So I'm going to try to introduce my regular gaming group to a quick EP one shot with the quick start. Sort of a "This is the setting, here're the rules, here's the general idea" thing. I was wondering if there're any specific and already addressed issues I should be aware of? Places where multiple groups get tripped up or where the game tends to go off message fairly regularly?
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Planning to Run the Eclipse Phase Quickstart this Weekend....
Wed, 2012-06-06 16:50
#1
MrPrim
Planning to Run the Eclipse Phase Quickstart this Weekend....
Wed, 2012-06-06 23:03
#2
Sepherim
Re: Planning to Run the Eclipse Phase Quickstart this ...
I haven't played it, so I can't help you specifically with it. But I have GM'd a game with new players to EP and one thing I've found out is that it helps if you leave them some space to move and explore. You shouldn't try to explain all the background either, it's quite more fun if you explain them as they find things, which has the added bonus of gaining play time. And, final suggestion, I'd get rid of most of the rules; it isn't a complex game rules-wise, but it is background-wise, so keeping the rules streamlined allows people to devote more time to learn how the world goes and enjoy the plot. Hope it helps!
—
The mind is information... hack it!
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Thu, 2012-06-07 05:39
#3
Xagroth
Re: Planning to Run the Eclipse Phase Quickstart this ...
Remember the quickstart rules might be outdated (only the rules section, everything else is fine). Look with great detail the combat sequence, specially the wounds & penalizations system (the engineer girl is quite squishy, and she got 8 damage on the ship in my first game. I thought that was 8 wounds, instead of 1 and some damage...). Aside from that, there is no real problem, you might want to have some whiteboard or pen & paper for the last battle on Mars for the more tactical players. The second time I directed that adventure (with custom characters, instead of the ones provided in the quickstart rules) two players obliterated the olympian attackers with ease (the ghost even popped two rusters when they arrived...). We found that the sniper drone was the most challenging part of that encounter, because of the range involved and the different weapons they were carrying, not to mention those two players are professional soldiers that spent five turns getting into position before engaging, complicating things a little ^^.
Also, a shredder is a killing weapon in the confined space of a spaceship.
If you want something more D&D-like, people tends to use the same grid map in a 2 meters = 1 square, but you might also want some gridded paper for the bigger picture.
Mon, 2012-06-11 10:07
#4
MrPrim
Re: Planning to Run the Eclipse Phase Quickstart this ...
Alright, so I ran it on Sunday, and it went rather well. I'm fairly certain I did all sorts of terrible mistakes (the most noob worthy - the 0g freighter inexplicably started out having regular gravity and only switched back once we all went 'goddammit').
One player got consumed by the TITAN Nanoswarm, the other just barely forced the Scum Barge to jettison the freighter - getting sucked into vacuum in the process. The players looked at each other, nodded, and started to pack up, at which point I asked them if they had time to continue. They paused, puzzled-ly, and said "Sure", and were then reinstantiated.
Since I was only playing with two players (who played the Con Man and the Anarchist), the combat sections were rough and I ended up dropping the last batch of mysterious assailants as a time-saving measure.
It was a fairly good one shot and my players definitely got used to their muses. I have some ideas for how to do things differently if we run it again, though I think we're about to start a Hellfrost campaign, so it seems we're unlikely to come back to it for a while.
Mon, 2012-06-11 18:03
#5
Quincey Forder
Re: Planning to Run the Eclipse Phase Quickstart this ...
what was their feedback on the game?
—
[center] Q U I N C E Y ^_*_^ F O R D E R [/center]
Remember The Cant!
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Tue, 2012-06-12 10:21
#6
MrPrim
Re: Planning to Run the Eclipse Phase Quickstart this ...
They thought the setting was interesting, and I think they had some fun.
I will admit, I may have run a bit too gonzo - some days my improv skills are good and sometimes they're not so good, and I felt a little overwhelmed this game so I had a bit of trouble keeping up. Next time I'll probably start the game somewhere more normal than a scum barge - a small Martian frontier town could let us ease into the setting weirdness a bit. Also, none of us had ever played it before, so there was a certain amount of mechanical clunkiness in digging around for obscure rules or trying to figure out just what needed to happen RIGHT HERE.
I already have some ideas for how to handle things next time. An Index card with a character's Muse's name, stats, and maybe a picture on it would be helpful for everyone, I think. That way the players will remember about their Muse's existence and will be easily able to figure out the stats their Muses have to make rolls.
Tue, 2012-06-12 12:52
#7
Xagroth
Re: Planning to Run the Eclipse Phase Quickstart this ...
I'm glad you liked the game, it has so much potential it can be very frightening at times XD. As for the character sheets, there are several on the resources section of the main page, and they tend to include a Muse stat card.
Personally, I suggest to decide if your characters are going to switch morphs a lot or not. In the latter case, you can go with one of the character sheets and use whatever parts you like (the alternate identities do not need to be used, in case of IDs that are designed to be used and discarded, and have no rep), but if you will switch their morphs a lot, I suggest not to add the morph's attribute adjustments to the skills, and use a stat card for the morph. While the players will have to add the skill and the bonus, it will be faster than erasing two whole columns on the character sheet every resleeve ^^U.
Oh, also, if you have access to a image editing program, making poker-sized weapon (or gear) cards might be a good idea for the players. Players love to have physical stuff on their hands, after all!
Tue, 2012-06-12 13:52
#8
Quincey Forder
Re: Planning to Run the Eclipse Phase Quickstart this ...
Also I would suggest a re-sleeve insurance contract form
in which the indicate what Morph they'd want to be sleeved in (for an extra fee, of course), and which attribute they wish for the genehacker employee of the insurances to favor when they prep the new morph for him.
Also state which implants -bio, cyb or nano- they wish to have implanted before resleeving
Note that only equipment insured at the same company can be implanted, and with a [Moderate] extra cost per implant
It's both immersive for the players, and it gives you time to ready extra sheets just in case
So the character has only need to roll the integration and alienation rolls
It also open the door to sooooo many fuckery tricks you could play on them, or them on NPCs
like hacking their countract file and alter it.
"Mhhh What can I do to that tramp for spreading those post-break up lies and tanking my rep down.. oh I know. Gera?"
[Yes, Tailsin?]
"You got that hack suite ready?"
[Of course. ready when you are.]
On the the physical game gear, I would also recommand the use of cards for the initiative
one card per person per speed. It gives the number of the turn they can act in
I got the idea from a french rpg game called Cops in which such cards were used in combat, and it made the game so smooth and easy to GM
—
[center] Q U I N C E Y ^_*_^ F O R D E R [/center]
Remember The Cant!
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Wed, 2012-06-13 09:13
#9
Rada Ion
Re: Planning to Run the Eclipse Phase Quickstart this ...
These are really good ideas, though I would kick it down a notch with the morph insurance re-sleeve hack in my game, or save it for a very important point in the game/campaign where it is dramatically useful.
How do the cards work again for the initiative? I kind of see what your saying but not sure how they would be used by the players. I think I'm just not getting it, as I just woke up and am reading this while half asleep, but this idea is really intriguing to me.
Sun, 2012-06-17 02:32
#10
shark3006
Re: Planning to Run the Eclipse Phase Quickstart this ...
That's the same module I started my players out with. It's pretty great because it's got a little bit of everything in it that makes Eclipse Phase great (in my opinion). It also leaves you in a good place to jump off from. I've actually turned those mysterious assailants into a major plot point in my continuing chronicle.
—
So on our heels a fresh perfection treads/ A power more strong in beauty, born of us/ And fated to excel us, as we pass/ In glory that old Darkness: nor are we/ Thereby more conquer'd, than by us the rule/ Of shapeless Chaos.
Thu, 2012-06-21 10:31
#11
nezumi.hebereke
Re: Planning to Run the Eclipse Phase Quickstart this ...
Since I just posted it in another thread, I'll share the files I use when I'm running convention games. You're welcome to use and modify what you want.
- Introduction to EP blurb I open the game with: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1w1eWISEepQ6AIcFXmykfXBUfoVcgmmmub3kA...
- EP Mechanics in brief (by Mykaen):
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BxrRp0a0heafS3ZXd0dSMGJVdEk
- 10 Things You Should Know about Eclipse Phase (by Mykaen):
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Qnrh0w7H0Jl2_CSsySRxcs4ugw27xsBIk5MY...
- Expanded sample character sheets (explaining all those traits and equipment if you're using the sample characters) for Synthmorphs:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/15Zxsk5D9-cRQKI7Ex4d2FezEzOuCbbuqp3D8...
and Biomorphs:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1x5H1IabC2qihRG7abo6gcjjllrcM1Lg0a5hH...
- Expanded mission notes for running Continuity
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1gCUERBSHXbQnOu2AgigTuTMcYjNGYSSuyZ3v...
I haven't run Glory. I've heard of people who came up with ideas after-the-fact to just wrap up the mission right away, so if your players are brilliant, they may be able to break it.