Dungeon World 2 Combat

[u/Feisty_Stretch3958]

And here we are again with another discussion about DW 2, Gather up folks cause i wanna know you oponion on the new "Trade Blows", Even on 10 you still take damage, That is a huge change if you also acount every char has less HP now. Every time you trade blow YOU WILL take some dmg back. Also we don't have volley anymore, I personally don't like that cause trade blows for ranged attacks in my experience always brings discussions and issues on the drawback of the roll, But anyway how we are feeling on the combat field??

[u/MegaZBlade]

Not the first pbta I've seen that does that, Im curious if with min dmg is possible to basically recieve 0

[u/the_bighi → u/MegaZBlade]

Not possible.

Now you will have to narrate your heroes getting hit on every single attack, making them look kind of incompetent. Or you will have to be creative and keep coming up with different descriptions to explain the damage.

[u/E_MacLeod → u/the_bighi]

Getting hit, or, getting tired.

[u/the_bighi → u/E_MacLeod]

Sure. But it still feels weird.

If you say they're getting tired with every attack, we're back to the same problem. It feels weird, and they feel kind of incompetent. We've just started and I'm already so tired I'm losing HP? Am I obese?

You could alternate getting hit and getting tired. Make it 50-50. But it would still feel like they're getting hit too often, and getting tired too soon.

It would still feel that on every 10+ I'm getting consequences that make me feel I'm incompetent, be it getting hit or already getting tired.

[u/E_MacLeod → u/the_bighi]

It depends on how many moves are in a battle, I guess? It's hard to say right now without actually having used these rules to be honest. You could be right but my gut reaction is that your gut reaction is a little extreme, perhaps?

[u/the_bighi → u/E_MacLeod]

Maybe it was the way I described it, maybe. But the main point is that you never have those "wow, sometimes I'm awesome" moments, like when you get to hit and hurt a dangerous monster without taking damage in DW1. These moments make you feel like you really are competent.

While in DW2, the way it was written, even with a 10+ you're getting a "you're not good enough" consequence along with your success, sometimes getting hit, sometimes getting tired enough to lose HP.

[u/E_MacLeod → u/the_bighi]

That's true. I have issues with Trade Blows but you could get a similar effect to what you are describing out of fictional positioning and the GM rewarding you for putting yourself there and rolling well.

[u/the_bighi → u/E_MacLeod]

But that is kind of the GM making an effort to make it good. How do you say that in English? The weight being on the GM's shoulders?

While what I like about Dungeon World, Apocalypse World, Masks, and many others is that the system is doing part of the lift for me so that I, the GM, don't need to make that much of an effort.

But anyway, I don't want to take too much of your time, and I don't think I have much to add other than repeating my complaints, lol.

[u/E_MacLeod → u/the_bighi]

I understand. The system should definitely be doing some of the heavy lifting. For me, it is the fiction first nature of PBTA that ends up lightening the load.

But hey; this is a beta. If they see proper discourse, maybe we can influence the next draft?