When is a game done?

Ikezu-ishi (Malicious Rock) » Devlog
35 days ago by Serial Prizes (@writingjay)
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41 days ago I rolled out v0.5 of Ikezu-ishi and thought I was nearly done. Then I found some rabbit holes...

In the works:

  • A little bit of setting - Not looking to build an entire world here, just put enough flavor in to help players get started. But have to balance fictional setting with historical record -- I've written 20 pages of a history paper on the social structure of the Kamakura through early Momoyama periods. That probably doesn't need to go into the rule book... 
  • Factions - How can I have this inspired by feudal Japan and NOT have Clans? So now I'm researching and building out Faction creation and progress rules. Have to tell myself to not go into mass combat, but boy do I wanna...
  • Point- or Hexcrawling system - Not sure which way to go on this. I like the idea of sandbox open-world exploring that hexcrawls are well suited for. But I also like the simplicity and directness of a pointcrawl. Especially when traveling in a known land.
  • Castle-crawling - Japan had (has) castles. Gotta get some adventures in there somewhere.
  • Encounters - Still cleaning up and trying to make more interesting and relevant to the setting.
  • General clean-up - Will be easier once I settle on a final size, dang it! But also random typos, consistency in language, building the index, etc.

The questions facing me are:

  • How much of this needs to be in the core book vs being released as supplemental material?
  • At what point does a game no longer have the rules lite fun of Cairn/Into the Odd style games?

Still figuring it out. Still putting a lot of time into this baby. Hope everyone enjoys it when it's ready.

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Ikezu-ishi (Malicious Rock)

Feudal Japan inspired hack of Cairn and Into the Odd

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LittleBlueShyGuy33 days ago (1 edit) (+1)

I've ran about 8 sessions of your system now. Admittedly I have hacked/added a few elements which I like from other MotO games but the core is still there. 

I really like what you've done.

Just finished with one group and currently running another (and then possibly another) though a 6ish session campaign which I've written about Shinobi Assassins. I used the point crawl tips of Electric Bastionland to help build it. 

Having the setting predefined is a great idea but leaving it the GM to flesh out the specifics with useful tools and spark tables etc is a great way to go. See Carin 2e, Electric Bastionland, Swyvers etc. I always understand a setting more deeply if I've been part of the build process and a GM understanding the setting might just be biggest indicator of success of any game... 

I would have personally benefited from are more concise spark tables, and organised into a 'world building procedure' (eg; Cities / Urban, Villages / Rural, Factions, Merchants, NPC's, Monsters, POI's, Weird Items etc) than what the book currently offers - but this is only because you're asking! 

My unsolicited thoughts on hex/point crawls... while I do like hexcrawls... point crawls are SO much easier to manage and run in my opinion, with just as much narrative pay off as a hex. The tools in Cairn 2e and EB are a great source of how to help a GM out here.

Is either 'Crawl' needed in this version? Not at all. Is it something you would like to do? A one shot opening adventure wouldn't be out of place, but even then...? Up to you... If you do decide to do a crawl, I would maybe put it towards the end of your work schedule, that way you can at least get something released before sinking too much time.

Regardless, I watch on with interest... 

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Serial Prizes32 days ago

Woah, 8 sessions?!! That’s awesome! Curious what elements you’ve brought in from elsewhere - I really enjoy the modular nature of Odd/Cairn games, really helps playgroups build for their own tastes.

On organization and more - admittedly, I’m still trying to get that down. Part of that is the nature of my development (Oh! I should add a table for. . .) but also nailing down user flow. There certainly is no one way to do it, but I definitely need to figure a way to get this more organized.

I’m leaning toward pointcrawls lately, in part because of Cairn 2e and your point on them being easier to manage and run. Also, the more I play with them the more hexcrawls feel like a better tool for exploring unknown territories and worlds where this setting lends itself to more established maps and routes (to a degree). Terrain based encounter tables can still exist and be just as easy to use in a hexcrawl system so folks can swap if they want.

Thanks for the feedback - and for playing the game! I really appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts.

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steve74it35 days ago(+2)

I'd leave setting for an expansion.

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Serial Prizes34 days ago

Good call, certainly for anything too indepth.

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Warbriel35 days ago(+1)

In the end is making whatever makes you happy. But that's one of those recurring answers you get.

In my opinion, a game should have some setting (something that can fit in a couple of pages or even one: nothing more shoulbreaking than 50 pages of background before even explaining the attributes), a few options for creating characters (something manageable but enough to make sure nothing repeats too much), system, enemies, some adventures and, possibly, maps. Keeping the core small allows more people to read it and those really interested will go for the expansions. 

Everything else, for expansions. Even those, sometimes just add mud. Pre-made adventures tend to be fairly popular. 

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Serial Prizes34 days ago

Thanks! “Make the game you’d want to play” is always good advice. But also keeping it digestible for others. I may “finish” this and then start picking it apart down to barebones and then additional volumes. But first to “finish” it…

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