Post originally by Seanchai at 2004-06-07 10:42:03
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>>Exploding dice bring energy and unpredictability to a system: even a modest ability will occasionally produce impressive results, and sometimes you get outrageous stuff out of the blue.<<
If I recall my my correctly, a modest ability explodes more often than a less than modest one - 1 in 4 versus 1 in 8 and all.
>>When they roll the die for their trait they also roll a d6 “Wild Die” (which also explodes) and take the higher result. This means that all Wild Cards are effectively generalists who can make a decent attempt at more or less anything, which is a very pulpy idea.<<
It also means that they gain dual benefits: They can have a high die type, which increases their chances for a raise, and have a 1 in 6 chance of the Wild Die exploding.
>>Bennies unused at the end of a session have a 1/3 chance of converting to XP – we all agreed that there’s no point hoarding them. So you get the sort of character development ladder that’s a big part of the hook for many players, but in a nice simple form.<<
It's a big hook for powergamers as well: They can ramp up in experience. A character with the Lucky Edge can get "level up" every or every other game session...
>>I don’t think it will quite do the other end of the scale, with high-octane or high-powered action (like supers or super-kung-fu), because there’s too little differentiation between character abilities and characters can die too easily by sheer chance...<<
With Bennies and Wild Dice, I'm not sure how easily they can die by sheer chance. It's more likely that they'll die from poor resource management...
Post originally by Tim Gray at 2004-06-07 11:56:24
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"If I recall my my correctly, a modest ability explodes more often than a less than modest one - 1 in 4 versus 1 in 8 and all."
Yes, but of course the higher ability gets a higher final result more often, which is what counts.
"It also means that they gain dual benefits: They can have a high die type, which increases their chances for a raise, and have a 1 in 6 chance of the Wild Die exploding."
Presumably by "benefits" you mean "advantages over Extras", in which case this is not true because Extras can have a high die type.
"It's a big hook for powergamers as well: They can ramp up in experience. A character with the Lucky Edge can get "level up" every or every other game session..."
The standard is to level up every other session. "Lucky" is only a small benefit for XP. (We found out yesterday that the Doreen racial ability "Coup" can make a big difference, getting bennies per opponent defeated in certain circumstances.)
"With Bennies and Wild Dice, I'm not sure how easily they can die by sheer chance. It's more likely that they'll die from poor resource management..."
Half agreed... if you've just used all your bennies to stay alive and then someone wallops you outrageously, that's not poor resource management.
I think it is important, though, to watch out for comrades who fall in battle and then drop everything to go and do first aid in case they're on one of the worse stages of the knockout table.
Post originally by Matthew Mather at 2004-06-07 12:33:27
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Most characters' Power Points recharge at a rate of 1 per hours, though there are edges that double and quadruple that rate, as well as an Edge that grants 2d6 PP for drawing a Joker. There's also the Wizard Edge, which makes spells cheaper based on how skilled the character is.
In addition there's various magic items and gizmos that give Arcane types extra Power Points to spend as well as potions. But they're setting specific so it's not in the main rules. You can find examples of them in each of the published settings so far (Evernight, 50 Fathoms and the Rippers skirmish book).
Power Points isn't there to limit how many spells can be cast in a day (because they're constantly recharging), so much as keeping wizards from flinging off a 3d6-damage-large-template Blast every round and calling it a tactic. (A 3d6-damage-large-template Blast in a specific round for maximum effect is a tactic.)
As for "it’d be nice to have an official FAQ/errata too." Short, official and non-coprehensive errata is available on the official website. Longer, unofficial and very comprehensive errata is also available on the Yahoo Group. There's also a very nice FAQ (written by me) on the Yahoo Group.
Post originally by Tim Gray at 2004-06-07 13:39:35
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There are certainly good game balance reasons for power points. As you say, it forces players to make choices within each scene. I suppose what I was getting at was the artificiality of it. Of course one is free to give that trappings in a similar way to individual powers, but it's not like the character is getting tired, just losing the mana/psychic energy/fusion charge.
There is no Savage World rulebook errata document on the Pinnacle site - not on the downloads page, anyway. I'm aware that there are one or two fan-composed errata documents, though the one I looked at was bigger on questions than answers.
Post originally by Seanchai at 2004-06-08 11:50:21
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Tim Gray wrote:
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Yes, but of course the higher ability gets a higher final result more often, which is what counts.
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Sure, but exploding dice leader to higher results as well. The results are skewed toward the shallow end of the pool.
Tim Gray wrote:
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Presumably by "benefits" you mean "advantages over Extras", in which case this is not true because Extras can have a high die type.
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Yeah, but Extras get one or the other. Either they have a high die type or they have an increased chance of exploding. Wild Cards get both - in addition to never being below average at anything (at least as far as rolls are concerned).
Tim Gray wrote:
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The standard is to level up every other session. "Lucky" is only a small benefit for XP.
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You said the average XP award was two points per session (the book says 1 to 3 on page 61). Five are required to level. That's means the standard is to level every third session.
If you save your bennies, you can level faster than those who did not. As leveling more often (especially ahead of the party) increases your ability to survive without using bennies...
Hey, the book says on page 61 that for every bennie left over, you make a roll and on a 5 or a 6, you get an extra XP. I've always assumed that the bennie is then lost - but it doesn't say that. I'm guessing that's just an oversight...?
Tim Gray wrote:
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Half agreed... if you've just used all your bennies to stay alive and then someone wallops you outrageously, that's not poor resource management.
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That's true. But it's not also what I would exactly call luck.
Post originally by rag at 2004-06-08 14:22:13
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Seanchai wrote:
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Sure, but exploding dice leader to higher results as well. The results are skewed toward the shallow end of the pool.
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Do the math: The chance to reach an 8 or 9 with an exploding d4 are just 6.25% while an exploding d6 has a chance of 11% for the 8 or 8.3% for the 9. Whats the Problem with this?
Seanchai wrote:
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I've always assumed that the bennie is then lost - but it doesn't say that. I'm guessing that's just an oversight...?
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Bennies are not saved between sessions(as the boook says in the paragraph where you get them).
Post originally by Tim Gray at 2004-06-08 15:16:43
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Let's try this once more. A die exploding is relevant only insofar as it gives you a higher result. A larger die type will give you that same result more reliably. (With the possible exception of really high results - someone who cares can work that out.) Small dice are not better, but they might be more exciting.
"You said the average XP award was two points per session (the book says 1 to 3 on page 61). Five are required to level. That's means the standard is to level every third session.
If you save your bennies, you can level faster than those who did not."
If you connect those two paragraphs you'll understand. Standard XP award is 2; 1 or 3 in exceptional circumstances. So in 2 sessions you get 4 XP. However, unused bennies might also convert to XP, which gives a good chance of 5XP over 2 sessions.
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