NOW LIVE! Today's the day you meet your new best friend. You don’t have to leave Wolfy behind... In 'Pets & Sidekicks' your companions level up with you!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Manbearcat" data-source="post: 7054549" data-attributes="member: 6696971">DUNGEON WORLDThe PC is an Elven Arcane Duelist (F/M)1)  This was all off the cuff after the PC fell through a glacial crevasse and into an underground frozen river.  Frozen and unconscious, he woke up on the shore of the basement of a hobgoblin complex.  The complex's refuse is dumped there and a Darkmantle and a Roper take care of that.  The PC survived the freeze and slew them both.  He cautiously made his way up the path that lead out of the chamber.  No mechanical resolution there.2)  This complex is called Earthmaw (it was created out of thin air and added to the play map as a result of prior resolution).  This is a mercantile hobgoblin realm that serves as the lone trade outpost for the highlander peoples of this remote realm.  They are not pure evil as the D&D trope goes, but they are unforgiving and very spartan in their creed.  These goblin servitors are meek and pathetic, probably indentured, but not outright slaves.  3)  At this point in the game, this PC's alignment statement (carrot) was "Good:  Slay a menace to the innocent."  Do that and earn 1 XP at End of Session.  So I frame the opening situation with (a) a dangerous "menace to the innocent", (c) which follows from the prior fiction, and (d) fills the character's life with adventure.4)  When the player declared the little wall-straddling move with torch in mouth while he draws his bow, I could have called for a Defy Danger move because of the lurking threat in the next room.  However, I chose to go ahead and "say yes" here.  His Dex is nearly maxed in this game so this is the sort of thing he should be able to do as it is archetypal for the PC as well.Now, if he was looking for some kind of mechanical advantage (say just roll his damage die on the "recently molted and soon to be full-fledged Aboleth" rather than initiating the Volley Move), I would have made him Defy Danger (DD) Dex and then we'd find out what happens.  On a 10+, I would have let him roll his damage with no cost/negative fallout (basically the equivalent of a Volley move).  On a 7-9 on DD, the prospective choices for a player are going to be somewhat different than a 7-9 on a Volley.5)  The burgeoning Aboleth has consumed two innocent goblins.  It is drawn to the sudden stimulation (light and sound).  The PC lets loose a Volley:The player rolled a 7.Ammo is an abstract quantity for ammunition.  It is not 1:1.  5ish Ammo would signify a full quiver.  You might spend it for a boon or to avoid another complication.  You might just straight lose it due as a product of outright action resolution failure.In this case, the PC knew the Aboleth had 6 HP, so his 4 HP damage wasn't going to outright slay it.  Further, he only had 1 Ammo going into this and his HP, while not too bad, were at a premium because who knows what he is up against/what the future beholds?  So, he chose to eat the -1d6 damage and reduced his damage further rather than losing his last Ammo or choosing danger (which would give me the opportunity to escalate things in a way that he may not like).6)  My move.  I choose to just follow the fiction and have the thing retreat into a fissure in the walls.  This is in-line with the creature's Instinct of "eat to grow" and its Move "hunt the unsuspecting."7)  The PC, sufficiently concerned by the creature's changing of the situation (from hunted to hunter), urgently canvasses the room for any other topographical points of ingress and egress.  This initiates the move Discern Realities:As is plain to see, the player rolled a 6 or less (a 5).  This triggers (a) a hard move from me (a significant, negative escalation of the situation where the PC has no say) and (b) 1 XP for the character.I chose to bring another goblin into the situation.  Seeing the grisly scene before him (possibly indicting the PC for the 2 goblin gargagemen deaths?), he shrieks and hauls goblin booty back from whence he came.  Things could go south quickly here if he gets away.8)  The PC gives chase.  This triggers a Defy Danger (Str) move:The player rolled an 8.The PC catches the little goblin, but not before they emerge into the next room with a couple more goblins.  I also give the PC the choice to just run the little goblin through if he'd like.  Obviously, this choice creates the tension of pragmatism versus his basic morality...and would definitely close down any prospects for immediate parley (while possibly narrowing them for greater parley with the Hobgoblin King - which they are seeking).The other goblins are scared, so a show of force may either spook them into a sprint out the door, or have them engage rashly in combat.  All the while...the "aboleth-to-be" lurks... (and yes, this is an Aliens themed situation).9)  The PC decides to Parley.  The player rolls a 12 and his PC has plenty of leverage over the pathetic goblins...at least sufficient to this task.  He doesn't need a further show of force.  I go ahead and create some backstory that implies that this "Aliens" thing isn't something that has just emerged right at this moment...maybe this exact thing is haunting the compound?The successful Parley moves things forward.[HR][/HR]Alright, I'm knackered.  I'll edit the below post and detail how this scenario might come about in B/X tomorrow.  Abridged version:  Elf PC + Dungeon Key + Exploration Turn + Stock Encounter + Combat/Morale + Exploration Turn + Wandering Monsters + Monster Reactions + Evasion and Pursuit + Stock Encounter + Monster Reactions</blockquote>

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