Hello! I found this on Reddit and I'm very excited to start using it as I'm working on getting a Arcane/BitD campaign going soon. I hope you're also planning on making crews as well whenever you have time. If you have any interest in adding a map of Piltover/Zaun, I have been developing one in the style of BitD and I would be happy to share it with you.

In the meantime, I do have a question and a comment related to Hextech. My comment is maybe a bit nit-picky, but the Hex Cores described in your guide are actually Hextech Gemstones. The gemstones are the crystals that hold the arcane power (and are used in the weapons like Jinx's gun, Vi's gauntlets, etc.), but the Hexcore is the "adaptive rune matrix" which eventually evolved, became sentient, and basically fused with Viktor.

My question is about the use of the Hextech dice. If someone rolls a 2-5 on their Hextech dice, what does "No effect" entail? For example, if a PC is trying to Wreck something with Hextech gauntlets, and they rolled a 6 to Wreck but a 4 on their Hextech dice, would that mean the gauntlets were entirely unusable and the PC basically does nothing, or would it mean that they use the gauntlets but as if they aren't powered by Hextech at all (so still doing some damage, but not nearly as much as they would if they rolled a 6)?

I think it's really smart to limit the access to Hextech because it is so overpowered, and to have major consequences when players roll a miss. But the range for "No effect" seems a bit high to me? In the show, it seems like most people are able to use Hextech with a bit of training, especially after Jayce and Viktor refine the gemstones. Both of them had the goal to bring Hextech to the common people, which would mean that Hextech tools and weapons would have to be somewhat foolproof when used for what they were designed for. I think in my own games I will use a scale of 1-2: fail with serious consequences, 3-5: partial success (slightly miss a target, not use as much power as planned, get a slight injury, etc), and 6: full success. But I would be really interested in hearing your thought process with this, especially if you've been able to run a game already!

Sorry for the novel, and thank you so much for all your work on this!!

Thanks for posting :)

I am currently working on running a game event in person at the end of March, but after that, I intend to have a look at Crews and I would love to see any work you have done re: a Map. My current thought is to make a Zaunite Crew and Piltie Crew, and then make a Faction list for Faction play

You are 100% correct about the Hex Core - I did consider calling them Hex Gems, but it didn't roll off the tongue as easily - and it fails to capture the essence of the Refined Hex Gems - which are what is required for successful Hex Tech in the show. And Refined Hex Gems is even more of a mouthful. I decided Hex Core is a simple enough term people will know I what I mean.

So my thinking for the HexTech dice is that they are rolled in addition to a regular Skill. So if a player has 2 dice in Wreck, they are getting a free 3rd dice from their gauntlets, and if they push themselves or get assistance they start to get into 4 or 5 dice very quickly - which in Blades terms becomes quite powerful. My thinking was that the Hex Tech device either works perfectly (ie a 6: Full Success), or it is used as part of your standard roll (so a 4/5 on the normal action dice). The idea of the Consequences on a 1 is that your Hex Dice can always go wrong - even if you roll a 6: Full Success on your Action Dice. I was trying to capture the fact that Hex Tech is sometimes too powerful a force to contain.

I allocated partial success to Shimmer effects because I believe the essence of Shimmer naturally allows for relentless progress, albeit at a toll on your body—manifested here as Stress. Compared to Hex Tech, Shimmer leaves a more lasting effect on the player character but also tends to yield results in a more unpredictable manner.

I can't say for certain your suggestion is a good or bad idea. My instinct is it might trigger too many HexTech consequences, which could make Hex Tech undesirable for risk-averse players. But if you make some changes, I wish you luckm, and I would love to hear about them :)

I have only had a chance to run a few small sessions, though I am taking it to a Convention in April, so I should have a bit more intense playtesting there.