ED4 Design: Airships, Riverboats, and More
Posted: Wed Apr 20, 2016 12:59 am
Hello Everyone,
I'm Telarus (also a 'Josh' in real life, so I'll use the forum nickname to avoid confusion), and I've been playing and gamemastering Earthdawn since the late 90s. I have been active in the online Earthdawn community since the "Earthdawn Publishing Trust" was online (edpt.org), and many of you may know my nickname from other Earthdawn related forums.
I will be heading up the re-design of the Airships and Riverboats rules for Earthdawn 4th edition. I would like to be as open as possible with the design phase of these mechanics. Airships and riverboats are very iconic setting elements in Barsaive, to the point that whole cultures and Disciplines revolve around them. Earthdawn also has a very tight relationship between its rules and the metaphysics of the game-world, which is one of its shining features. You can talk about "Disciplines" and "Circles" in-game, the Karma mechanic ("hero dice") has an in-game explanation, and so much of the Spellcasting and Magic Theory rules are tied to the metaphysics of the Earthdawn world.
Airships and riverboats should feel the same way. Previously, this was one of the places that tight relationship fell apart. Many people did not fully understand the rules (a common problem with any RPG), but mainly it was the overly abstract nature of the ship combat rules which left it disconnected from the rest of the game.
We aim to change this. I will be brief in my 'elevator pitch'. We will be drawing inspiration and some core ideas from the older editions' rules, with changes. The rules will still be "abstract", with one-minute turns in mass-combat and no figures and maps needed to play (but with enough of a rules scaffold to do so if you want). Ship Damage output and Armor/Health Ratings will be 'normalized' to fit alongside Adepts and Creatures. The new Success mechanic will drive play in combat, pursuit, and travel. Named Characters (PC and the GM's primary NPCs) will be front and center, using their Talent and Skill ranks when making rolls for ships, and to make special rolls such as a Medic test to turn a Casualty into an Injury in mass combat boarding actions, or directing the crew of a battery of fire-cannon to gain extra Successes for bonus to the Damage roll. Players will also be front and center, with advice to allow them to roll for one side of a conflict that they witness or participate in.
Ok, that's enough of a high level overview. I would love any feedback or ideas that this may spark, and have one final directed question for anyone who cares to answer. If possible, would you like to see these rules (specifically re-designed boarding rules) extended for troop-on-troop Mass Combat? Ork Cavalry vs Dwarf Infantry, etc?
I have setup a Wiki to track the current revision of the rules, and will post selections from it as I go further into the re-design. I have a solid skeleton of the mechanics in my mind, but don't want this to get too wall-of-text-y. Thanks for reading, more to follow.
I'm Telarus (also a 'Josh' in real life, so I'll use the forum nickname to avoid confusion), and I've been playing and gamemastering Earthdawn since the late 90s. I have been active in the online Earthdawn community since the "Earthdawn Publishing Trust" was online (edpt.org), and many of you may know my nickname from other Earthdawn related forums.
I will be heading up the re-design of the Airships and Riverboats rules for Earthdawn 4th edition. I would like to be as open as possible with the design phase of these mechanics. Airships and riverboats are very iconic setting elements in Barsaive, to the point that whole cultures and Disciplines revolve around them. Earthdawn also has a very tight relationship between its rules and the metaphysics of the game-world, which is one of its shining features. You can talk about "Disciplines" and "Circles" in-game, the Karma mechanic ("hero dice") has an in-game explanation, and so much of the Spellcasting and Magic Theory rules are tied to the metaphysics of the Earthdawn world.
Airships and riverboats should feel the same way. Previously, this was one of the places that tight relationship fell apart. Many people did not fully understand the rules (a common problem with any RPG), but mainly it was the overly abstract nature of the ship combat rules which left it disconnected from the rest of the game.
We aim to change this. I will be brief in my 'elevator pitch'. We will be drawing inspiration and some core ideas from the older editions' rules, with changes. The rules will still be "abstract", with one-minute turns in mass-combat and no figures and maps needed to play (but with enough of a rules scaffold to do so if you want). Ship Damage output and Armor/Health Ratings will be 'normalized' to fit alongside Adepts and Creatures. The new Success mechanic will drive play in combat, pursuit, and travel. Named Characters (PC and the GM's primary NPCs) will be front and center, using their Talent and Skill ranks when making rolls for ships, and to make special rolls such as a Medic test to turn a Casualty into an Injury in mass combat boarding actions, or directing the crew of a battery of fire-cannon to gain extra Successes for bonus to the Damage roll. Players will also be front and center, with advice to allow them to roll for one side of a conflict that they witness or participate in.
Ok, that's enough of a high level overview. I would love any feedback or ideas that this may spark, and have one final directed question for anyone who cares to answer. If possible, would you like to see these rules (specifically re-designed boarding rules) extended for troop-on-troop Mass Combat? Ork Cavalry vs Dwarf Infantry, etc?
I have setup a Wiki to track the current revision of the rules, and will post selections from it as I go further into the re-design. I have a solid skeleton of the mechanics in my mind, but don't want this to get too wall-of-text-y. Thanks for reading, more to follow.