As a lone former D&D player I'm looking into which system I could choose to start my first solo adventure with. I'm definitely giving this guy's channel a look.
@@EmeraldVideosNL glad to hear it! And Me Myself and Die is a great channel on it's entertainment meets alone. When picking your first solo system, i suggest either a simple system or one that you know really well (both if possible). That way your sessions will be about learning how to run a solo game for yourself, instead of referencing the rule books.
@@JackMcCarthyWriter Thank you for the advice. Coming from D&D 3.5 I definitely want to move to a D&D-like but streamlined rules-light system. I have dyscalculia, so preferably not too much number crunch. Shadowdark and Black Sword Hack seem promising and have their own integrated solo rules, but I'm also looking into Five Torches Deep, Knave and Old Swords Reign. But those last two would need a separate solo system, so watching Me Myself and Die will be a good way to familiarise myself with the Mythic GM system.
I am not a solo RPG gamer, nor do I watch live plays as a general rule. I watch Trevor for his Sage's Library sections and the combat demos on his 'gray featureless plain' to get a feel for game mechanics. Over the years, I realize that he and I have a very similar set of likes and dislikes when it comes to RPGs. I am very much looking forward to The Broken Empires. From everything I've seen, it will probably be my go-to fantasy system!
I have a long list of games I want to play, but I feel that this game just takes the things I like the most from them and creates a unique blend. Backed and can't wait for the release. Also, Me, Myslef and Die is the best sort of entertainment you can find on RUclips. Thanks for a great interview!
Pleeease go support this game. Trevor is the absolute real deal, and The Broken Empires reflects that. You can even watch some of the game play in action featuring a certain well-known professor!
This was an interview between two GM/ Game designers who've approached the hobby in different ways to achieve the same goal. This is what the hobby needs. Thank you.
The Social Encounters I do right now in all the TTRPGs I run. I never say roll for it when social encounters happen. I listen to the players side and then determine whether it is intimidation or persuasion or something else. The DC is also on a sliding scale depending on their words spoken. I usually have keywords in place to help me determine the DC.
I remember a fantasy novel I read long ago also had magic in threads. Quite literally--a counter spell crafted a pair of thread-made scissors to cut the antagonist's threads he was weaving.
I know nothing about this game designer, Trevor Devall, but I like his approach to being a GM, and his game logic. Thank you for introducing us to Broken Empires.
Me: I don't know about TTRPGs anymore. Getting a group together has been challenging, built-for-solo games completely lack the crunch I want, and converting crunchy group games to solo ends up being too intense. Trevor: ...Good news! Really glad the solo rules are going to be baked in instead of being a stretch goal. Also like the idea of a d100 system. Only ever played one system that used it yet I thought it was really fun.
Great pick, Professor!! That game sounds really cool. In the 40k game Dark Heresy you use percentile dice to attack, and you want to roll under your skill, just like Broken Empires. Similarly, in Dark Heresy, you reverse the attack dice for a hit-location. It's fast and easy! I like the complexity added in Broken Empires, and I'd like to give it a go.
I was surprised to see PDM playing Broken Empires. For some reason, I didn't think it would be his type of game. I love Trevor's excitement and I'm happy for him that it's doing so well. Honestly, I'm not sure if it's really for me, but I will definitely pick it up to support him.
I am making my own RPG and the combat in mine is also driven by the idea that nebulous rolls need to go. You get location and effect (not damage) in my game as well. The days of HP and AC are numbered! lol Great to see Trevor taking that approach too.
I'm really intrigued by the "roll under, but your tens are your level of success" concept. Also, I love dangerous magic. This sounds like something that I need.
I really like the idea of the magic system created for this system and going to look into it more. Sounds like an open system allowing for player creativity. Thank you for sharing!
Always happy to hear about other games and systems. And discussing it with the developer is just gold. Oh fickle Al' GoRithm, I love all Dungeon Craft videos.
I have to agree with Trevor with social encounters. I do not have boulders in my back yard you have to lift to make a strength check. I don’t have a pit you have to jump over. I don’t have a ring people have to grapple with me in. We don’t do that. We let the dice and stats of the character determine those things. But when we come to social interactions people want to put down the character sheets and dice and expect the players to be super charismatic. I don’t get this mentality. It makes no sense and completely undermines the charisma stat of your character and the rules of the system.
It's tricky though because RPGs are actually about role-playing. And as soon as you give most players a lame way to succeed at a task they are going to do that. Not every social encounter can simply be solved simply with "I make a charisma (or insight) check." There must be some decision making and player agency involved. But the balance of these two has always been a challenge in RPGs. Same goes for intelligence. Because a player can easily be playing a character that is drastically smarter or dumber than they are. A very tight rope to walk, for sure. So I'm very interested to see his ideas on it!
@@4saken404 the problem we fall into with roleplaying, is misconstruing it for acting. When I play a roleplay video game am I acting? No. I'm putting myself in the shoes of the character and making decisions based off of what they would think and do. Roleplaying is kind of one of those things, like railroading, that's come to take on something it never meant. If I have a player who doesn't act, but plays a very charismatic paladin and tells me they want to try to impress the king should it be an automatic failure because they didn't act it out convincingly to me? I don't think it's that tight of a rope to walk because at the end of the day we are playing the characters, not ourselves. It's not up to my own psychical strength, dexterity, or wisdom to do things in game. Not should it be up to my own personal charisma to do things in game. If I made a very charismatic person, let the rolls decide if he succeeds or not. If I wanted to act out things and convince you through my own personal charm, I'd just go do some live action roleplaying. Aka larping. That's not what I sit down at a ttrpGAME
@@Gliiitchy I'm glad more people have been taking issue with this. Been playing since the 80s and this mentality still plagues the community. I'm seeing more pushback, finally!
@@GliiitchyBut what if I'm not making some grandiose speech that appeals to pathos, but instead make a reasonable, well thought out argument that the NPCs don't have a rational reason to disagree with? Why should I, the player, be gated behind some arbitrary skill roll when nothing in the argument I made depends upon my character's personal charisma? It is a fact of life that a better driver gets better performance out of their vehicle. Likewise, the better player should get a better performance out of their game. If I am better than you at chess, should I then be forced to make bad moves so that you won't become envious of my skill? Where is the fairness in that? I say no. We should not ignore *player* skill at RPGs, and we should not stop rewarding it in RPGs. If I am better than you at the game then I should not be fettered to bring me down to your level. Instead, the onus is on *you* to catch up with me. No one is born as a great orator. It is a learned skill, and if you have been slacking on learning the skills necessary for the game, then the shame rests on your shoulders.
@@tuomasronnberg5244 Then give them advantage on the roll? I have my players roll first, give speeches second. Pathfinder 2 has a rule for compelling NPCs and it says to roll and then envision what you say. It doesn't say "Give your best speech and see if the GM is swayed by it." Again, I do not make people lift boulders to do a strength check, I don't make them parkor around my house to do a dex check, I do not make them try to see if they can find my dogs foot prints in my back yard to do a wisdom check. Every single stat in the game, we look at the character sheet and we roll on the stat. Charisma checks is the ONLY place people make this argument and it has as much weight as a feather. "What if I have a body builder at my table and he is really strong, but he rolls a strength check and fails it? What if he picked me up and suplexes me through the table shouldn't I reward that?" This "But what if!" Question falls apart the second you use ANY other stat in place of charisma. Again, I am not here to LARP, I am not here to Act, I am not here to do Improv. Nor do I expect my players to do this. I am here to play a game, that is based around how good our characters are at things, not how good we are at things, and we resolve that by rolling dice and using statistics on the character sheets.
I've been underwhelmed with a lot of the standard RPG ways of doing things for years now. I do 5 hp of damage? What the hell does that even look like? So that got me dabbling in RPG design decades ago. We're talking 1986 here. And a lot of what this guy is saying sounds like my sentiments on things almost exactly. For example as soon as I saw "flexible magic system" I knew there was about a 110% chance he was inspired by Ars Magica. Because that was the exact same game I was drawn to and for the exact same reasons. I also like how he uses the idea of random charts to remove much of the burden from GM'ing. I've wanted to do this for years but it's not until recently that some game designers went full bore with this approach so now we have some really good charts to use! Questing Beast for example with Knave 2. So much of that book is GM-facing! It's nice to have a game that is a joy to run rather than an overwhelming ordeal that can take hours of prep that the players never see.
Im pledged in. Im a little wary about the character sheet, its quite busy, but overall excited for the game. The combat and the magic system are what i like best, and loved his show too
I love TBE Sim-Lite idea: Free-form magic, Social encounters, Tactical and more crunchy (but not to heavy and not to slow) combat, Travle system, Naval combat and Mass combat. I except that this system will replace all fantasy TTRPGs for me. I watch Me, Myself & Die from the beginning, and I'm assured that Trevor is going to deliver us a wonderful RPG.
This sounds really cool. I could only suppor at the digital level, but am looking forward to seeing more on it. I like the idea of reality fighting back against magic, it is a selling point for me.
So many good ideas in here. As a mainly OSR player, I think it's loose enough to allow some improvisation but doesn't go full narrative game. The success level maneuvers, magic system and even the social rolls(!) I think are a step above the competition especially. Also can't wait to see how his One ring inspired travel rules play out.
I think the funny thing about the Social Rolls is, it doesn't even require his system to do. It's just a mentality thing. It's just let roleplay go first and then roll to see if you succeed. What his system does though is support it a bit further, even if you were playing something that is completely opposite of his vibe, just inverting that process makes a huge difference. But he is right, simply roleplaying and not rolling anything, then you're not roleplaying said character, you're roleplaying you, and if you're just rolling dice, than its the opposite, there is only mechanics and no character to back up.
@@Mr_Chinchila @Mr_Chinchila Yes, I actually think its a gap in the OSR standard where the social play is pure player skill to a point it is practically in narrativist territory. It's not just the player/character divide either, sometimes you want a system that has some chance. For example, how does the GM arbitrate when a player roleplays a good lie to a gullible NPC vs a untrusting NPC? I think a system should have some leeway there beyond a yes/no answer, usually I would have a x in d6 role with a difficulty based on the quality of the roleplay and this system is another way to codify it in a way that makes the roleplay impactful but also not just dice roll based, which to me is a particularly unsatisfying social system if it is heavily dice/stat skewed.
@@MantisGod8815 I tried a bunch of systems before before landing in like this in-between of Skill Based, Sim-Lite, Narrativistic middle. I recall playing OSR and Pbta, then seeing the discussions online and thinking, 'You guys are attempting the same thing from different angles.' I couldn't get into OSR because it was all about player skill, to me the characters were just meat for the grinder and that felt super unsatisfying to me. While Pbta also is about roleplaying and character stuff but roleplaying comes first than mechanics, and it was so super abstract that it put me off. Simulationist games to me are a bit too much. And 5e bores me. So apparently I'm never satisfied haha. I ended up working on my own stuff which is very close to some decisions on the Broken Empires, zones for combat and whatnot, yet I go a more abstract (Wounds are specific to hit locations for example in mine) way because I love dice pool games akin to World of Darkness games and what not. Still dangerous, but diverging in that direction because Well- after you play a ton of systems you sorta figure out what your perfect game would be, and honestly, I ended up writing a 51 page docx for my home games pffft. But the discussion of character vs player skill to me always felt weird cause I always felt it should be in the middle. Where enough input from the character should infer decisions without completely overshadowing the existence of the character.
I'm supporting it because I think Trevor is awesome. That said, I am not at all a simulationist, so this game is not for me. I'm more Cairn/Knave/ICRPG. I just don't have the time or focus to play anything much more complex. That said, I think it's awesome that it blew up and Trevor rocks, so I genuinely want it to succeed just on that basis. FWiW I think this is a whole new creature in TTRPGs and it is clearly the work of a true master of gaming. Anyway... all the best to you!
Agreed love the art work the none woke attitude, so I want to support him for that and his love of his project you can tell he really cares about gamers and his game which is something sadly hard to find now adays!. With that said yes I want a quick fast playing OSR game, combat needs to be fast and quick for me and we need games that are easy to teach to new players otherwise we all will struggle to get new players into our groups which we need!.
@@underfire987 I don't take positions on anything other than the game play. People's socio-political opinions are irrelevant, unhelpful and not welcome. Otherwise, everything about this project is great except the rules. IMO. But those are just my thoughts.
I love the magic, here! I have gone for the exact opposite approach for my own (the Great Flow is dangerous and mages in the Dark Beyond have flocked to what they know works), but I have always wanted to work a free flow magic system like Broken Empires' ^^
I was backing the Deliverance boardgame and this did catch my eye in the recommendations - the cover is so good that it stuck in my mind. Didn't click on it though in KS. So when I saw a PDM video with the cover art thumbnail I figured I had to watch. I'm going to go through his series explaining the mechanics in more detail first, but I'm already 80% sold just on the basis of the social interactions mechanics. It's always bothered me that I have to be a charismatic person to play a charismatic character at most tables, yet don't have to demonstrate my prowess with a sword or magic to play a strong or arcane character. Finally, we are seeing more (of what should be) common sense! If it also sticks the boot into the linear fighter/quadratic wizard problem that has plagued RPGS for almost as long, I think that will cinch the deal.
I'm curious--I think I'd need to try it to see how crunchy it is. This channel has conditioned me over time to prefer rules light RPGs but I enjoyed a bit of sim-iness in my misguided youth.
Oh wow. That sounds like a cool game. I would like to try that. I am especially intrigued by the magic and social systems. I know the distinction between rules-lite and crunchy. I know there is a potential spectrum. This game has a special kind of categorization. It makes me think the spectrum ought to be divided into sections. That would be useful for TTRPGs as a whole. It helps the games get an appropriate player base. This game developer is fun to watch. I like how he speaks with such enthusiasm. That does remind me of Todd Kendrick. That is the guy that has done interviews on the official DND channel. I just watched a new interview, which is about the lore glossary. Now I know that I better show enthusiasm, if I ever make and game and talk about it. There is an idea about grim dark. I know what that is. However I don't understand the appeal. I notice a subtle difference between the art in this video and the art in the new DND Player Handbook. The colors are a bit darker and a bit less saturated. That hints at a darker tone. I also noticed the guy on the top left of the book cover looks a lot like Aragon from the Lord of the Rings movies.
I watched Trevor's show for years, and I would rather describe it as playing real people in extraordinary circumstances and watching them struggle with the world that fights them back. It's about drama, conflict in a mistical but believeble world.
I guess the one grimdark thing I like is Game of Thrones. However there are things I like are not the grimdark part or the stuff that is MA rated. This is the show that made me interested in political intrigue in fantasy. That part is really cool. Ravnica is one of my favorite planes of Magic the Gathering. That have plenty of fun political intrigue with the guilds. It is also just as light in tone as the rest of Magic the Gathering. That is a moderate tone like DND and Lord of the Rings. Ravnica is essentially Magic the Gathering meets Game of Thrones. Another think I like about Game of Thrones is the deconstruction of the Medieval European setting. It shows the harsh aspects. It can even be dystopian at times. I am intrigued by this. However even that can be portrayed without grimdark. Even Disney movies get into this on rare occasions. The examples are Robin Hood, Hunchback of Notre Dame and Wish. I guess the ideal tone is a matter of personal taste more than anything. Personally I am comfortable with a moderate tone like DND and a tone that is a bit lighter. I am willing to check out something with a dark tone if it has other interesting things about it. That is what the game in the video is like. I love the approach taken by the Pokemon and Zelda franchises of Nintendo. I may end up doing something like that. The tone is fairly light. The aesthetic is cute, colorful and cartoony. The games are generally E rated. However these games can be complex and challenging. They are in the same league as complex games aimed for a more mature audience. I like that. Just because something is kid friendly, it doesn't mean it has to be dumbed down. It is better that way. The games can appeal to both kids and adults. Kids can tell when they are being talked down to, and they hate it. So they are going to gravitate to things that are not dumbed down.
@@JakubWojtowitz I like them both! Haha that's the problem. And I don't even like any of them -although they both are excellent - as much as I like Dolmenwood or OSE. It turns out that in my - almost - 40s I'm starting to become a collector (if you can call having like 12 books the start of a TTRPG collection)
I would say The Broken Empires RPG is more innovative in a lot of ways. Down Among the Dead is a new book of Pirate Borg which itself is based on Mork Borg? If you love pirates sure, but TBE seems more complete.
A very interesting game ! But I need a simple game for my solo sessions. I use Deathbringer, and I often use a hit location table (d20 modern) and Seth Skorkowski's critical & fumbles tables
This game has some great ideas - I personally LOVE the "magic weaving" concept. My only concern is that is does seem a bit crunchy, I wonder how fast it actually run. I've be very interested in watching some sort of tutorial when the rules are actually played to get a better understanding of the pacing of combat scenes; not like a deep dive, but kind of like a quick demo
I really love isolated sandbox adventures like curse of strahd and keep on the borderlands. if you're reading this please leave any recommendations below I'd really appreciate it!
With the "reality backlash" in the magic, mind or body control magic is the best way to deal with. Like fear inducing or the enemys suffocate more in battle than the party and swing their weapons not so fast etc. PS: Sorry, no native speaker
I'm all about finding pre-written adventures for solo play now. I have enough systems, not counting my own. All I want is content, i.e. description, narration and dialogue, and an oracle.
Well honestly, this game sounds freakin cool. The combat sounds a bit complicated, however, my biggest issue with some games is that they are too simple. I think this combat system while a little on the complex side, will allow for some very dynamic light narration, and situations. And sounds really really tactical. The magic system he's developed just from what little I've heard in this interview, is so far my favorite. He was very clever with this. The way he describes how the tapistry of reality doesn't like to be messed with and will fight back. It allows the players to be creative but still provides a bit of foundation. I've seen some magic systems that allow lots of flexibility but feel like they lack a solid foundation. The problem with having such a solid foundation is that it can make magic feel a little too rigid. This system so far sounds like it grants that freedom to truly weave a spell but keeping it contrained so it's not too over the top either. If that makes sense. I may not have really described that last part properly. But the magic system really does sound like it can allow creativity while not giving players free reign to do what ever they want willy-nilly. This game sounds pretty cool. The art on that cover is just dang gorgeous. Already a real big fan of the art in this book. The maps are pretty and those characters really do look like they've been through it, and could really kick some butt! Yeah so far liking what I see in this.
Im hyped by magic system. I made my own for my table without slots, mana, nor levels or ranks too! I love seeing games coming without any of those things
I’ve watched Me, Myself, and Die from day one. He’s the reason I got into solo ttrpgs. Happy to see him growing and getting recognition.
Same ❤
+10 xp to you both for taking the plunge
As a lone former D&D player I'm looking into which system I could choose to start my first solo adventure with. I'm definitely giving this guy's channel a look.
@@EmeraldVideosNL glad to hear it! And Me Myself and Die is a great channel on it's entertainment meets alone.
When picking your first solo system, i suggest either a simple system or one that you know really well (both if possible). That way your sessions will be about learning how to run a solo game for yourself, instead of referencing the rule books.
@@JackMcCarthyWriter Thank you for the advice. Coming from D&D 3.5 I definitely want to move to a D&D-like but streamlined rules-light system. I have dyscalculia, so preferably not too much number crunch. Shadowdark and Black Sword Hack seem promising and have their own integrated solo rules, but I'm also looking into Five Torches Deep, Knave and Old Swords Reign. But those last two would need a separate solo system, so watching Me Myself and Die will be a good way to familiarise myself with the Mythic GM system.
I am not a solo RPG gamer, nor do I watch live plays as a general rule. I watch Trevor for his Sage's Library sections and the combat demos on his 'gray featureless plain' to get a feel for game mechanics.
Over the years, I realize that he and I have a very similar set of likes and dislikes when it comes to RPGs.
I am very much looking forward to The Broken Empires. From everything I've seen, it will probably be my go-to fantasy system!
My experience has been very similar.
I normally overlook this stuff - but I am in on this one - thanks for the heads-up!
Thanks, Professor, for continuing to cover things NOT Hasbro!
Glad to see other folks are being creative with pen and paper gaming.
I have a long list of games I want to play, but I feel that this game just takes the things I like the most from them and creates a unique blend. Backed and can't wait for the release. Also, Me, Myslef and Die is the best sort of entertainment you can find on RUclips. Thanks for a great interview!
This describes me personally as well.
This describes me as well, thanks @astrolama-p30
Pleeease go support this game. Trevor is the absolute real deal, and The Broken Empires reflects that. You can even watch some of the game play in action featuring a certain well-known professor!
Second time I've watched Professor DM interview someone, both times, I really liked his style. Kudos for the great video! ^^
Love how this guy brought more attention to Solo tabletop roleplaying.
I really do hope this is successful.
I like this guy. I like his energy. I want to meet him at a con and talk about different systems.
if you want to see him talk about different systems he has a lil series called "Sage's Library" where he talks about his favorites.
I am so excited to read your material for the Broken Empire, I have been a long admirer of your channel.
This was an interview between two GM/ Game designers who've approached the hobby in different ways to achieve the same goal. This is what the hobby needs. Thank you.
The Social Encounters I do right now in all the TTRPGs I run. I never say roll for it when social encounters happen. I listen to the players side and then determine whether it is intimidation or persuasion or something else. The DC is also on a sliding scale depending on their words spoken. I usually have keywords in place to help me determine the DC.
The weaving of spells reminded me of Earthdawn's "Thread weaving" that magician disciplines have. Cool.
I remember a fantasy novel I read long ago also had magic in threads. Quite literally--a counter spell crafted a pair of thread-made scissors to cut the antagonist's threads he was weaving.
I love all Dungeon Craft videos! Thanks for sharing, Professor.
+funded in 5 minutes" tells it all. I've backed it day one and really glad I did so !
Trevor: So, what I did was create a game for adults.
Professor DM: So, if an 8 year old is playing a Charismatic Paladin...?
🤣
Right 😂
Oh theres definetly people that are adult, but play in a 8 year old child manner 😅
@@REGIONBRITANNIA my 8 year Olds are fun to play tabletop gaming with, sometimes more than the 8 year old adults 🤣
It's called stress testing the engine 😂😂
I know nothing about this game designer, Trevor Devall, but I like his approach to being a GM, and his game logic. Thank you for introducing us to Broken Empires.
This was a *FANTASTIC* interview! I'm SO glad to learn Mr. Deval's passion project has panned out!
[Thumbs-up Button PRESSED]
Me: I don't know about TTRPGs anymore. Getting a group together has been challenging, built-for-solo games completely lack the crunch I want, and converting crunchy group games to solo ends up being too intense.
Trevor: ...Good news!
Really glad the solo rules are going to be baked in instead of being a stretch goal. Also like the idea of a d100 system. Only ever played one system that used it yet I thought it was really fun.
Two of my favourite gaming minds and people. Happy to be supportive of both in different ways.
Great pick, Professor!! That game sounds really cool. In the 40k game Dark Heresy you use percentile dice to attack, and you want to roll under your skill, just like Broken Empires. Similarly, in Dark Heresy, you reverse the attack dice for a hit-location. It's fast and easy! I like the complexity added in Broken Empires, and I'd like to give it a go.
Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay does exactly the same thing.
Best of luck to you and the game!
I was surprised to see PDM playing Broken Empires. For some reason, I didn't think it would be his type of game.
I love Trevor's excitement and I'm happy for him that it's doing so well.
Honestly, I'm not sure if it's really for me, but I will definitely pick it up to support him.
Excellent questions, pithy and concise description. Sounds terrific!
I don't know if I'll actually play it but I love what Trevor is doing with the game!
I am making my own RPG and the combat in mine is also driven by the idea that nebulous rolls need to go. You get location and effect (not damage) in my game as well. The days of HP and AC are numbered! lol Great to see Trevor taking that approach too.
It was great hearing the history and meeting the maker of Broken Empires!
It's nice that you present a lot of interesting alternatives to D&D. This is one I will definitely investigate further.
I love this video and all videos from DungeonCraft. Thank for showcasing an independent creator again!
Me, Myself, and Die is how I got into solo role playing! I wonder what tools Trevor includes in his game for solo players
The magic tapestry kicking back for bending reality reminds me of mage:the ascension.
Love it!
Great interview, professor! Really excited about it, and looking forward to playing your expansion adventure!
The art work drew me in. Beautiful.
I love how supportive you are of other people in this community
Sounds awesome. Seriously considering backing this, good ol' Trevor here really sold me on the game system and concept.
It's been said by others but you are a great interviewer Professor. Thanks for the great post!
I'm really intrigued by the "roll under, but your tens are your level of success" concept.
Also, I love dangerous magic. This sounds like something that I need.
Having played other games with that type of mechanic I can say it's a pretty fast and exciting way to make a skill check.
Very similar to Warhammer fantasy roleplay
I really like the idea of the magic system created for this system and going to look into it more. Sounds like an open system allowing for player creativity.
Thank you for sharing!
Always happy to hear about other games and systems. And discussing it with the developer is just gold.
Oh fickle Al' GoRithm, I love all Dungeon Craft videos.
I have to agree with Trevor with social encounters. I do not have boulders in my back yard you have to lift to make a strength check. I don’t have a pit you have to jump over. I don’t have a ring people have to grapple with me in. We don’t do that. We let the dice and stats of the character determine those things.
But when we come to social interactions people want to put down the character sheets and dice and expect the players to be super charismatic. I don’t get this mentality. It makes no sense and completely undermines the charisma stat of your character and the rules of the system.
It's tricky though because RPGs are actually about role-playing. And as soon as you give most players a lame way to succeed at a task they are going to do that. Not every social encounter can simply be solved simply with "I make a charisma (or insight) check." There must be some decision making and player agency involved. But the balance of these two has always been a challenge in RPGs. Same goes for intelligence. Because a player can easily be playing a character that is drastically smarter or dumber than they are. A very tight rope to walk, for sure. So I'm very interested to see his ideas on it!
@@4saken404 the problem we fall into with roleplaying, is misconstruing it for acting. When I play a roleplay video game am I acting? No. I'm putting myself in the shoes of the character and making decisions based off of what they would think and do.
Roleplaying is kind of one of those things, like railroading, that's come to take on something it never meant.
If I have a player who doesn't act, but plays a very charismatic paladin and tells me they want to try to impress the king should it be an automatic failure because they didn't act it out convincingly to me?
I don't think it's that tight of a rope to walk because at the end of the day we are playing the characters, not ourselves. It's not up to my own psychical strength, dexterity, or wisdom to do things in game. Not should it be up to my own personal charisma to do things in game. If I made a very charismatic person, let the rolls decide if he succeeds or not. If I wanted to act out things and convince you through my own personal charm, I'd just go do some live action roleplaying. Aka larping. That's not what I sit down at a ttrpGAME
@@Gliiitchy I'm glad more people have been taking issue with this. Been playing since the 80s and this mentality still plagues the community. I'm seeing more pushback, finally!
@@GliiitchyBut what if I'm not making some grandiose speech that appeals to pathos, but instead make a reasonable, well thought out argument that the NPCs don't have a rational reason to disagree with? Why should I, the player, be gated behind some arbitrary skill roll when nothing in the argument I made depends upon my character's personal charisma?
It is a fact of life that a better driver gets better performance out of their vehicle. Likewise, the better player should get a better performance out of their game. If I am better than you at chess, should I then be forced to make bad moves so that you won't become envious of my skill? Where is the fairness in that?
I say no. We should not ignore *player* skill at RPGs, and we should not stop rewarding it in RPGs. If I am better than you at the game then I should not be fettered to bring me down to your level. Instead, the onus is on *you* to catch up with me. No one is born as a great orator. It is a learned skill, and if you have been slacking on learning the skills necessary for the game, then the shame rests on your shoulders.
@@tuomasronnberg5244 Then give them advantage on the roll?
I have my players roll first, give speeches second. Pathfinder 2 has a rule for compelling NPCs and it says to roll and then envision what you say. It doesn't say "Give your best speech and see if the GM is swayed by it."
Again, I do not make people lift boulders to do a strength check, I don't make them parkor around my house to do a dex check, I do not make them try to see if they can find my dogs foot prints in my back yard to do a wisdom check.
Every single stat in the game, we look at the character sheet and we roll on the stat.
Charisma checks is the ONLY place people make this argument and it has as much weight as a feather.
"What if I have a body builder at my table and he is really strong, but he rolls a strength check and fails it? What if he picked me up and suplexes me through the table shouldn't I reward that?"
This "But what if!" Question falls apart the second you use ANY other stat in place of charisma.
Again, I am not here to LARP, I am not here to Act, I am not here to do Improv. Nor do I expect my players to do this.
I am here to play a game, that is based around how good our characters are at things, not how good we are at things, and we resolve that by rolling dice and using statistics on the character sheets.
Ooooh! I haven't heard someone mentions Ars Magicka in a hot minute!
I've been underwhelmed with a lot of the standard RPG ways of doing things for years now. I do 5 hp of damage? What the hell does that even look like? So that got me dabbling in RPG design decades ago. We're talking 1986 here. And a lot of what this guy is saying sounds like my sentiments on things almost exactly. For example as soon as I saw "flexible magic system" I knew there was about a 110% chance he was inspired by Ars Magica. Because that was the exact same game I was drawn to and for the exact same reasons.
I also like how he uses the idea of random charts to remove much of the burden from GM'ing. I've wanted to do this for years but it's not until recently that some game designers went full bore with this approach so now we have some really good charts to use! Questing Beast for example with Knave 2. So much of that book is GM-facing! It's nice to have a game that is a joy to run rather than an overwhelming ordeal that can take hours of prep that the players never see.
Sounds like a great game, can't wait to try it!
Im pledged in. Im a little wary about the character sheet, its quite busy, but overall excited for the game.
The combat and the magic system are what i like best, and loved his show too
Backed this one! Looking forward to it
I always appreciate channels covering indie games. Not one that interests me, personally, but still happy to see it
I love TBE Sim-Lite idea: Free-form magic, Social encounters, Tactical and more crunchy (but not to heavy and not to slow) combat, Travle system, Naval combat and Mass combat.
I except that this system will replace all fantasy TTRPGs for me. I watch Me, Myself & Die from the beginning, and I'm assured that Trevor is going to deliver us a wonderful RPG.
Big fan of Trev's (drinking some coffee from a MM&D mug as I watch this). Backed this on day one. His gaming tastes run extremely close to my own.
This sounds really cool. I could only suppor at the digital level, but am looking forward to seeing more on it.
I like the idea of reality fighting back against magic, it is a selling point for me.
So many good ideas in here. As a mainly OSR player, I think it's loose enough to allow some improvisation but doesn't go full narrative game. The success level maneuvers, magic system and even the social rolls(!) I think are a step above the competition especially.
Also can't wait to see how his One ring inspired travel rules play out.
I think the funny thing about the Social Rolls is, it doesn't even require his system to do. It's just a mentality thing. It's just let roleplay go first and then roll to see if you succeed. What his system does though is support it a bit further, even if you were playing something that is completely opposite of his vibe, just inverting that process makes a huge difference.
But he is right, simply roleplaying and not rolling anything, then you're not roleplaying said character, you're roleplaying you, and if you're just rolling dice, than its the opposite, there is only mechanics and no character to back up.
@@Mr_Chinchila @Mr_Chinchila Yes, I actually think its a gap in the OSR standard where the social play is pure player skill to a point it is practically in narrativist territory. It's not just the player/character divide either, sometimes you want a system that has some chance. For example, how does the GM arbitrate when a player roleplays a good lie to a gullible NPC vs a untrusting NPC? I think a system should have some leeway there beyond a yes/no answer, usually I would have a x in d6 role with a difficulty based on the quality of the roleplay and this system is another way to codify it in a way that makes the roleplay impactful but also not just dice roll based, which to me is a particularly unsatisfying social system if it is heavily dice/stat skewed.
@@MantisGod8815 I tried a bunch of systems before before landing in like this in-between of Skill Based, Sim-Lite, Narrativistic middle.
I recall playing OSR and Pbta, then seeing the discussions online and thinking, 'You guys are attempting the same thing from different angles.'
I couldn't get into OSR because it was all about player skill, to me the characters were just meat for the grinder and that felt super unsatisfying to me. While Pbta also is about roleplaying and character stuff but roleplaying comes first than mechanics, and it was so super abstract that it put me off.
Simulationist games to me are a bit too much. And 5e bores me. So apparently I'm never satisfied haha. I ended up working on my own stuff which is very close to some decisions on the Broken Empires, zones for combat and whatnot, yet I go a more abstract (Wounds are specific to hit locations for example in mine) way because I love dice pool games akin to World of Darkness games and what not. Still dangerous, but diverging in that direction because Well- after you play a ton of systems you sorta figure out what your perfect game would be, and honestly, I ended up writing a 51 page docx for my home games pffft.
But the discussion of character vs player skill to me always felt weird cause I always felt it should be in the middle. Where enough input from the character should infer decisions without completely overshadowing the existence of the character.
I'm supporting it because I think Trevor is awesome. That said, I am not at all a simulationist, so this game is not for me. I'm more Cairn/Knave/ICRPG. I just don't have the time or focus to play anything much more complex. That said, I think it's awesome that it blew up and Trevor rocks, so I genuinely want it to succeed just on that basis. FWiW I think this is a whole new creature in TTRPGs and it is clearly the work of a true master of gaming. Anyway... all the best to you!
Agreed love the art work the none woke attitude, so I want to support him for that and his love of his project you can tell he really cares about gamers and his game which is something sadly hard to find now adays!. With that said yes I want a quick fast playing OSR game, combat needs to be fast and quick for me and we need games that are easy to teach to new players otherwise we all will struggle to get new players into our groups which we need!.
@@underfire987 I don't take positions on anything other than the game play. People's socio-political opinions are irrelevant, unhelpful and not welcome. Otherwise, everything about this project is great except the rules. IMO. But those are just my thoughts.
Thanks for the timely interview!
I love the magic, here!
I have gone for the exact opposite approach for my own (the Great Flow is dangerous and mages in the Dark Beyond have flocked to what they know works), but I have always wanted to work a free flow magic system like Broken Empires' ^^
I never back kickstarter projects, except this one.
Same here.
For me it was just two, The Broken Empires and Moria for One Ring 2e
My first kickstarter as well. Was tempted to back the cosmere rpg as I am a brandon sanderson fan, but I am tired of d20 systems
Been waiting for this project ever since Trevor teased it a while back. Glad to see you covering it and I hope the kickstarter gets to at least 500k!
Same here!
I backed the hell outta this. Watching it grow in development has been great.
This will be my first time going to Kickstarter, I can't wait to play this system
Excellent video! Looks like a very creative project!
Okay... that was one of the best DeathBringer sign offs ever.... well done!
The Ars Magica system is great. Loved the 3rd edition. It deserves a lot more attention than it gets.
Saw him review MERP. He is a good guy. Simulationists are the best of the hobby. BRP, GURPS, Rolemaster, Harnmaster. You gotta love it!
"Simulationists are the best of the hobby." Agree 100%.
Great video Dungeon Craft. The Broken Empire looks interesting.
I was backing the Deliverance boardgame and this did catch my eye in the recommendations - the cover is so good that it stuck in my mind. Didn't click on it though in KS. So when I saw a PDM video with the cover art thumbnail I figured I had to watch. I'm going to go through his series explaining the mechanics in more detail first, but I'm already 80% sold just on the basis of the social interactions mechanics. It's always bothered me that I have to be a charismatic person to play a charismatic character at most tables, yet don't have to demonstrate my prowess with a sword or magic to play a strong or arcane character. Finally, we are seeing more (of what should be) common sense! If it also sticks the boot into the linear fighter/quadratic wizard problem that has plagued RPGS for almost as long, I think that will cinch the deal.
I like what this guy is saying mechanically and thematically
Ugh, another KS I "need" to back 😜. Thanks, for the video, this system sounds awesome.
Broken Empires sounds like a fun system. I look forward to playing it.
Cool. I enjoy hearing about RPGs I've never heard about.
Seriously 😮the Magic sounds AWESOME 🤩
and combat is familiar yet different. I like it!
I'm curious--I think I'd need to try it to see how crunchy it is. This channel has conditioned me over time to prefer rules light RPGs but I enjoyed a bit of sim-iness in my misguided youth.
Oh wow. That sounds like a cool game. I would like to try that. I am especially intrigued by the magic and social systems. I know the distinction between rules-lite and crunchy. I know there is a potential spectrum. This game has a special kind of categorization. It makes me think the spectrum ought to be divided into sections. That would be useful for TTRPGs as a whole. It helps the games get an appropriate player base. This game developer is fun to watch. I like how he speaks with such enthusiasm. That does remind me of Todd Kendrick. That is the guy that has done interviews on the official DND channel. I just watched a new interview, which is about the lore glossary. Now I know that I better show enthusiasm, if I ever make and game and talk about it.
There is an idea about grim dark. I know what that is. However I don't understand the appeal. I notice a subtle difference between the art in this video and the art in the new DND Player Handbook. The colors are a bit darker and a bit less saturated. That hints at a darker tone. I also noticed the guy on the top left of the book cover looks a lot like Aragon from the Lord of the Rings movies.
I watched Trevor's show for years, and I would rather describe it as playing real people in extraordinary circumstances and watching them struggle with the world that fights them back. It's about drama, conflict in a mistical but believeble world.
I guess the one grimdark thing I like is Game of Thrones. However there are things I like are not the grimdark part or the stuff that is MA rated. This is the show that made me interested in political intrigue in fantasy. That part is really cool. Ravnica is one of my favorite planes of Magic the Gathering. That have plenty of fun political intrigue with the guilds. It is also just as light in tone as the rest of Magic the Gathering. That is a moderate tone like DND and Lord of the Rings. Ravnica is essentially Magic the Gathering meets Game of Thrones. Another think I like about Game of Thrones is the deconstruction of the Medieval European setting. It shows the harsh aspects. It can even be dystopian at times. I am intrigued by this. However even that can be portrayed without grimdark. Even Disney movies get into this on rare occasions. The examples are Robin Hood, Hunchback of Notre Dame and Wish.
I guess the ideal tone is a matter of personal taste more than anything. Personally I am comfortable with a moderate tone like DND and a tone that is a bit lighter. I am willing to check out something with a dark tone if it has other interesting things about it. That is what the game in the video is like. I love the approach taken by the Pokemon and Zelda franchises of Nintendo. I may end up doing something like that. The tone is fairly light. The aesthetic is cute, colorful and cartoony. The games are generally E rated. However these games can be complex and challenging. They are in the same league as complex games aimed for a more mature audience. I like that. Just because something is kid friendly, it doesn't mean it has to be dumbed down. It is better that way. The games can appeal to both kids and adults. Kids can tell when they are being talked down to, and they hate it. So they are going to gravitate to things that are not dumbed down.
@@astrolama-p3oOh that is cool. There is nice suspense and groundedness.
Great intreview!
Thx for the video!
I love ALL Dungeon Craft videos!!!! ❤
Man, so many great Kickstarters! If only I had more money. I have to choose between Broken Empires & the new books for Pirate Borg.
It depends on your taste, if You like more realistic and detailed mechanic and serious setting then choose TBE ;)
@@JakubWojtowitz I like them both! Haha that's the problem. And I don't even like any of them -although they both are excellent - as much as I like Dolmenwood or OSE.
It turns out that in my - almost - 40s I'm starting to become a collector (if you can call having like 12 books the start of a TTRPG collection)
I would say The Broken Empires RPG is more innovative in a lot of ways. Down Among the Dead is a new book of Pirate Borg which itself is based on Mork Borg? If you love pirates sure, but TBE seems more complete.
The Broken Empires will have naval combat rules that sound really fun!
A very interesting game ! But I need a simple game for my solo sessions. I use Deathbringer, and I often use a hit location table (d20 modern) and Seth Skorkowski's critical & fumbles tables
This game has some great ideas - I personally LOVE the "magic weaving" concept. My only concern is that is does seem a bit crunchy, I wonder how fast it actually run. I've be very interested in watching some sort of tutorial when the rules are actually played to get a better understanding of the pacing of combat scenes; not like a deep dive, but kind of like a quick demo
I really love isolated sandbox adventures like curse of strahd and keep on the borderlands. if you're reading this please leave any recommendations below I'd really appreciate it!
I’ve never been more excited for a system
With the "reality backlash" in the magic, mind or body control magic is the best way to deal with. Like fear inducing or the enemys suffocate more in battle than the party and swing their weapons not so fast etc.
PS: Sorry, no native speaker
This sounds badass, I may actually go and back this!
Interesting
Something new and different
Can't wait for this one! Ain't got no money right now, but I'll buy on release most def
Thanks for continuing to cover alternatives to D&D
Backed and can’t wait to give it a go.
I love ALL Dungeon Craft videos!
Sounds fun.
The magic sounds like it’s inspired by Mage: the Ascension :-)
By its predecessor in fact, Trevor mentioned his inspiration was Ars Magicka.
Sounds good! Backed!
Sold. Nice job on the interview.
I want to see this guy run a game for Hank Green, Alton Brown and Adam Savage. The personal energy will be awesome!
Very interesting. May have to take a look at this.
I like the idea of the campaign setting. System seems a bit too crunchy for my taste, though
I'm all about finding pre-written adventures for solo play now. I have enough systems, not counting my own. All I want is content, i.e. description, narration and dialogue, and an oracle.
Well honestly, this game sounds freakin cool. The combat sounds a bit complicated, however, my biggest issue with some games is that they are too simple. I think this combat system while a little on the complex side, will allow for some very dynamic light narration, and situations. And sounds really really tactical. The magic system he's developed just from what little I've heard in this interview, is so far my favorite. He was very clever with this. The way he describes how the tapistry of reality doesn't like to be messed with and will fight back. It allows the players to be creative but still provides a bit of foundation. I've seen some magic systems that allow lots of flexibility but feel like they lack a solid foundation. The problem with having such a solid foundation is that it can make magic feel a little too rigid. This system so far sounds like it grants that freedom to truly weave a spell but keeping it contrained so it's not too over the top either. If that makes sense. I may not have really described that last part properly. But the magic system really does sound like it can allow creativity while not giving players free reign to do what ever they want willy-nilly. This game sounds pretty cool. The art on that cover is just dang gorgeous. Already a real big fan of the art in this book. The maps are pretty and those characters really do look like they've been through it, and could really kick some butt! Yeah so far liking what I see in this.
The game sounds great and I love the way magic works! Can't wait to try it out
The magic system sounds awesome
Great video! I'm loving this!
Im hyped by magic system. I made my own for my table without slots, mana, nor levels or ranks too! I love seeing games coming without any of those things
I love all Dungeon Craft videos!
Broken Empires sounds pretty cool.