It's a cop out but what if you rig the rule set to keep the fights near plantary bodies so that fighters can "dive" by adding the body's gravitational pull to their accleration?
Flying Circus - Ghibli Inspired Aviation Fantasy RPG!
- Thread starter open_sketch
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I know some people have been asking for physical print copies, and I want to weigh in on that: Those are expensive. They cost to print and ship, which makes them less accessible to a lot of people, so I'd just like to recommend always releasing PDFs first. A lot of TRPG kick-starters read like they're basically designed for rich people (miniatures! glossy paper! hardcovers!), and I just don't want to see this go in that direction. Maybe as some sort of pre-ordered special edition it would work, but please not as the main goal of further expansions?
It's already a PDF release.
- Location
- Canada, probably
I was writing a review here, but 1) I wasn't sure that was actually appropriate for the thread and 2) it was kinda getting stupidly long. Also I, uh, don't actually know how to write a review. So there's that. Short mode: I like it, and there are some particular parts that I really like.
Cutting out altitude still leaves something that looks pretty good, though of course simpler, at least to my eye that has never actually played the game.
It starts to get weird when you think about space physics, though. There's no maximum speed anymore, for example, and overspeed is either meaningless or replaced with overacceleration. And you can't turn the same way a plane does, since to slow down you actually accelerate in the opposite direction.
I suppose the secret is to carefully choose your sci-fi tech gizmo. Maybe the "kinetic redirector" lets you harvest your own kinetic energy so you can turn like a plane. Buuuut, it has a maximum energy it can handle at once, so now you have a max speed again. You can even regain something a bit like diving: you can boost above your max speed, in any given perfectly straight line. If you want to turn, you need to absorb that extra kinetic energy with your hull, which is sort of like pulling up? And may cause overstrain?
I dunno, just hacking out ideas here.
Cutting out altitude still leaves something that looks pretty good, though of course simpler, at least to my eye that has never actually played the game.
It starts to get weird when you think about space physics, though. There's no maximum speed anymore, for example, and overspeed is either meaningless or replaced with overacceleration. And you can't turn the same way a plane does, since to slow down you actually accelerate in the opposite direction.
I suppose the secret is to carefully choose your sci-fi tech gizmo. Maybe the "kinetic redirector" lets you harvest your own kinetic energy so you can turn like a plane. Buuuut, it has a maximum energy it can handle at once, so now you have a max speed again. You can even regain something a bit like diving: you can boost above your max speed, in any given perfectly straight line. If you want to turn, you need to absorb that extra kinetic energy with your hull, which is sort of like pulling up? And may cause overstrain?
I dunno, just hacking out ideas here.
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DocMatoi
Theoretical Lover of Girls
- Location
- within 2 hours of the White House
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- They/Them
[Angry Izetta The Witch Noises]Flying Circus Page 168 said:
grommile
nasty-minded old cynic
- Location
- NERV-Mercia
- Pronouns
- Traditional/Animate
I have an annoyingly nagging question in the back of my mind.
That question is "what real-world firearm, if any, is the external-magazine carbine in the Fischervolk's hands on page 171 supposed to remind me of?"
(I ask because the handgun held by the wolfperson is very Mauser C96.)
That question is "what real-world firearm, if any, is the external-magazine carbine in the Fischervolk's hands on page 171 supposed to remind me of?"
(I ask because the handgun held by the wolfperson is very Mauser C96.)
DocMatoi
Theoretical Lover of Girls
- Location
- within 2 hours of the White House
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- They/Them
PPSH with a different mag, maybe? mostly looking at the stock and the vents on the barrel
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- Location
- Ottawa
- Pronouns
- She/Her/Whatever
Arren Weiss is modelling the Fedorov Avtomat! It's part of our spring line.
Bought.
I haven't been disappointed with anything you've done, @open_sketch , I expect this will hold true.
I have a tendency to collect RPGs more than I play them, but still.
I haven't been disappointed with anything you've done, @open_sketch , I expect this will hold true.
I have a tendency to collect RPGs more than I play them, but still.
Chloe Sullivan
Subdefective
- Location
- 1630 Revello Drive, Sunnydale CA
I've dumped almost 100 USD into numenera/Cypher at this point and intend to play it never.
Don't worry you're in company.
looking forward to throwing more money at sketch for blimpleggers, which I have been eagerly anticipating for years.
bobbananaville
A giant crab, atop an even gianter crab
- Location
- The Philippines
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Does this game have a discord or something to chat with fellow players and organize online one-shots? My groups aren't interested in switching systems or one-shots.
samdamandias
Apprentice Plane Wizard
*scribbles notes for the Electric Menace II: Electric Boogaloo*
This is the bigger problem, tbh. Sell the whaling ship for parts and commission a good shipwright to build a proper airship. Or see how big a pile of money it takes to buy a Skyborn airship.
So far they haven't, because one of the numbers that goes up is stall speed and one of the ones that goes down is handling.
The builder, which is still getting the last few details hammered down, already does this to some extent.
Happerry
Bat out of Hell
- Location
- Kanto
Congratulations on making another really cool sounding universe and system. Though I must admit I'm awaiting some of those potential expansion packs with even more eagerness then I was awaiting the base system, because Storm Divers is really cool and so was the Nova Squadron quest.
Mechasaurian
Big Bossu
- Location
- Lost among fields of history
- Pronouns
- They/Them
So where can I read a primer on this "powered by the apocalypse" system? Wikipedia tells me it works by basing itself around characters' "moves," but...what does that mean? Is there something that can explain, in simple to understand terms, how this works?
- Location
- Ottawa
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- She/Her/Whatever
I can do it right now!
Powered by the Apocalypse means a bunch of stuff, not all of which applies to Flying CIrcus, but the core of it (imo) is the concept of Moves. Moves are a way of structuring rules as if-then statements where the 'if' is always grounded in the narrative. Every Powered by the Apocalypse move starts "When you..." and then gives a trigger, followed by instructions for what to do when that happens.
"When you run from a battle, roll +Fast" or whatever.
The system also has a very well defined idea of what happens when you don't accomplish what you're rolling for, because it gives the GM strong guidelines. They have their own version of moves which are basically a series of narrative hooks/threats laid out before them which they threaten you with and/or use on you when you 'miss' a roll. Atop this, moves have partial success results that are statistically the most likely outcome of any given roll, which usually have some kind of drawback built right into the move.
The result is a system that flows quickly, keeps people engaged with the story, and most importantly, when the game is written well the rules engage specifically with the things that matter for the kind of story being told and get the hell out of your way for everything else. Because of how GM stuff interacts, you don't need complex systems covering everything: the rules are only at where the rubber hits the road.
Mechasaurian
Big Bossu
- Location
- Lost among fields of history
- Pronouns
- They/Them
Prompt response. Thank you.
I...hm. Let me see if I understand this correctly.
It sort of sounds like what happens is:
The player has their character make a "move" (flee, fight, attempt to bargain, call in a favour, etc) and the GM responds by looking up a very detailed response/outcome table to determine what happens as a result of the move and the corresponding dice roll? This would lead into the "six billion moves" you made - to account for as many potential creative solutions from the player as possible, as well as outcomes of those moves?
But your comments about how the system "gets out of the way" for the non-actiony stuff and "you don't need complex systems covering everything" sorta runs against the image that the above evokes, of the GM poring through massive binders of move-outcome tables?
Which makes sense, but...Sorry if I'm being dense about this - I haven't really wrapped my head around this. I feel like I'm either underthinking or overthinking the system.
- Location
- Ottawa
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- She/Her/Whatever
Oh no, it's much more simple.Prompt response. Thank you.
I...hm. Let me see if I understand this correctly.
It sort of sounds like what happens is:
The player has their character make a "move" (flee, fight, attempt to bargain, call in a favour, etc) and the GM responds by looking up a very detailed response/outcome table to determine what happens as a result of the move and the corresponding dice roll? This would lead into the "six billion moves" you made - to account for as many potential creative solutions from the player as possible, as well as outcomes of those moves?
But your comments about how the system "gets out of the way" for the non-actiony stuff and "you don't need complex systems covering everything" sorta runs against the image that the above evokes, of the GM poring through massive binders of move-outcome tables?
Sorry if I'm being dense about this - I haven't really wrapped my head around this. I feel like I'm either underthinking or overthinking the system.
As the GM, I have a short, universal bullet list of Shit I'm Always Supposed To Be Doing To The Players, and instructions to do it either soft (threaten but don't follow through yet) or hard (just fucking do it and let them pick up the peices). Also, because I'm the GM, I don't fuck with rules, I just have narrative descriptions, see?
Air combat moves for baddies
Whenever I'm not sure what to do, I do a soft move. Whenever they miss a roll, I do a hard move.
As the player, you ideally don't ever worry about the Moves directly, though obviously you'll be thinking about it. Instead, you just tell me what you do, in the narrative. Don't fucking bring rules into it, tell me what you do.
And if what you do is a move trigger, we use a move. And moves are simple. So like, say you start a bar fight...
So you see how it works? If you succeed or partial succeed, here what you do (there's a cheat sheet for looking these up, and often many PbtA games just let you print out the moves because there aren't very many). If you miss, I pick a hard move and fuck you up.
So when you roll shit on your Brawl roll, I look at my 'Town Moves' GM moves, and pick "Bring in local authority", so at that point the town watch arrive and break up the fight, and you get blamed, and now your team needs to make bail money for you which motivates an unwise mission...
EDIT: Though I have other moves I can also pick, I'm not limited 1-1.
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- Location
- Under a cat
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- She/Her
I'm excited to see the rules for space combat. I'd love to see if this system could do Star Wars-style space dog fights.
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- They/Them
Though it feels like there's two different concerns? Like, making vaguely realistic space physics doesn't quite fit in with Star Wars, which takes vaguely realistic physics and throws it out the airlock... where it still makes sound because you need to have noisy fighting even in Space.
- Location
- Under a cat
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- She/Her
Huh, I'd heard that (when there are no force-sensitives involved) Star Wars dogfights are basically just regular dogfights. But I'm no expert on the series.
Also, I think Star Wars officially justifies the space noise by claiming that the x-wings use sensors to detect weapon-fire and collisions and stuff, and then they use speakers to generate the appropriate noise in the cockpit in order to alert the pilot. I think that makes sense as both UI and a narrative justification.
Also, I think Star Wars officially justifies the space noise by claiming that the x-wings use sensors to detect weapon-fire and collisions and stuff, and then they use speakers to generate the appropriate noise in the cockpit in order to alert the pilot. I think that makes sense as both UI and a narrative justification.
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- They/Them
To be fair, from what I can see (haven't bought it yet, will, have seen earlier versions/playtests/Quests), the game is pretty well set up to have Jedi Pilots represented, considering the role magic plays in the base game.
And, that's it? They are basically just regular dogfights, even though a lot of the atmospheric conditions should be very different?
Icipall
Don't worry, we can fanfix that!
- Location
- Cold snow fields of Finland
The main reason why there's sound in space no matter the franchise is that space battles in movies/tv-shows/games without sound would be very boring.