Great video! Regarding the rule for moving past enemies, page 43 explains: “You cannot move past a standing enemy who wants to stop you. A humanoid creature of human size can block an area of roughly 2×2 meters.” So it’s just the square in which they’re standing that is blocked. Not all the ones adjacent to that square.
From the little bit of dragonbane I've played, it seems like a game that could really benefit from a robust equipment/magic item supplement. I think that would be an even-handed way to give players extra bells and whistles to play with without making them too powerful.
I have always played that Death saving throws don't 'Re-Set' until a full rest. You stop rolling them but you have to keep them there until you have a full rest in a safe place to fix up properly.
A player/monster doesnt block more than the square(s) they are in. Using a spear does not enable you to block more. A spear does not give you 4 meter range free attacks. Also, Shove: you just need equal Str dmg bonus in order to shove.
Shove. How does it work? My rule book says the shove rule doesn’t apply to monsters, both as aggressor or the target of the attack… can’t figure out this last part…
@@na01jsnIt just means you cant shove a monster when you attack the monster, and the monster cant shove the target of its attack. The only effect of the monsters attack is described in the text block of the attack.
@@shaitanmo so the shove ruling doesn't apply when you (pc) attack a monster? What's the point of shove then? I mean all attacks are made against "monster" right? What's the definition of a monster then..? Thank you.. still trying to understand
@@na01jsnThe definition of a monster is the one's that have the Monster Attacks block, where you roll a 1D6 (or chose) to determine what attack they make. And also, they always hit. However, animals, npc's, goblins, orcs and skeletons have an attack skill and needs to roll to hit (just like the pc's). There will be more in the future i bet (fex. Ogre in the Bestiary)
One thing I may implement is cyphers from the cypher system on level up. Pretty much you get a heroic ability each level up that is a one time use, and you can have 1 or 2 available to you between sessions, if you get a new one, you either drop it, or swap it with an old one. We'll see how it goes.
That’s a great solution for that. Love the idea of using Heroic Abilities like Cyphers. In a home game putting them on cards to pass out would be awesome.
My players also have noted the slow progression. I allow them to use two of their advancement marks to roll 1 skill advancement with a "boon," meaning they have the chance to earn the progression for a session on two dice instead of one. In a session or two I think I will loosen it up a bit more, by replacing the homebrew with the ability to allow them to reroll an advancement roll by spending an advancement mark once per session. But I think when they are richer they'll be able to use the "teaching" rules effectively so I'm being very gradual with my homebrew intentionally. I am glad I watched your video. I was planning to award more heroic abilities than the base adventure, but seeing that they are so game-changing helps restrain me. They've only faced one NPC with a heroic ability (Weasel and Defensive) and it was very thematic that the guy was able to avoid their attacks and put their henchmen in the way until he escaped.
Your idea to divide up the stats into different sections to use in combat, for the ship and then in general is actually something I’ve been working with. I like this method to divide up all the skills because it allows easier focus on different campaigns. I’m creating a sci-fi TTRPG and have decided to split my skill/attribute system up in two. One is the main skill sheet whereas the second is what I call the ‘Pilot’s License’, and it’s where all manner of vehicle skills are. Having it separate means games that don’t want to use the ship systems can easily ignore it, along with giving the flexibility to have more ways to reward players with skill points. Rather than forcing players to choose to put a skill point in one or the other, a GM can allot skill points to the License specifically when they deem fit for better balance.
Accuracy, Communication, Fighting, and Perception are all core abilities in Fantasy Age, in addition to analogues for the traditional STR, DEX, etc.; making a total of 9 in that particular system. The skills & talent lists are a bit more extensive.
I feel like weapon categories could be condensed to Blades, Hammers, Spears, Bows, Guns... Axes can just be treated like weighted blades, crossbows aren't too different from bows in a fantasy setting... when using cannons on a ship that could be guns. A harpoon in hand is a spear, shooting it from a ballista is a bow skill...
Maybe create Advanced Parry ability that lets you get one free one per round. Or house rule that you can do more than one defensive action per round but each one incurs a cumulative Bane on the roll.
Good question. I went to the random quest tables and just used those numbers to try and balance out encounters. I’m not sure I played long enough to become an expert at it. I think we did 6-8 sessions of their campaign also, that had premade encounters for us. I was actually surprised how often people stayed alive. Yes people got knocked down and hurt quickly, but the Rally action was incredibly powerful, and kept people from actual death
@@jfacegames7354 It depends on the type of campaign and the frequency of game sessions. For a long-lasting campaigns, advancing slowly generally guarantees greater stability in the campaign progression, prolonging your game's health. But like I said, it also depends on how often you play. My group and I usually play once a month (at most twice), so Dragonbane progression is slow for us and 20 sessions represents almost 2 years in the same campaign (thus making it long-lasting for us). For people who play once a week, on the other hand, those same 20 sessions aren't even 6 months and that's why I've seen some people complain that Dragonbane's progression is too fast. In any case, situations can be easily overcome with some simple house rules.
Great video!
Regarding the rule for moving past enemies, page 43 explains:
“You cannot move past a standing enemy who
wants to stop you. A humanoid creature of human size can
block an area of roughly 2×2 meters.”
So it’s just the square in which they’re standing that is blocked. Not all the ones adjacent to that square.
Perfect. Thanks for the look up ;)
Dragonbane FTW! I love the more tactical rpg combat and the resource mechanics.
From the little bit of dragonbane I've played, it seems like a game that could really benefit from a robust equipment/magic item supplement. I think that would be an even-handed way to give players extra bells and whistles to play with without making them too powerful.
That’s a solid analysis. I’ve definitely cooled on my overall love for the system. Still has a lot of great ideas in it though
I have always played that Death saving throws don't 'Re-Set' until a full rest. You stop rolling them but you have to keep them there until you have a full rest in a safe place to fix up properly.
A player/monster doesnt block more than the square(s) they are in. Using a spear does not enable you to block more. A spear does not give you 4 meter range free attacks. Also, Shove: you just need equal Str dmg bonus in order to shove.
Shove. How does it work? My rule book says the shove rule doesn’t apply to monsters, both as aggressor or the target of the attack… can’t figure out this last part…
@@na01jsnIt just means you cant shove a monster when you attack the monster, and the monster cant shove the target of its attack. The only effect of the monsters attack is described in the text block of the attack.
@@shaitanmo so the shove ruling doesn't apply when you (pc) attack a monster? What's the point of shove then? I mean all attacks are made against "monster" right? What's the definition of a monster then..?
Thank you.. still trying to understand
@@na01jsnThe definition of a monster is the one's that have the Monster Attacks block, where you roll a 1D6 (or chose) to determine what attack they make. And also, they always hit. However, animals, npc's, goblins, orcs and skeletons have an attack skill and needs to roll to hit (just like the pc's). There will be more in the future i bet (fex. Ogre in the Bestiary)
One thing I may implement is cyphers from the cypher system on level up. Pretty much you get a heroic ability each level up that is a one time use, and you can have 1 or 2 available to you between sessions, if you get a new one, you either drop it, or swap it with an old one.
We'll see how it goes.
That’s a great solution for that. Love the idea of using Heroic Abilities like Cyphers. In a home game putting them on cards to pass out would be awesome.
My players also have noted the slow progression. I allow them to use two of their advancement marks to roll 1 skill advancement with a "boon," meaning they have the chance to earn the progression for a session on two dice instead of one.
In a session or two I think I will loosen it up a bit more, by replacing the homebrew with the ability to allow them to reroll an advancement roll by spending an advancement mark once per session.
But I think when they are richer they'll be able to use the "teaching" rules effectively so I'm being very gradual with my homebrew intentionally.
I am glad I watched your video. I was planning to award more heroic abilities than the base adventure, but seeing that they are so game-changing helps restrain me. They've only faced one NPC with a heroic ability (Weasel and Defensive) and it was very thematic that the guy was able to avoid their attacks and put their henchmen in the way until he escaped.
Glad to hear something was helpful! Sounds like you’ve probably got more experience than I do at this point in the game though, haha
Your idea to divide up the stats into different sections to use in combat, for the ship and then in general is actually something I’ve been working with. I like this method to divide up all the skills because it allows easier focus on different campaigns. I’m creating a sci-fi TTRPG and have decided to split my skill/attribute system up in two. One is the main skill sheet whereas the second is what I call the ‘Pilot’s License’, and it’s where all manner of vehicle skills are. Having it separate means games that don’t want to use the ship systems can easily ignore it, along with giving the flexibility to have more ways to reward players with skill points. Rather than forcing players to choose to put a skill point in one or the other, a GM can allot skill points to the License specifically when they deem fit for better balance.
Love the nomenclature of the “Pilot’s License”
Been looking forward to your thoughts on Dragonbane Combat
This was quick and dirty. Pretty unorganized. But hopefully it pieced together with my previous videos gives an idea
What text editor do you use?
17:45 every time you get to 0 HP and recover you're supposed to roll on the Severe Injury table
Yep. Which is awesome. I did that in my actual home game, but probably forgot during this video. Thanks for the heads up!
I like the six stats in the Kids on Bikes system: Brains, Brawn, Fight, Flight, Charm, and Grit.
Those are solid! Thanks for sharing
Accuracy, Communication, Fighting, and Perception are all core abilities in Fantasy Age, in addition to analogues for the traditional STR, DEX, etc.; making a total of 9 in that particular system. The skills & talent lists are a bit more extensive.
Oh man, 13th Age. I’ve looked at those Attributes quite often! I’m so torn on attributes all the time
@@jfacegames7354 Actually, I was referring to Fantasy Age by Green Ronin Publishing
I feel like weapon categories could be condensed to Blades, Hammers, Spears, Bows, Guns... Axes can just be treated like weighted blades, crossbows aren't too different from bows in a fantasy setting... when using cannons on a ship that could be guns. A harpoon in hand is a spear, shooting it from a ballista is a bow skill...
are you not meant to roll on the Severe Injuries table each time someone survives been downed?
Good question. Been far removed from the game, so don’t know off hand
Yes. You roll a Severe Injury each time you survive after being stabilized.
Maybe create Advanced Parry ability that lets you get one free one per round. Or house rule that you can do more than one defensive action per round but each one incurs a cumulative Bane on the roll.
Love the idea of cumulative Bane with additional pushing for more defense. That’s a cool concept
There are Heroic Abilities, which player characters can choose, that do that
Any thought on how to create balanced encounters in Dragonbane? Any tips?
Good question. I went to the random quest tables and just used those numbers to try and balance out encounters. I’m not sure I played long enough to become an expert at it. I think we did 6-8 sessions of their campaign also, that had premade encounters for us. I was actually surprised how often people stayed alive. Yes people got knocked down and hurt quickly, but the Rally action was incredibly powerful, and kept people from actual death
Balance?? Monster and players Can just run away
first!
Every time When a pc gets an attribute up 18 they get a new heroic ability fyi
Fact, I just find that takes a LONG time. At least with my players
@@jfacegames7354 It depends on the type of campaign and the frequency of game sessions. For a long-lasting campaigns, advancing slowly generally guarantees greater stability in the campaign progression, prolonging your game's health.
But like I said, it also depends on how often you play. My group and I usually play once a month (at most twice), so Dragonbane progression is slow for us and 20 sessions represents almost 2 years in the same campaign (thus making it long-lasting for us). For people who play once a week, on the other hand, those same 20 sessions aren't even 6 months and that's why I've seen some people complain that Dragonbane's progression is too fast.
In any case, situations can be easily overcome with some simple house rules.