratchfactory.com/Resources/SwashCards.pdf

I only allow 1 card a game session which can be played at any time. Every group I have ever introduced them in loves them. Once introduced I have never been able to pull them back out of the game. I pulled them out when I first move to 4e and the players were unanimously asking for them to be added back in.

As a GM I love them as it throws plot twist my way which makes me think on my feet. It's a challenge I get a lot of satisfaction from. The players love them as they love to see the DM squirm and get a kick out of the unplanned twist this brings all of us. This forum talks about Rat Bastard DMs? I have Rat Bastard Players and I love it!

Are some of them "combat win" cards? Sure. I have one in my deck that says reinforcements show up. This card shows up at least once every four sessions (Murphy's Law and all) and often has turned a planned tough fight into a cake walk. The fun was figuring out what that meant when the party was miles from civilization in a swamp or far into a lost shrine of undead was tough for me to figure out. In those two cases I had an alligator flank the bad guys in the swamp and a spirit that was looking for redemption help in the undead lair. Both experiences are events that have been talked about fondly for years.

Can I see some groups not likely the extra boost? Sure. I get it. To each his own. Kudos for WotC for coming up with a product that for some groups will be a lot of fun. I'll stick to my own cards as my group have become attached to them. That said, I hope they make gobs of cash at this which they can use to invest in products I do want.

Good gaming to you all.
Vaslov

So, as far as I understand it, you use the card(s) on a purely encounter basis, with no other story element that lasts for a adventure or campaign arc? Or did you think about certain situations BEFORE you use a card, then let the players later find out what the source of that positive combat influence has been?
I like the example of the spirit, for example. Do things like this in your campaign just vanish after the card is played or it's effect is over or can the PC communicate with them?
I have to admit that I find these cards more and more intruiging. There seem to be a lot of possible usages.

 

[DaveMage]

A lot of people seem really hung up on the word "collectible." Instead of looking at the booster pack as a collectibility mechanism, look at it as a randomization mechanism.

Someone said there was no reason for these to be sold in random booster packs (other than crass commercialism). They're wrong: The booster format allows you, for the cost of a few bucks, to dip into a random assortment of hundreds of potential results, without having to buy the whole lot.

The truth is, a mechanism that lets a game have hundreds of random elements with a relatively small consumer buy-in, and creates a situation in which players may frequently encounter effects they've never come across before, is a really interest game mechanic. The fact that it's been used before by CCGs doesn't change that.

You can certainly spin it any way you want, but when a chart and a dice roll could accomplish the same thing - sorry, it's a money grab in the format it's in. (Especially if it's *required* by some of the organized play activities.)

If this doesn't sound like it'll float your boat, don't buy it--just like you might not buy any other D&D supplement that doesn't interest you. But getting all bent out of shape because it resembles the CCG model says more about your hangups than WotC's

What does it say about my hang ups?

 

[Vaslov]

So, as far as I understand it, you use the card(s) on a purely encounter basis, with no other story element that lasts for a adventure or campaign arc? Or did you think about certain situations BEFORE you use a card, then let the players later find out what the source of that positive combat influence has been?

As I have around 100 different cards pulled at random every session I rarely have anything prepared. I won't even know when a player will use a card so I just wing it. I suppose I could have some prepared for the game changer cards, but I have found it better to just wing it.

Some are simple that just give a small modifier in a certain situation. Something like "fresh breath" which gave the player a plus on a bluff check. Over and done with. The spirit example lasted until the end of that dungeon with the spirit offering minor support here and there, most of it being informational. There are a few cards that have impacted an entire campaign. One card says an NPC suddendly has romantic feelings for one of the players. A player used it against the big bad guy of the plot, not realizing at the time the NPC was the big bad guy. That completely changed the direction of the entire campaign as now the big baddy didn't want her dead for potentially uncovering his plot, but wanted romantic feelings in return! (Necromancers are just misunderstood romantics looking for love...)

I would say "DM BEWARE" before using these. You have to enjoy coming up with plot on your feet. While no plan survives contact with players, this adds a whole new level of chaos. I have found it great fun.