[shock] Playtest questions.

[Tim Alexander]

Hey Josh,

Some of these questions have seen the light elsewhere, but I'm including them here because I'm still not getting it.

1) No additional coins enter the economy? They're either used and discarded, or traded in a multi-protag conflict, but no new coins are generated?

2) Can using 'world elements' as free traits be stacked, or must they be called in via seperate parts of the bid/narration process? On a related note can you respond to a bid with only a world element free trait, or do you always have to bid more coins to continue?

3) Conflicts that don't apply to the antagonist's traits are resolved simply, without any bidding?

-Tim

[Joshua A.C. Newman]

Hey Josh,

That's Joshua, please.

Some of these questions have seen the light elsewhere, but I'm including them here because I'm still not getting it.

1) No additional coins enter the economy? They're either used and discarded, or traded in a multi-protag conflict, but no new coins are generated?

Well, I've got two answers. One, no further coins need to enter the economy. The coins are there to give authorial control. There aren't enough of them right now, though; in 0.2.0 the number of coins will go up. It's too coarse right now, and the mechanism isn't suited for it.

2) Can using 'world elements' as free traits be stacked, or must they be called in via seperate parts of the bid/narration process? On a related note can you respond to a bid with only a world element free trait, or do you always have to bid more coins to continue?

Sorry, I don't quite understand, Tim. What do you mean by "word elements" and "free traits"?

3) Conflicts that don't apply to the antagonist's traits are resolved simply, without any bidding?

Yep. Get traits!

Also, I think you'll start with more in 0.2.0.. I erred on the side of parsimony in 0.1.0 and it's causing some difficulty in everybody.

[Tim Alexander]

That's Joshua, please.

Done and done.

Well, I've got two answers. One, no further coins need to enter the economy. The coins are there to give authorial control. There aren't enough of them right now, though; in 0.2.0 the number of coins will go up. It's too coarse right now, and the mechanism isn't suited for it.

Can you give me some insight into the reasoning on a finite number? It seems like that creates a self-weighting system, which maybe is your intent, but I'm missing why that's a feature?

2) Can using 'world elements' as free traits be stacked, or must they be called in via seperate parts of the bid/narration process? On a related note can you respond to a bid with only a world element free trait, or do you always have to bid more coins to continue?

Sorry, I don't quite understand, Tim. What do you mean by "word elements" and "free traits"?

Ah, world, not word. I mean minutiae, but I'd forgotten the term you use. Minutiae can be brought in as a one point trait without using coins, right? Can you stack them?

3) Conflicts that don't apply to the antagonist's traits are resolved simply, without any bidding?

Yep. Get traits!

Wait... is there a method to get traits in play? That would be a huge thing to have missed.

Also, I think you'll start with more in 0.2.0.. I erred on the side of parsimony in 0.1.0 and it's causing some difficulty in everybody.

Gotcha. FWIW It's a really interesting piece, it definitely makes me want to play it.

-Tim

[Tim Alexander]

Well, I've got two answers. One, no further coins need to enter the economy. The coins are there to give authorial control. There aren't enough of them right now, though; in 0.2.0 the number of coins will go up. It's too coarse right now, and the mechanism isn't suited for it.

Can you give me some insight into the reasoning on a finite number? It seems like that creates a self-weighting system, which maybe is your intent, but I'm missing why that's a feature?

Ok, ignore this one. Your response in Allan's thread helps a lot. The fact that coins don't go away but go to the loser wasn't clear in the text for me.

-Tim

[Joshua A.C. Newman]

Ah, I forgot to mention the second thing about the number of coins:

When you cash in a character at the end of a story (the dude dies or other wise leaves the larger story) or the story ends, you cash in that character's features for temporary coins. You didn't miss this in 0.1.0; it's not in the rules there. So far it exists only in a thread here in the glyphpress forum.

That's right, you get a reward for your character dying. Stories end, and that can be the best part about them. Shock: is weighted against The One Campaign type play.

[Joshua A.C. Newman]

Ah, world, not word. I mean minutiae, but I'd forgotten the term you use. Minutiae can be brought in as a one point trait without using coins, right? Can you stack them?

Ha ha! I was misreading "world" as "word" for the rest of that paragraph!

I don't see why you can't stack them, though to keep their dramatic value intact I think you probably can't use more than three at once.

3) Conflicts that don't apply to the antagonist's traits are resolved simply, without any bidding?

Yep. Get traits!

Wait... is there a method to get traits in play? That would be a huge thing to have missed.

Right now, only between sessions. In the future, I think you get them by losing Conflicts.

Also, I think you'll start with more in 0.2.0.. I erred on the side of parsimony in 0.1.0 and it's causing some difficulty in everybody.

Gotcha. FWIW It's a really interesting piece, it definitely makes me want to play it.

Excellent.