Berttheduck

No that’s about right. My initial pre campaign prep was read the book and understand the factions, session zero to see what themes my players wanted to explore and what factions they were interested in interacting with.

Between sessions I only needed about 10 minutes to think about the next game, who was the job against, who’s upset or happy with the crew currently, what factions plans are the players ignoring so are progressing unopposed and what does that look like. Was there any fallout from their last job. The way the city is set up every time your crew gets ahead it will please someone and upset someone else I found that made prepping super easy. Then all I needed was a list of random names for NPC’s and I was happy making stuff up on the fly for the most part.

Some of them bigger things needed more thinking and prep like when they broke into the ghost hunters headquarters (I can’t remember the name, guys follow the death crows and wear masks), that needed a little more time. Or when they accidentally summoned a demon I needed to work out what it wanted and how it worked. Side note demons are excellent fun and should be terrifying forces of nature in blades.

My longest running campaign was Blades (once weekly for over a year). It’s still my favourite system.

The core mechanics are really easy, GM sets the narrative scene and the player says how they respond then builds a dice pool and adjust for difficult actions or ineffective approach (position and effect - how good it will be if you succeed and how bad it will be if you fail).

The game is built to play on the fly with very minimal prep, the scenario in the book is a totally fine place to start and lead into my game. If you run through all the steps of the meta game (updating faction relations and you’ll have a good idea which group now has beef with the players crew and as such likely happenings for your next session.

Get used to skipping the boring bits, blades works best when the PCs are doing crazy stuff and using the flashback mechanics to get into or out of trouble. Do any essential prep the crew wants to do for a job but then skip to the engagement roll and just get started, don’t let them spend ages planning all the little details.

Don’t be scared to throw really challenging scenarios at them (especially after they level up a bit), the PCs have loads of ways to get out of trouble and trauma is beneficial to them initially as it lets them gain more xp. Also death is always a narrative choice so don’t worry about killing them by accident.

The setting is amazing, haunted steampunk Victorian Venice so you can lean into the spooky as much as you want. Remember it’s always dark and life is pretty terrible for everyone who isn’t super rich.

I’m happy to answer questions or bounce ideas with you.

Hope your game goes well.

An important lesson was learned that day. Never stand on the receiving end of an enema, incision and drainage, manual disempaction, decompression or in front of someone who says “I feel sick”.

I had a pair of Docs which fell to bits on me after about a year of regular use. I’ve since got 2 pairs of boots and a pair of trainers from Solovair and, after wearing in, they are the most comfortable footwear I’ve ever owned. I’ve worn, mostly the boots, every day for work for about 2 years now with no problems at all. I’ve even managed to get them mostly waterproof with liberal applications of dubbin wax.

Check out the outlet store (like on the main website), you can pick up shoes with slight defects or end of lines for significant discounts over new.

It’s definitely very hard.

The best option I’ve found so far is to live with or near your players. Currently we live next door to the people we game with which is excellent. Regular weekly game, allowing for life stuff.

The other best option I’ve found is to agree to a schedule, like every week and provided more than x people turn up the game runs.

Scheduling is the biggest killer of games though by far.

I can see a pic of Wolfenstein the new order.

Excellent game. I love dual wielding the automatic shotguns. Soo satisfying.

Knowing how far you can push someone and it still be a good time.

Yeah if the other acts were as interesting as the first it would be one of my favourite games ever. As it stands it is just really good.

I loved act 1. I really enjoyed the horror elements. Using the pliers and the knife for the first time was brutal. The meta puzzles were just right for me and I enjoyed finding out about more of the layers and the characters.

Act two was interesting, I enjoyed meeting the other characters there was just enough puzzles and challenge and change up to be interesting.

Act 3 I found frustrating, the robot world game and the away from the table elements I found dull it didn’t do anything different particularly with the game mechanics. And whilst I enjoyed the real world aspects it irritated me that I had to watch 40 minutes of YouTube to find out the “true” ending which was really quite underwhelming. I kinda wish I hadn’t bothered and just left it with the goodbye boss fights.

I really don’t know how I feel about the game as a whole. I enjoyed parts, the first act was one of the best games I’ve ever played. The rest dragged on a bit.

Blades is far and away my favourite game system so far.

It does a bit of everything you mentioned.

So the set up included in the book is good, basically:

Here’s a few factions and you are on a job for one of them to steal something from the other (change based on your players crew, ie kill someone or purchase drugs). After they finish the job you do a couple steps for:

Heat - how much fallout they get from the law. Has consequences like allies getting locked up or interrogated. Or the popo kicking down the door to your hideout.

Downtime - where players pursue goals and recover. Leads to crazy projects like making flamethrowers or summoning demons.

Faction - decide as GM which factions are affected and adjust relations with the crew appropriately. Leads to reactions from factions, favours and retribution. Job offers or threats.

As every action the players take is working against at least 1 faction and likely benefits at least 1 more the game really easily writes itself. With like 5-15 minutes of thinking pre session about likely next steps and a few random names I could improv everything I needed.

The GM advice included is great and the world building is fab, the steampunk haunted setting is awesome.

I’ve also said far too much without mentioning the flashback mechanic - you skip the whole prep stage of jobs and go straight into the opening scene, then at any point the players can spend stress to flashback and set up a cool move: hide some useful gear, arrange the servant to leave the window open, Etc. The possibilities are endless and it keeps the game moving really well.

Check out Blades in the Dark and Spire the City must fall.

I’m blades you pay an upcoming gang of criminals in a haunted Victorian steampunk city where every inch is owned/claimed by another gang so everything you do either pleases or upsets somebody. Definitely has the struggle to survive in a hostile world feel. Blades is one of my favourite game systems to run. It’s soo easy for the GM I basically never needed to prep.

In Spire you play a group of rebel or terrorist dark elves fighting against the oppressive high elf regimen. The world building is really detailed maybe a bit too much in some places. I really enjoyed running it though.

I seem to remember it had something to do with twink Ryden and the child solder training he got rather than the cold war of MGS3.

I really enjoyed my time with it. Played it all on my phone. The touch controls work surprisingly well.

I guess the assassin’s creed games mostly fit your criteria. The plot largely takes place in the past so has already happened and is effectively fixed. The current day plot moves at a glacial pace for most of the first 3 games but does have some development gradually to something bigger.

Can’t really speak for the meta/ modern day plot of the later games as I stopped playing them.

There is at least 1 metal gear game where the premise is it’s a training simulation. I don’t remember the title, I think it’s a spin off of MGS2.

I don’t remember where I saw these but the rest of these animal reviews are also great.

For car camping a double roll mat and double sleeping bag has made a world of difference especially for my wife who’s a cold sleeper, sharing a bag let’s her steal my warmth. We’ve had a Vango comfort roll mat for a good few years now and it doesn’t pack small but it’s nearly as comfy as my mattress at home.

Wildsea is great, the setting is wonderful and I’m really enjoying the mechanics so far. We’re 4 sessions in and have played through the introductory adventure. It’s a very solar punk hopeful setting (at least how I’m running it) which we all need more of at the minute I think.

I’m looking forward to getting the books for slugblaster, I’ve had a read of the PDF and it sounds like a lot of fun.

Is there anything you’re particularly interested in from the bundle?

If I didn’t already have most of the games I want from this bundle I’d have got it in a second. It’s got some really excellent systems there.

Playing Wildsea at the minute and totally loving it.

Just finished a Spire campaign. Good system fascinating setting.

Nights black agents it’s pretty cool and has a co-op series for it.

Slugblaster sounds like great fun and is probably my next game after Wildsea, I’m waiting for my books to arrive in print.

Vassen has some excellent art and lore but I’ve not run it.

Masks has an excellent reputation and has been on my list to get for a long time.

Some really strong game systems in there.

Seconded, I’ve run the introductory module another bug hunt and loved the system and the module.

I use a tablet or two as GM my players are all paper exclusive though. I’d have no problems with people using electronics at the table though provided they were paying attention and not being disruptive.