[Seven Leagues (a fantasy RPG of Faerie)] Please comment

[hieronymous]

Berginyon,

now that a few weeks have elapsed i was wondering if you've gotten any further in you adaptation, and how the Conflict system is playing out for you. in my latest draft:

http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/7leagues/files/

i've set the Embellishment range from -1 to +3 (rather than -3 to +5) to make Conflict end in ties more frequently (and maybe that's not very "mythic heroic"), as well as the default Narrator bonus to +1 from +2. (btw i tend to update more frequently over at the Yahoo group files area). so:

--have you tried the Embellishment system or have you devised your own Conflict system?
--do Embellishments feel natural, or forced?
--are you having problems assigning Narrative Bonuses that seem fair to everyone? do people balk at the Narrator's assessments? do you often vote to use the default Narrative Bonus for Antagonists, or let the Narrator rate him/herself?
--do your Conflicts go on and on or do you stop in the 2-4 Embellishment (each) range?
--do you have any other feedback on the Embellishment/Narrative Bonus feature of Roll 13?

i've been tempted to try a dice pool version (say you get 1d6 per Embellishment), but dang it i just can't let go of that d12. the other problem i have with pools is that they reward you for any Embellishments, not just good ones, which i think is essential.

any comments most welcome. thanks again for takin' 'er fer a spin.

[hieronymous]

i've tested 7L a few times now, with the Narrative Mod range of -1 to +3 (rather than -3 to +5). so far, here's what i have to report:

--the conflicts tended to be well-narrated and fairly creative. most Player bonuses were +1. in once case i awarded a +3 bonus to someone for an uncreative action because logically the Player could not be defended against, based on the Charms in play.

--in that same situation, the Player lost Roll 13 even though he became immaterial and got past his Antagonist (a toll troll). i determined that even though narratively he had gotten past the troll ("won"), according to the dice he was Defeated. i resolved that by declaring that his getting past the troll without paying the toll broke a "law" of Faerie and trolldom; he is currently therefore stuck in his gaseous state and not sure how to reform. a good example of how Defeat can be applied.

--in the playtests, players voted to allow the Narrator to self-assign bonuses rather than accept the universal +1. this turned out to be in their favor; on average this Narrator awarded less than +1 to his own narrations (most were 0 or +1).

--dice are still important. a great narration doesn't guarantee success (either in Conflict or just unopposed Roll 13). ties are quite possible.

anyone else have some playtest notes to share?