[zero-prep] playtest, jesus, where do I start

[stefoid]

Hi Steffen,

Have you done a write up of how you imagine an idealised session of play would go?

Asking if there's a way of handling it better seems to be asking us like we know the right way to play your game?

OK, so I added a 'ideal' story phase to the doco, which leads on to the next imagined story phase based loosely on the actual story phase and challenge phase we did play, except in the example, the challenge pahse we did play is how I should have run things instead of the lame way I actually did...

EXAMPLE STORY PHASE:
In this example, the Pirate crew have just succesfully raided a target vessel.  The previous Challenge phase was ‘A chance to Shine’ – the Pirate Captain announced he was going to promote the most impressive crew member to the recently ‘vacated’ position of first mate, so the PCs goals all revolved around performing their various tasks  impressively during that raid.  The next Challenge phase selected is ‘A ritual is enacted’. 

P1:”A ritual, what kind of ritual?”
P2:”Maybe the captain is superstitious, and they are going to ‘roll the bones’ to determine the fates or something…”
P3:”Maybe they always have a party to celebrate a successful raid?”
ALL: “yep, cool, makes sense”, etc…
GM: “OK, so a party to celebrate the raid?  OK!  What happens now?  Whats the fallout from the raid?   Who is doing what?  Any new goals for this challenge?”
P2:” My guy goes down to see the injured gun crew member – how do you reckon he is?”
GM: “Well, you left him there bleeding while you manned his spot, just so you could impress the captain, so I reckon he is either extremely pissed at you, or dead.  In fact,  you did get your goal – the captain was impressed, so Ill tell you what: the Captain appoints you to the position of First Mate, but that guy?  He’s toast.  And everybody knows it was your fault…”
P2: “Yay for my guy.  This is going to be fun…”
P1: “Arent’y we forgetting something?  Fallout?  What about the loot from the raid?”
ALL: “ oh yeah!”
P3:”Look, I don’t suppose we want to stay on this pirate ship forever, going on raid after raid, so what say the ‘Valuable Loot’ turns out not to be gold, but something that  is going to get half the solar system coming after us?”
GM: “Brilliant.  Like what?”
P1: “The princess of Mars!”
All: “groan…”
P2: “Some kind of new invention?  A weapon or something?”
GM:” I like it, OK, the captain calls the new first mate down to tell him the good news – no loot as such to split with the crew, just this weird looking…  device.”
P2: “Im so dead.”
GM: “Im wondering about goals for the next challenge phase.”
P2: “staying alive”
P1: “getting hammered!”
GM:” yeah – not really concrete goals as such though, are they?  I mean, everyone is going to want to get hammered and stay alive, regardless…”
P1: “But my guy is a bit of a drunkard – he has an official desire motivation for grog.”
GM: “Even so, its still not much of a goal, I mean how much of a challenge is it to get hammered at a pirate party? What other motivations or long term goals you got?”
P1: “Nothing applicable really”
GM: “OK, so sit this one out, goal-wise if you cant think of anything.   Anyone else?”
P2: “Im going to use the party to try and improve my standing with the crew.  Im going to loose big at the dice games, keep everyone elses cups full, and come down like the wrath of god on anyone who steps out of line to show everyone they better not mess with me.”
GM: “OK, so short term goal is ‘Improve standing with the crew?’  Done.
P1: “Im really interested in this device.  My guys new short term  goal is to sneak down and work out what it is.”
GM: “Good one.  Well, it is of course going to be guarded by some unlucky sod all night, so good luck”
GM:”All done?  OK, so next challenge phase begins.  Heres the scene…”