[Rustbelt] de-ashcanification stage one: I need your eyes

[Marshall Burns]

So, I've got a draft of a new Rustbelt text. I'm not happy with it yet, but I don't know what to do to fix it. Specifically, I'm not satisfied with the "Playing the Game" and "GM Guide" chapters. And there's a few other issues that I don't feel I've covered properly, like abstraction and scale in resolution, and how the Rust behaves, and how to use the Price as an effect mechanic (and I can't even explain what I mean by that last one). I'm too close to the damned thing, having worked at it feverishly for the past week or so. I'm so close that I can't even see it without crossing my eyes, which hurts.

So what I need is some other eyes, some eyes at a distance. I'd like to solicit the help of any and all ashcan customers who want to take a look at this thing and give me some thoughts on it. If you've got the ashcan, just drop me a line and I'll email you the text. (Also tell me your email, if we've never exchanged emails before)

There's been a few small rule changes, too. Some little tweaks to some of the Psyche mechanics, and also a new Deadlock mechanic that I like way more than the old one (everyone was bidding high numbers all the time, and it just got predictable and boring).

So, if you wanna take a look at this, speak up! Any and all insights are invaluable, even (especially) the ones that seem super-obvious to you.

-Marshall

[JoyWriter]

Do you mean "How to use price to drive events on"?

In other words setting Difficulties in order to make people fail and force them to take injuries and damage to deal with?

or is it about how players can develop their character by ageing them through the price mechanic?

On looking the game over, I've got a friend who eats and drinks this kind of thing, but doesn't like reading much, between the two of us we should be able to pull out most of the points of confusion. Now obviously I don't have the ashcan, so how would that work?

[Marshall Burns]

I've got a better handle on what I mean by "use the Price as an effect mechanic." What I'm referring to is how the Price produces all manner of shades and variations on outcomes. It not just a matter of, "I win, so I get my intent." Sometimes that's all that's involved, but when there's a Price, there's a wide range of things that can now come into play. Rather than a stated intent/stakes/goal/whatever defining Effect (as in IIEE), the Price has just as much, if not more, to do with what actually happens. It's a big-time Fortune in the Middle kind of thing, with some major Positioning mechanics going on, and the players & GM can, with enough awareness, use it as an instrument to make cool noises. Fostering that awareness, and making people aware of what sort of cool noises they can make (and why they would want to make them) is something I'd like the text to do.

As for reading over it, shoot me an email and we'll work something out.  marksman45 [at] gmail

[Nocker]

I discovered the pre-ashcan version on your website, and after reading it, integrating the erratas and suggestions from the Ron's actual play, I was convinced : I loved this game. I'll wait til I play it before making this judgment final but this will sure come soon. (Though I consider playing in another desperate setting)

How is going the de-ashcanification ? I'd love to buy the Version 1.0

Good luck.

[Marshall Burns]

It's going quite well! I'm in the editing/layout stage right now. I wish I could say exactly when it'll be out, but I can't. It'll be out when it's done. I'm glad you like it!

-Marshall