Design Notes (Heroes)
From AdamWiki
Contents |
Play Sequence
There are three levels of play: Story, Turn, and Scene. Every player will participate in all three levels in a certain sequence. End Game is another ruleset and is resolved differently.
Story Level
- Players collaboratively create Heroes.
- Players collaboratively create the Village.
- Players role-play their Heroes in the Village (use the Turn Level to resolve).
- End Game: Players role-play their Heroes fighting the Dragon.
Turn Level
Players take turns around the table. When it's your turn, you are the Focus.
The Focus solicits ideas from the other players. Each other player puts forward one idea of what the Focus' next scene should be. The Focus chooses one of those and plays it out. The player whose suggestion is accepted is called the Challenger.
Each scene focuses on some kind of challenge that has the potential to teach the Focus how to be a Hero. By suggesting scenes, the other players are saying to the Focus, "by answering this question, you will show us what kind of Hero you will be."
Use the Scene Level rules to resolve the Scene.
Scene Level
Discuss what the scene should accomplish and resolve. Agree on the stakes. Stakes should include a change to a Hero (in statistical terms) and a change to the Setting (e.g., the Hero's father respects him more now).
Each scene must include:
- the Focus Hero
- an element from the Hero's sheet (a relationship or personal challenge)
- a clear understanding of which attribute will increase or decrease when the scene is resolved
- a clear understanding of how the Setting will change when the scene is resolved
Each scene may include:
- other Heroes
- elements from other Heroes' sheets
Each scene must not include:
- potential to change the attributes of non-Focus Heroes
Generally, a scene is resolved in one roll of the dice per player with a Hero in the scene. The difficulty of every challenge is fixed. That is, it doesn't matter how difficult the Challenger's scenario may seem, the difficulty is set to a constant value. If the Hero succeeds, his attribute goes up; if he fails, his attribute goes down.
The Challenger plays the role of the key Villagers in the scene. The Challenger may appoint other players to role-play additional Villagers.
End Game
The End Game is the fight between the Heroes and the Dragon. It's the payoff of all this hard work. Was it enough? The fight will be hard and Heroes may die. If the Heroes succeed, they will kill the Dragon and save the Village. If they fail, the Dragon will exact revenge on the Village and kill everyone they love.
A flow chart describes various plot paths the players can choose in fighting the dragon. Some parts of the flow chart are randomized and will not be known until the characters reach that point. The players must overcome several obstacles before fighting the Dragon, then overcome it in a battle.
The turn order is different. Each box on the flowchart represents a scene. Each scene has one or more challenges in it, and any player may step up to the challenge. If that player fails, another player may step in.
End Game challenges may include resistance to fear (the lowest failing roll abandons the party), injury or death, loss of resources, difficult physical obstacles like traps or defenses, and of course combat with the dragon itself. Players move a single token over the flowchart to show which path they take. They can split up if they want. Each turn, the players attempt one challenge (all Heroes get a chance at it). Once an obstacle is overcome, the player can spend one turn moving to the next challenge in the flowchart.
There are numerous flowcharts for the End Game with various difficulty levels (Easy, Medium, Hard) and types (Combat-heavy, Puzzle-heavy, Social-heavy).
