Quick Variant Idea: Inspiration combining

[Sindyr]

Would this be a bad(tm) idea, to have some way to combine smaller inspirations to make bigger ones?

Perhaps using the following method - combining two inspirations yields one higher than the largest of the two - ie, combining a 2 and a 4 yields a 5.

Or I guess you could just say add the two dice together.

You could also have an overarching rule saying that it is forbidden to create 6's, if you wanted to.

Any combination of the above ideas workable?

[TonyLB]

Interesting.  I wonder what it would do to the function of Inspirations to provide narrative continuity.  If I combined "Ultra-dude rescues hostages, 2" and "Mayor Silverfish zones land for community gardening, 4" into a 5 point inspiration, what would I have to refer back to when I used it?  One of the events that spawned it?  Both?  Neither?

[Sindyr]

I was told at one point that both Story Tokens and Inspirations were awarded to *players* while debt was awarded to characters.

For example, we play a sci-fi game and I end the session with a 5-point Inspiration and two Story tokens.

If the next session we (the gaming group) plays is a fantasy game with a completely different setting and all new characters, Can I use either the inspiration or the 2 story tokens from before?

I believe I was given to understand that the answer to using both resources in an unconnected game with the same group is yes.

If that is the case, than I am not sure that the origin of the Inspiration is important when combining them.

If on the other hand, inspirations work more like debt, in that they stay with the character sheet that was being played when they were earned, than I probably wouldn't worry about combining them, or else I would just take the origin of the higher one, or something

[TonyLB]

p. 25 (or the errata, if you have a first printing copy): "Each Inspiration is from the result of a particular Conflict. When it is used the player should narrate some reason (as tenuous as they like) why that Conflict's outcome has an impact upon this Conflict."

It's not that the Inspirations are tied to a particular character, but rather that their origin must be referenced in the narrative when you use them, in much the same way that an ability must be referenced in the narrative when you use it to roll a die.

So if you completely switch universes between sessions then you may need to get somewhat creative in how you pull your Inspirations into the narrative.

[Sindyr]

Got it - thanks for the assist.

By the way, do you have to look up page references, or do you have them memorized at this point?

Continuing Variant thought:

Perhaps an inspiration can *either* swap the die's number (the normal way of using them) *or* increase it by one.

If this were to be allowed even low level inspirations would be useful for pumping up dice by one - so if the die shows a 4 and you only have a 2 inspiration, you can make that a 5.

What do you think? Too powerful?

[dunlaing]

That latest idea does sound too powerful. Having a 6 Inspiration is a big deal since 6s can't be rolled down. Being able to use your 1 Inspiration to change a 5 into a 6 is huge.

Your original suggestion (combining two inspirations yields one higher than the largest of the two) seems like a fine house rule. It's not out of line with the rule that lets you increase an Inspiration by 1 by using one of your actions with an ability at least equal to the value of the Inspiration. It makes it a bit easier to turn a 5 into a 6, but you lose a resource.

[Sindyr]

What if (in the service of simplicity) the rule was:  You can spend an Inspiration the normal way or use it instead to increment a die by one with the exception that you cannot make a six - five is the maximum you can use this way.

Not sure if I like this idea better than combining Insp's, just wondering.

[Matthew Glover]

Just to satisfy my curiosity, why is this houserule needed at all? 

[Sindyr]

It's not.  Not needed, anyways.  It's just a thought.

Exploring systems and variants is my nature. :)

It's the game designer in me.

Partly I'm curious if there may be some way to make little Inspirations to be worth something.

After all, wihout using Abilities on them, 1's are useless, and 2's nearly so.

It would be cool to make having 3 or 4 1's and 2's worthwhile I was thinking.

By the way, if you have a 4 inspiration, you can use two abilities to raise it to a 6, right?

[dunlaing]

It would take you two actions and you'd need to use a level 4 ability and a level 5 ability (or two 5s), but yes.

2 actions is pretty significant, though.

[Sindyr]

Having to have a level 4 and a level 5 isn't so terrible - I probably wouldn'y play a character that didn't have at least one levl 4 power and one level 5 power - meaning I would never run out of them, just get more debt.

Needing to use 2 actions (ie, take two turns) is a limiter though, I agree.

So we have two alternate ideas:
1) Combining Insps by taking any two of them that you have and ditching one and increasing the other by one.
2) Ditching an Insp in order to raise a die by one.

Either or both of the above can be limited.  One limit to add to either idea that probably makes sense is forbidden 6's to be created by either method.

Another factor is we have not determined is limitations in when either 1 or 2 could be done, or how often.

I would assume that whether we went with 1 or 2, that it would occur following the same rules for inspirations themsleves, that is (p25):"The player may do any of these things, in any order, as often as they can afford to.  They may do so before their Action, or after, or both. They may not do any of these things during the Action itself, or during any Reactions"

So, given the refined situation above, is 1 or 2 better?  Is either too powerful, or not powerful enough?

[Matthew Glover]

Though I don't think any of this is really necessary, I'll make an alternate suggestion.

Houserule - Equivalent Inspiration Bump
An Inspiration can be spent to bump a die with a value equal to that Inspiration up one point.  A 1pt. Inspiration can bump a 1 to a 2.  A 5pt. Inspiration can bump a 5 to a 6.

This makes Inspirations more powerful than in Stock Capes, but much less powerful than allowing a 1pt. Inspiration to bump any die and it doesn't get into the narrative repercussions of combining Inspirations.

[Zamiel]

Houserule - Equivalent Inspiration Bump
An Inspiration can be spent to bump a die with a value equal to that Inspiration up one point.  A 1pt. Inspiration can bump a 1 to a 2.  A 5pt. Inspiration can bump a 5 to a 6.

All of these suggestions have a side-effect that I find very undesirable, to wit, there are fewer ways to tie the previous narrative into ongoing events. For a game in which a number of core proponents of the change have mentioned repeatedly that the game seems narratively discontinuous, turning around to introduce means by which continuity can be lessened seems disingenious ... at best.

There already exists a mechanism for increasing an Inspiration's value, by rolling a Trait against it like any other die, with narrative effort. I suppose at a stretch, using another Inspiration to replace the result of that roll wouldn't be unthinkable, save that you've effectively just eaten an Inspiration. No profit, there. (Now ... rolling against your own Insp, accepting the result, and having someone else React and burn their own Inspiration ... there you get Inspiration trading, and, more evilly, anyone else at the table can React and do the same thing ... as long as they keep tying things in narratively. That is a lot more interesting.)

[Sindyr]

There already exists a mechanism for increasing an Inspiration's value, by rolling a Trait against it like any other die, with narrative effort.

You can do that?  You can spend an action to roll up an *Inspiration*?

I thought the *only* interaction between Abilities and Inspirations is that by using an Ability you can increase the Insp by one - if and only if the Ability is the same level as the Insp is currently, or higher?

[Sindyr]

Also, without "bumping" an Inspiration of 1 is nigh useless, correct?

Furthermore, if I resulve a conflict and my dice has a 6 and the other die has a 1, must I accept a 5 inspiration, or is it legal for me to give my opponent the 1 and keep the 6 for myself?