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Hi there! I've been reading through the Quickstart and really enjoying the theme and vibe. My questions are about Movement and Combat:
The different movement speeds and types imply the use of a battle map or grid to run combat. However, this is not stated specifically, nor are alternatives for non-distance-based/grid-based combat suggested. My main concern is with setting up interesting combat arenas on-the-fly with a system where distance and movement speeds matter (rather than pre-planning combats in carefully arranged arenas).
Do you have any recommendations on how to make the use of combat speeds and types in Beetle Knight easy to run and fun to play? Is a battle map or grid the only way to go, or are there alternatives that will work? And will the full game expand on these types of questions with GM Best Practices? Thank you!
These are great questions! Thank you!
I have generally run combat on a grid, but not always. I use words like adjacent, near, far, and very far when I’m not on a grid. I will be sure to include that in the Arbiters principles that we’re working on (I added it to my notes). For speed what I do if, say, someone is slightly slower, I’ll say “you don’t quite reach your destination because your speed is lower”.
All this being said, I feel like the combat can be improvised on the grid without any issues. There’s no need to worry too much about a perfectly balanced encounter.
Hope this helps!
I think having consumables that would permanently change the knights would be nice. It'll be neat to see how the consumables play into the theme of Beetle Knight and how they could be acquired or found. Also I was wondering would the items from the equipment page have descriptions of how and what they can be used for or is that more up to the arbiter's discretion based on how the player is trying to use the item.
For the consumables that permanently change a knight I was thinking some of them could be special items, for example you defeat a junk bug type enemy that is carrying some loot and you may find some old tome with forgotten history or magic that promotes your intellect or gives you +1 emblem and +1 emblem slot. Or you venture into some secluded area and find an NPC that recognizes your strength and gifts you an elixir that promotes your might in return for fulfilling a request to prove your strength by freeing them of some accursed spider that has been preventing them from leaving. Just some ideas for the permanent change items. for some of the other special items maybe some of the descriptions have hidden benefits like a silken may help you hide better from spiders when you are in their lair and surrounded by their webs of silk, or an antenna mask may have actual antennae sticking out of it and hide your appearance better giving you a temporary promotion to presence when talking to other creatures. stuff like that was what I was thinking.
Subject to change but take a look https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GLH0oDVutWUzus_RH6UgC0c8-9ZzRm_GIZUE85s02Rs/edit
It will have replayability! Yes! That is the intention.
Regarding solo tools, these may be of interest to you
Dear most honorable and blessed Jim Hall, I ran a session of Beetle Knight with my friend a short while back, and we have a question about the weapon mechanics. As it stands currently, I scratch my head.
The rulebook reads,
"USING WEAPONS - You can use any weapon. Add your relevant Ability Modifier to attack rolls. When attacking you can only roll up to your relevant Ability. E.g. I attack with my Talon (d12) but only roll a d6, because my Might is d6."
So then, does mean that I always attack using my ability die? Even if I have a massively epic weapon like the d12 Talon, I only use my d6 in Might? If that is indeed the case, why would I bother with using any weapon that's greater than my ability die? We pondered and pondered this for a long time, and no matter how we looked at it, it did not make sense to us. Is this the intended design of the game? Are we missing something?
Dearest Xagu,
You are interpreting the rule correctly. The idea is that a Knight with a low Might cannot properly wield a giant talon. Meanwhile, Knights with high Might have a wider selection to choose from. The exception would be special items which you are able to wield due to the exceptional quality of the weapon.
If your Might is low, you will have a higher Agility, Presence, or Intellect. Therein lies your Knight’s strength!
I highly encourage you to hack the rules to make them most fun for your table.
Sincerely,
Jim Hall