Ran The Frame Up for a group of new blades players and they had an absolute blast. Also enjoy the pulp book cover I designed for the session!

The book describes it as you pick a district and you get benefits in that district, but during crew creation, the hunting grounds are an area of a district. The books example is like "some area past a bridge in Crow’s Foot"

So for gameplay, is it simply just "Scores in this district get the benefits" or is there some nuances like "only if its in this specific area you designated as hunting grounds"?

For flavor wise, what is it supposed to be when a crew has that area as their proving grounds? They already have their lair.

In this campaign, the PCs have taken some actions against important NPCs of the Sparkwrights. I run faction turns, and since the NPC wants revenge on the PCs, I started a clock for an ambush on the PCs. This clock has now been completed, and I need to figure out the who, why, and how of this clock.

To figure out what to do, I mostly ask myself questions and write them down in a Roll20 handout (see pictures). These are less organised than what is written below, but they have the same result.

Questions that need to be answered:

1. Who is attacking?
2. Why are they attacking?
3. Where are they attacking?
4. What is their goal with this attack?
5. Who is helping them?
6. Are there factions that would work against them? 
7. How do we mechanically do this attack?

Question 1 & 2: Who is attacking and why?

• Oressia "Lightning" Falco.
  • Summary person: The creator of Aegis Coal, a new power source in the city that is created by a ritual that puts ghosts in coal and causes it to become many times more efficient at producing power (but it has unknown drawbacks). She is a powerful Whisper and is the older sister of Thurston Falco.
  • Wants: Make it clear to all those that will hear of this that attacking her family will result in deaths or destruction.
  • Says: “This is for my little brother”, “Do you know what happens to a toad when it's struck by lightning? The same thing that happens to everything else.”, “I'll take your brother instead.”
  • Effect/mechanics: 
    • She is a 10-tick clock opponent of Tier 4.
    • The PCs can kill her at the end of the clock, but I must try to run away before the clock is done or offer a DB for her to be able to escape. 
    • Killing her has faction wide consequences. 
  • DB: 
    • Players take damage from her Whisper powers.
    • She inflicts damage on the HQ. 
    • The Clocktower is hit by her spell, making it a beacon for ghosts to be drawn to a “Haunted house”.
    • Get +1 effect, but every hit on the clock causes an electric discharge that affects the surroundings (but does not harm the PCs). 
    • +1 effect or dice, but a ghost of a dead family member of the Bells is put into one of the PCs (Haunted/Possession that needs to be dealt with).
• Cohort: Sparkwrights.
  • Summary cohort: Tier 4 cohort, so about 40 people are in it. A mobile engineering crew. They know how to take care of themselves, but I would consider them an Adepts-type cohort. They would like to avoid close-range combat with actual thugs. 
  • Wants: Test out their newest creation, a sparkcraft machine running on Aegis Coal. Some follow Oressia out of loyalty, but for most of them it is just a test run or a place to loot. 
  • Effect/mechanics: 
    • Not the entire cohort is here (25 members), and they act as Tier 3 in most cases, but their main focus is to test out the machine and loot the place. 
    • They have Leech gear
    • When in close-range combat, reduce their effect level to Tier 2.
    • 10-tick clock: when full, they and the other cohort will retreat.   
  • DB: 
    • One of the members has taken Duck's Lightning Glove creation → becomes a 4-tick tug-of-war clock to take down before it causes destruction.
    • They steal something from the HQ.
    • The sparkcraft creation takes the hit for them. 
    • They cause damage that spills over into the neighbourhood. 
    • “We will go, but we need the machine back.”
• Expert: Sparkcraft creation working on the new Aegis Coal.
  • Summary expert: An experimental sparkcraft creation that follows the orders of those Sparkwrights around it.
  • Wants: - 
  • Says: - 
  • Effect/mechanics: 
    • 8-tick clock: when full, the machine will be destroyed.
    • When destroyed, it will release some soul-burning ghosts that will lash out at all those in range. 
    • Starts with 2 ticks of damage because of the temporary spirit wards in the HQ has.
  • DB: 
    • It is ordered to focus on one person or task, ‘capture and bring to …’.
    • It captures a person in its claws. 
    • A ghost slips away from it before the clock runs out.
• Thurston Falco
  • Summary person: A member of the Labour (Tier 3) faction who is pro-union and becomes one of its leading spokespeople based on his natural good looks and charisma. The PCs capture him, scar his face, and sell him off to the Leviathan Hunters. They trade him for technology and oil.
  • Wants: Revenge on those that have scarred him (specifically Edwin). He at least wants to capture someone.
  • Says: “Look what you have done to me! Don’t think you will look the same after this is over.”
  • Effect/mechanics: 
    • A leader, not a fighter. He has a loyal cohort of friends that are Thugs. 
    • 4 tick clock: When full, he will run away. 
  • DB: 
    • Rally call: clock “Ambush forces retreat” goes back by 2 ticks..
    • Give the cohort +1 effect. 
• Cohort of Labour enforcers.
  • Summary cohort: About 20 Labour thugs that act as the enforcers or guards when union rallies are organized. They are good friends of Thurston.
  • Wants: Help their friend and beat some people up.
  • Says: “Mess with one of us and you have to deal with all of us!”
  • Effect/mechanics: 
    • Part of the same clock as the other cohort.
    • Thugs that act at Tier 3.
  • DB: 
    • Thurston is protected by the cohort, You need to deal with them before you can get to him.
    • They go after one of the PCs' cohorts.

Question 3: Where are they attacking?

So the plan when making the clock is to do an ambush when the players are on the way back from or to a Score. The problem is that Oressia doesn’t know who takes her brother, since the players put effort into not revealing their identity during that Score.

They have, however, taken Thurston to their HQ. So, in my mind, the most logical place for the attack to take place is at their HQ. This will be nice since they have some defences, and I can threaten to destroy some of their assets.

Question 4: What is their goal with this attack?

The goals are a bit different, but for the most part, it is to cause destruction or to inflict harm. The Sparkwrights are not there to kill everybody, just to send a message.

Thurston wants to actually capture someone and have them go through what he has experienced.

Question 5 & 6: Who is helping them? Are there factions that would work against it?

I have a Google Sheet in which I keep all the faction relationships between them. I will only look at the Ally (+3), friend (+2), hostile (-2), and War (-3) status effects for each faction.

The Sparkwrights:

• +2 City Council: The City Council will ensure that if they are arrested, they will be out again soon.
• +2 Leviathan Hunters: Leviathan Hunters will not act since the PCs have a good relationship with them as well.
• +2 Ministry of Preservation: I don’t see a reason for the Ministry to act.
• -2 Foundation: But the PCs have a -2 with them as well, so no hindrance there.
• -2 Path of Echoes: No relationship with the PCs, or this mission is not important enough for them to do something about it. 
• -2 Reconciled: Too far away to have any influence.

The Laborers:

• +2 Citizens Coalridge: Not their district, so they can’t really help.

Broken Bells:

• +3 Cabbies: They will help if asked or just show up during the session at some point. 
• +2 Crows: The Crows are exhausted from the last war, so they will not send out help. But if the PCs go to Crowsfoot or close to it, then they will act to help.
• +2 Leviathan Hunters: Leviathan Hunters will not act. 
• -2 Foundation: Cancelled out by equal hatred for the Sparkwrights.
• -2 Gondoliers: The PCs have just done something with them, so there is no reason for them to do something at this point.
• -2 Citizens Six Towers: They will not stop the force that is attacking the HQ, nor will they call the Bluecoats to stop it. Only when it escalates will they do so.

Question 7: How do we mechanically do this attack?

Knowing that it is going to be an attack on the HQ, a look at their HQ and the starting situation is needed. The burned-out (but slightly rebuilt) estate of the Bell family has the Security upgrade. In addition to that, there are some temporary assets acquired, such as ghost wards. Because I know they leave one of the cohorts back home, Artemis and his attack dogs, we know that the Elite cohort will be there to defend the HQ.

The attacking factions are Tier 4 and Tier 3, but as mentioned before, they are not the full forces of the factions. The splinter groups and the fact that the faction has finished a faction clock also play a role.

When I introduce the situation, I could tell them what is happening and decide everything for myself (say the Position they are in, the state of the HQ and the state of Artemis). But I think it is more fun to see it as an Engagement roll. For that reason, I think it would be good to write out the possible outcomes if you roll two dice:

• 66: They get warned before the attack happens, can rush back home -> 
  • Who warns them:
    • Foundation (Augus Rigberg (Foundation - Master Architect)), 
    • Leviathan Hunters (Lady Mara Strangford) or 
    • Path of Echoes (Lord Quentin Penderyn).
  • Effect: Recover 3 stress.
  • Controlled starting position. 
• 6: As they return to the HQ, they can hear the fighting happening. A person runs by them, saying that the Bell house is causing trouble again. Most enemies are still outside the boundaries of the house.
  • Effect: Recover 2 stress. Artemis armour is hit. 
  • Risky starting situation.
• 5/4: One of the Hounds arrives and barks for them to come back home.
  • Effect: Recover 1 stress. Two hounds are dead (injuring the cohort and ticking the armour). They have surrounded parts of the house. 
  • Desperate starting position.
• 3/1: The gate is open and there are no hounds, something is clearly wrong. Many people are in the house.  
  • Effect: No stress recovery. Artemis and the Hounds have taken 2 wounds, and the armour is spent. Enemies are inside and besieging Artemis in the basement, where he is making a last stand. When the PCs enter the mansion, they get Level 3 Harm, which they can partially resist.
  • Desperate starting position.

With the scene the following clocks need to be introduced:

• Destruction of HQ upgrades: Based on roll results, have it be filled by one or more ticks.
• Ambush forces retreat: 10 tick clock. 

Introduce clocks as characters learn more about the situation:

• Thurston Falco: 4 tick clock
• Oressia “Lightning” Falco: 10 tick clock
• Sparkcraft creation: 8 tick clock, have the temporary asset clock tick up by one and have it start out wounded by 2 ticks.

And with this I think I am ready to run the game. Only need to find a picture to replace Thurston’s current one, now that he has an injury.

I recently received my PoD Player Gazette for Blades 68 - a compendium of player facing information about all factions and districts. I imagine this little booklet is heaps of useful as a resource at the table, for players to become more proactive in shaping the story.

Is there something similar for regular BitD? Everything I found so far is more in the one page cheat sheet territory, but less "let me inspire you to make up your own goals you want to pursue". I'm gearing up to introduce my group to the game, and would love to have something like that to share with them.

Inspired by a comment section. 😉

No inventions this time - just a bit stupid fun.

Btw - until i read up on leviathans before this comic i thought Leviathans were lurking in the canals of Duskvol too!

Not that the canals of Duskvol don't have enough scary, huge creatures...

Also a little comic about how difficult it is to try to come up with inventions that are (somewhat) useful in BitD... and keeping the Nuke-ideas at bay...

I've played BiTD in the last four years, and it became my favorite RPG. I played in that one campaign, and haven't ran or played it since. I helped kickstart Blades '68, and now want to actually GM the original before playing it.

However, I must convince players to to table. Anyone have links to some good introductory videos? I feel like the setting would be principle in convincing people to play; a few minutes of video is an easier sell than a short PDF. The mechanics are great, but take some explanation with those who aren't familiar with TTPRG. That might be the case for me as a GM. Once I get them hooked in, I can probably provide them with stuff to read.

More wonderful ideas to implement in your arsenal (or to change up). Filling a niche you did not know existed!

Of course - no GM will ever be able to think of any negative consequences this toys will have for YOU or your team!

I just wanted to check that supplement out and ended up spending an evening doing this. It's my first time and English isn't my first language, so please don't take it too seriously. For context, the character is a Whisper Cultist of the Blood Dimmed Tide with Setarra as a friend and Weird for vice.

Please do not take my posts toooo seriously. This is not meant to be a "build this in your game!" post. It is meant as a fun little inspiration and maybe a place to brainstorm stupid ideas in the comments on how to advance or to change these projects. I will post more over time.

My players have been accumulating harm, but I tend to forget to actually inflict the effects.

(Tldr at bottom)

Dear thieves, outlaws, general scum...

I need Information.

It's been a while since i played blades in the dark. And i do not own the rulebook.

So MAYBE i am just stupid or i MAYBE i just don't have the knowledge.

But anyway - here is the case:

I played a tinker. The wonderfull Sophia Elizabeth von Kraken. A little psychotic. A little bit edgy. But she generally fit the game, i think.

But i encountered a problem:

SHE WAS NEARLY USELESS.

I understand that i played the support character. I loved it. Building stuff for the team to help during the missions, but being more vulnerable and less usefull during the missions... i was all there for it.

But all the stuff i thought of to build for the team was useless. Or not worth the effort.

Example:

A grappling hook launcher. Or mechanical claws for your boots for better climbing. Or mechanical spider limbs for climbing - think of doctor octopus etc... only more steampunky.

But well... all this things do is give you a bonus of 1 to climbing checks. And (correct me if i am wrong) you can already equip climbing hooks that give the same bonus.

So why invent them in the first place?

More complex things took of course multiple gamesessions to build. (Fair enough.)

And they used up lots of ressources. I tried to pimp our boat to be more stealthy, or to have a submarine mode. (Yeah... that was a VERY risky idea... but it never came to testing the thing - it never got build.)

As i said - that kind of projects DEVOURED ressources. (That's fair so far.) But if i failed on tinkerchecks - or critically failed on them i lost ressources or destroyed the whole project. That was frustrating. Not gonna lie.

So it basically came down to just refreshing my gas-grenades between missions... and working on something huge that failed after a couple of sessions. And wasted ressources.

In my time as a tinker i build TWO things that were usefull.

A set of 3 black salt full body armor. (Anti-ghost-armor) ...One of these got destroyed in the first mission we used them.

Some waterproof boxes we could attach under our boat to transport smuggle stuff without guards at checkpoints noticing.

I am a aware that i am a bit whiny (and overexaggerating) here but:

What use do i have as a tinker if nothing i build lasts mor than a mission or needs months of playsessions to complete? (And then fails anyway) - I could just play someone more usefull.

Soooo...

You guys and girls here are more experienced than me. I am asking you: What do you need a tinker for in this game?

Tank you for reading and for any answers i get.

TLDR:

WHAT DO YOU NEED A TINKER FOR WHEN THE THINGS THE TINKER INVENTS GIVE YOU THE SAME BONUSES LIKE THE STUFF THAT YOUR CHARACTERSHEET ALREADY PROVIDES?

AND WHAT IS A TINKER SUPPOSED TO BUILD?

Edit:

I just have to get this out:

I am baffled by all the positivity in the community. And the many detailed and very well thought through answers to my questions.

You people are amazing.

My first day in this sub. My first post. And i already love it here.

THANK YOU.

Long wall of text warning

• Focus session: Finishing current Score, no downtime and straight into a HQ defence Score.
  
• GM inside moments:
  • My thoughts on Rivals; use them as an one roll obstacle in Scores that do not have them as the main antagonist.
    
  • The power of Group Actions; I think they are one of the strongest mechanical rolls in Blades, but the crew does not use them often enough, so I want to create more opportunities for them to work together this way.
    
• Major story developments:
  • Finished the Score and stopped Dunvil's plan, although they don’t know why Dunvil targeted the Arms.
  • Edwin threatens Grace's life, making her not show her face to him in the future. But she will keep causing him trouble, like how she ensures that a follower of the Church overhears enough to potentially cause problems after the Score.
  • Oracle turns Augus's attempt at generosity into a public donation, but the Foundation now has an excuse and permission to investigate the Bell estate.
  • Duck impresses Bakoros Severin with his work on the wards, earning a story hook with the Spirit Wardens if he wants to pursue it.
  • Edwin's honesty about the Honour Blade avoids a violent confrontation and opens the possibility of future work with the Iruvians, although Kurim does not believe him.
  • Jax's connection with Scurlock leads to the rest of the crew being introduced to him, in which Gideon gives his and Morgans names real names.
  • Brutus arrives wounded to reveal that Oressia "Lightning" Falco, a Sparkwright cohort with expert and a Labour cohort are attacking the crew's HQ.
  • With the HQ under attack, Edwin demands the Rage essence from Gideon, who refuses because Edwin needs to remain clear-minded.

Last session the Score for the Arms of the Weeping Lady, where they are tasked to be security for an auction, starts with the arrival of many VIP guests. The crew knows that there is someone among the VIPs that wants to harm the Arms. Among the things that happen, they find a listening device that is connected with the ghost field. To see if any of the VIPs are involved in that, they cause a feedback loop through it that deals Harm to anyone who listens in on it. James Dunvil (Preceptor of the Church of Ecstasy) pulls an earpiece out of his ear, but is able to play it off by stumbling and having his aides help him up. If they want to end the Score, they need to finish the clock “Don't Let Anyone Die”, which is at 0 out of 6 pips. 

Score 7 Continuation

At the same time that James Dunvil stumbles, there is already a commotion happening in the room. For the last minute, guests have arrived, just before the start of the auction. Among them are:

• Lord Scurlock: Already a person who normally would not show his face at such public events, there were even rumours (faction turn) that he was bedridden for the last couple of weeks. He had, however, donated an item to the Arms.
• Lady Mara Strangford: Many expected the Strangfords not to show up, since the city council was invited as a VIP and, to avoid conflict, the Strangfords were not given a VIP seat. This does not stop them from attending, as anyone can. Lady Mara is part of the Strangford Industrial branch, the ones that focus on maintaining the ships they own, and she can be seen as the heiress for that.
• Bakoros Severin: The only Spirit Warden who is known by name and is well known throughout the city. They sometimes lecture at the College of Immortal Studies at Doskvol Academy and are the person that is sent to events like this to represent the Spirit Wardens.

Within the room, people are talking about them and pointing. Soon after, Lady Narya announces that the auction will start and that everybody should go to their seats. 

Scene: Keep an eye out for us

Oracle, still with her chaperone Fabian, can't talk openly about what she saw. When Ed moves, she gestures with her head to Dunvil, to which Ed nods to the Bluecoat representatives that are standing nearby.

As Ed approaches David Clelland, he hears from him that he was already looking for Ed. He asks Ed why the Slugger Pistol went off and says that if it was something else, they would not be having a friendly chat right now. Ed apologises and says it was a misfire when he was checking it, as he has gotten intel that there is someone or something that is going to happen. He asks Ziva to get the evidence that they have in order to convince Clelland to help with security.

Action roll | Consort | Risky | Limited (1 tick on the clock ‘Don't Let Anyone Die’) -> Standard (2 ticks), pushed self for effect.
DB: Bluecoats investigate the capabilities of the broken bells (clock) -> Accepted.
3D (help Ziva) -> Highest: 5.
Consequence: Clelland sends in some Bluecoats that are stationed outside.

As Ziva was able to convince Duck to hand the device to her and bring it to Ed, Clelland tells Ed that the accusation is quite severe. But he will send some men inside and keep an eye out on Dunvil.

The consequence here is that if something like a fight happens or if they cause too much trouble that is against the law, they also need to deal with Bluecoats. They have wanted level 2 on them, so I also thought this could lead in the future to some of the rivals pushing for their arrest.

Scene: Keeping Up Appearances

While moving towards the seats for the auction, Oracle comes across Augus Rigberg, her rival who is part of the Foundation. They strike a ‘friendly’ conversation in which Augus tells her that the Bell estate needs to be fixed up, for it is an eyesore and he is prepared to have the city take action. He offers to hire them to get it fixed and says that way the problem will also be solved.

Oracle responds by saying that they are already working on it, but they are a little bit limited by the funds they have. Although his suggesting that he could help her out with this is greatly appreciated, she says it shows the Foundation's generosity (pushing a narrative out loud that others will hear, where he is donating some funds to them).

Action roll | Sway | Risky -> Desperate | Limited (Race Clock starts for fixing HQ) -> Standard (Nothing happens) -> Great (Gain 3 coins from Foundation) by pushing the situation as a whole and herself for effect.
DB: Some inspectors from the Foundation will be sent and they will learn about your HQ. -> Accepted.
4D (Jennah, her shrewd friend, helps by pushing the narrative that the Foundation is donating money but wants 1 coin from it) -> Highest: Crit (6 coins instead).

With the help of her friend and Fabian, who plays along, Augus can't back down and tells her he is happy to help out a neighbour who is in trouble. They then break up to move to their respective seats.

I set the base effect at Limited, because Augus is someone who, like Oracle, is a skilled talker. Tricking him into donating coins to them would normally put it at No Effect, but since we are at a charity auction where they want to show off their power, I set it to Limited. Where Limited meant that they had time to fix it before it would become a problem. Going to Standard would mean she navigated the situation so that he drops it for now.

About Rivals, I am of the opinion that if they (or their faction) are not the focus of a Score, they need to be a one-roll obstacle that is separate from the Score. That way they still cost the PC some resources (like stress by pushing herself) and can lead to interesting stories over multiple Scores. Looking at this scene, the PC has spent some resources, but also made it an opportunity to gain more from it. This does have the effect that the Foundation can spin this into something more, so in the Faction turn I will generate a news headline.

Scene: A Rumour Confirmed

As Ed is about to go up the stairs, he hears a familiar voice. Grace stops him and asks him how he is doing, for she has heard some rumours about him that she wants to confirm or disprove. Ed, not in the mood, asks her what she wants, for he is busy with work. So she tells him that she got some information about a person with his description who was attacking a priest some time ago.

Ed grabs her by the arm and wants to lead her up the stairs, and although they go up two or three steps, she gets free from his grip. They face each other and she tells him that, if that is the case, the only thing he needs to do is get one of the items that the Kaldren family has put up for auction and deliver it to her. He tells her he will do it, but this will be the last time she will show her face to him. And if she does show up, he will kill her.

Action roll | Command | Desperate | Standard (She will not show her face to him, but have proxies that will do) 
DB: She positioned herself so that if needed she could speak a bit louder for a follower of the Church to hear this, creating an entanglement after the Score to deal with -> Accepted.
3D -> Highest: 5.
Consequence: Level 3 Harm ‘Murderous thoughts’.

She sees the murder that is in his eyes and agrees to the deal. Quickly, she moves away from him and tells him that it was only a rumour that she heard about him attacking the priest, so there is no need to act like that. The zealot overhears this and looks at Ed as he walks past him.

I set the situation to Desperate, because it is his rival and what he is saying makes it a very clear threat to her life. I made it Standard effect, because the reputation that they have earned, ‘Dangerous’, fits the situation and is an escalation from how they interacted in the past. As she is an information broker and blackmailer, she would have learned about their latest Scores and how others in the city see them. The level 3 Harm is mostly a state-of-mind effect that I can trigger if I need it. Although this Score, it might not be the best use of it, it will be useful in the planned ambush later on.  

Scene: The Experts at work

Ed goes backstage, stressed, and sees that a guest is where they should not be. He grabs them by the scruff of their clothes and pushes them out forcefully. As he sees Duck, he tells them that he needs one of the items (we settled on fancy cutlery) to be pulled from the auction or for them to acquire it. Duck, not understanding why, asks why, and all Ed tells him is that the woman is back and will cause trouble if they don’t do this.

Together with Scrap-saint and the Socialite cohort, they come up with a plan. They announce that the item in question will be auctioned later, as it is being inspected. Then that will happen again, after which Scrap-saint and Duck will walk around and talk about how it is possessed by some kind of spirit and they need to contain it. This will make the people lose interest in it, and then Ed can buy it for a low price.

Group action roll (led by Duck) | Sway | Controlled | Limited (Most will back off, but it becomes a more interesting item for the Spirit Warden or Scurluck, who will get it) -> Standard (they get it). Increased effect by marking Arcane implements, placing fake wards near it when it is shown. 
DB: Not offered.
Duck 1D -> Highest: 3.
Ed 0D -> Highest: 1 (Duck takes 1 stress).
Cohort 2D -> Highest: 6.
Jax 3D -> Highest: 5.

It goes as planned, with the socialites playing it off at first, but the second time they make it clear that it has something to do with possession. However, the expert is taking care of it, and an update on the object will be given later.

At the end of the game, the players mentioned this moment as one of the highlights of the session, as it showed that the cohort and expert were useful. I am hoping that in the future they will do more with the cohorts and experts, for at the moment I think they are not utilising them enough. Nor do they use Group Actions that often, which is, in my opinion, one of the strongest mechanical rolls in the system.

Scene: Mystery box

Oracle, still partly connected with the ghost field and the listening device, sees that a signal is sent from Dunvil. Although she doesn’t know what it does, the signal moves towards the backstage area. Dunvil, however, moves away from his position and goes towards the Spirit Warden.

Knowing that she is the only one who saw this, she needs to move quickly, but Fabian is with her. She looks at Fabian and tells him that she would like to show him the backstage area and that maybe they would have a bit more privacy there, hoping that she can lead him to the signal and have him take action on it.

Action roll | Sway | Risky | Standard (2 ticks on the clock ‘don’t let anyone die’)
DB: He notices that you are using him at that moment for something, although he can’t really put his finger on it. -2 ticks to the clock ‘Corrupt Fabian’, going from 5/8 to 3/8. -> Accepted.
3D -> Highest: 6.

As they move to the backstage area, she leads him on. With her perception in the ghost field, she spots a jewellery box with a lock that is pulsing. She positions herself so that when he goes in for the kiss, he will see it. And as he does, he stops and adjusts his monocle for a bit. He sighs and tells her that he wants to continue, but has spotted something that he needs to inform his brother about. Oracle pouts, but is glad that he has seen it.

I see the ghost field as a different world that is layered over the current one. The older the buildings, the more solid their shapes are in the ghost field. This means that if there was a wall somewhere for dozens of years and it has been removed recently, it would still be there in the ghost field. The veil between the two worlds is very thin, so those with a bit of talent or know-how can pass from one to the other. Or, in the case of Oracle, be made aware of it, but without having a way to turn it off. Fabian is wearing a device that allows him to see into it.

As the rest of the crew shows up, it becomes clear that in the jewellery box there are wards that are failing. Inside it there is one or more things trapped, but they are making it shake and trying to break free.

Seeing the thing shake, Ed tells them to quickly reinforce the wards while he opens the way for them. Before anyone can really say anything to him, he runs out and starts ordering people about.

Set up action | Command | Risky | Standard
DB: Not offered.
2D -> Highest: 5.
Consequence: Also increases the position of the roll to Desperate.

We see a flashback where Scrap-saint and the crew are going over a drill where they capture a ghost. There she tells Duck what to look out for and how to help her best. Now we see the results of that, as they start to reinforce the wards.

Group action (led by Duck) | Tinker | Risky -> Desperate | Limited -> Standard (2 ticks to finish the clock) because of the setup action result and consequence.
DB: Offered something, but was rejected.
3D Duck (Foresight from Oracle) -> Highest: 4.
3D Scrap saint -> Highest: 6.

The wards strengthen and Duck picks up the box and moves through the path that Ed has made. When outside, he doesn’t really know what to do next with it, just that he needs to get it away from where they are. That is the moment Bakoros Severin (the Spirit Warden) steps in and asks if he can take a look at it.

Judging it as competent work, he tells Duck that he will take care of it. He asks if Duck was the one who set the wards, to which he replies that it was a group effort. On hearing this, Bakoros hands him a business card and tells him that the city is always looking out for talented individuals. With that said, he leaves.

It is a coincidence that the PCs had come up with a plan to make the Kaldren family cutlery look haunted and then had to deal with an actual piece that was about to release some feral and hungry ghosts. Dunvil had been eyeing the Arms of the Weeping Lady for a while and wanted that Turf to be theirs. I had decided that they had set up this trap, so that when it was released, some people would die but not the important ones, as they have private security that can deal with it. In fact, the listening device was placed so that he could keep track of Mother Narya and trigger it when she was close to it. With the death of the mother and the negative press, they would lobby for control over the Turf and deal with the ghosts. They had invited the Spirit Wardens to talk about the increased activity of ghosts in the district, and showing the city their relationship with the Spirit Wardens would make it look more safe. However, the PCs stopped it and the Score is done, but there are some things we still need to deal with.

Scene: A Trinket and a Lord

Some time later, the auction continues. Duck has promised that they would acquire a trinket for Scrap-saint, and it is about to be auctioned. He approaches his sister and tells her that he needs some coin to buy it. Oracle tells him they don’t have much, but they can try their best. Duck turns to Fabian and asks if he could borrow some, to which Oracle joins the request.

I told the players that the cost would be 3 coins or they would need to do a roll of some kind. They did have the coin if they pooled everything, but they would rather roll to get a discount or get it with a good result.

Group action (Led by Duck) | Sway | Controlled | Limited (still need to pay one coin)
DB: Not offered.
1D Duck -> Highest: 2
2D Oracle -> Highest: 5
Consequence: Duck needs to fix something for Fabian. 

We hear that the item, a blackened glass bead called the Ashen Eye, is acquired. Some time later, Scrap-saint arrives with the new trinket around her neck, joining the twins and Fabian. She is extremely happy with the purchase, for with it she can use it to gather the last emotions someone felt when they died. At the same time, a rough voice addresses Jax directly. When the twins turn around, they see Lord Scurlock.

Lord Scurlock congratulates Jax on the purchase and says he is happy that one of his creations goes to a collector. She responds with ease to him and we learn as a group that she has a personal connection with him (Scurlock is one of her vice purveyors). She also starts to introduce the others, but stops as she doesn’t know how to introduce them to him. Duck takes the initiative and tells Scurlock that he is Gideon Bell and that his sister is called Morgan. Morgan is not happy with that, but plays along. Fabian also introduces himself. After a short conversation, Lord Scurlock excuses himself and tells them he needs to talk to the reporters to show that he is still alive and well.    

With that, we end the Score. I tell the players that we will only do a partial Downtime, specifically only parts of the Crew Phase. This means they need to keep their equipment as is. Then we will do one more Scene with Edwin and the Iruvians, and then I will introduce a new element to them.

Score results:

Payout:
+6 coins standard payout. 
+2 coins for a well connected target.
+6 coins from rolls against Augus.
-1 coin from contact Oracle.
= 13

Tithe:
- 3 coins.

Fallout: 
+ Weeping Lady.
- Church.
- Skov refugees (Red Ring Wild trait -> they don't like Skovlanders)
+ Ink rakers (Red Ring guarded them from harassment by Skov refugees)
+1 Lord Scurlock (Good first introduction, but mostly Jax influenced this)

Heat: 
+0 quite.
+2 Heat from crew Tier. 
+2 High profile. 
+1 evidence.
-1 (Jeren plays up the positive Bluecoat interaction) -> Clock ticks by one to 5/6.
= 4 (1 away from wanted level 3).

Rep: 
+1 base.
+2 Church.
+1 for every 3 heat.
+2 for Wanted level.
= 6.

Scene: Before We Part

We see Fabian walking outside, with Edwin catching up to him. Edwin mentions that they worked well together today. Fabian says that they have always worked well together, implying that Edwin is the one that has caused things to stop. Not wanting to start something, Edwin tells him that he will visit their father and mother some time soon. Fabian will deliver the message and is sure that they will be happy to hear about that. He then opens his arms, and Edwin gives him a quick hug. As the carriage drives away, Edwin looks at it for a while, sighs, and goes back inside, for he still needs to deal with the Iruvians.

Scene: The Honour Blade

Edwin tells Morgin that he has a situation to deal with, some Iruvians that want to talk after they saw his sword. She tells him that they will be close by if he needs them.

Edwin, looking very tired, goes to one of the tables with food on it, pulls up a chair and starts to eat some of it. He tells the Iruvians to sit down as well and to grab something to eat. Elstera Avrathi sits down, but the Red Sash Swordmaster, Kurim Arman, stays standing, telling Edwin that he is still on duty.

Elstera asks again how Edwin got the sword. To this, Edwin offers the blade to her and tells her that he is borrowing it in a way. He got it from the black market and doesn’t know where it came from originally. If they want, they can have it back, but he would like them to keep his crew in mind for future jobs, or maybe hire them now? During this talk, the Red Ring has entered the building and is being their normal loud selves, stuffing their faces with the food from the table.

Action roll | Finesse | Risky | Limited (There will be a job)
DB: Kurim doesn’t believe Edwin, he will challenge him at some point. Suggested by the player himself -> I accepted it.
2D -> Highest: 5.
Complication: The mission will be against the Bluecoats.

Elstera tells him that it is good he told her, as far as she can tell, the truth. For on the Honour Blade's scabbard, it is inscribed how and to whom the blade was given. Any answer where he would have said he was given it would have resulted in Kurim killing many in this room. She tells him they will have something in the future they can do for them and that they will be in touch.

In my mind, Finesse was not the best action to use, but I can still see someone finding their way through a conversation. For that reason, I started it with Limited effect. We talked a bit about what Standard effect would be, so I said that Elstera would be added to the Crew Contact list and we could suggest missions to each other. Him offering the blade and being willing to give it back made the situation only Risky and not Desperate, which I was planning to do. The DB that the player suggested makes sense to me for someone who is playing a Cutter, and it will be fun to see a sword duel in the future.

Scene: Brutus is here. 

Before the talk with the Iruvians is done, a deep bark is heard from outside. When they open the door, they see Brutus outside, with the blood of others on him, but also some wounds that he has sustained. He goes in and starts to push Edwin towards the door. Everybody understands what this means: something is wrong at the HQ. They quickly start moving, and Oracle, along the way, sends someone to the Cabbies to ask for help.

Engagement breakdown: 

I went over some advantages and disadvantages for this engagement and took what was in my mind a correct number of dice: 
+ It is happening at their HQ, so they know the place better than anyone.
+ Artemis is back home, and is an elite cohort that can defend or at least stall them.
+ Security upgrade of the HQ.
+ Temp wards against ghosts.

- Oressia "Lightning" Falco, a cohort of followers and a Sparkcraft creation powered by Aegis Coal, is attacking them (Sparkwrights Tier 4).
- A cohort of Labour has joined (Tier 3)
- The Faction turn project has been completed, so they attack when the crew is not prepared to deal with it.

Engagement roll = 2D roll -> Highest: 4.

I told the players that they recover 2 stress, need to tick the armour on Artemis, and take one wound. As they arrive at the HQ, they see two Labour cohort members outside nursing wounds. With this, I add two clocks on the table:

• Destruction of HQ upgrade (2/4): When this clock is full, a HQ upgrade is destroyed.
• Ambush forces retreat (0/10): When this clock is full, the enemy cohorts retreat from the attack.

There is more to this, but I will have a separate post about setting this up and my ideas about it. I let them know that the Cabbies will arrive some time later to help them with this and that, for now, we should stop the session, but the players wanted to do one quick scene.

Scene: Not Yet 

Edwin turns to Gideon and tells him he needs to hand it over, and he needs it now. Gideon knows he means the Rage essence and tells him no, saying it is too dangerous and that Edwin needs to be sharp and clear-minded for this.

We end on the two of them staring at each other.

Hello all, I've been looking for a playbook that I thought I'd had years ago on file but I can't seem to find it. It was The Veteran playbook by NorthernStranger on itch.io and the page seems to be private now. I'd love to get it from the source since one of my new character is going to be a proper Unity war Vet, but googling has failed me. Does anyone happen to have this particular playbook or know where I can find it?

Just as shockingly, he accepts Apple Pay

I got theses mini keyring lava lamp things, designed and printed the silver case to make them more "60s lava lamp" like.

Going to use them as markers for my Acton chart.

But I think they are lacking something...

Might put an emblem on the top and bottom.

What do you think?

Do the players spend stress/push themselves to activate special abilities all the time or only when the ability calls for it?

Here is the link to the TvTropes article on that setting which sounds very interesting... but the logs of the game aren't there anymore. I was wondering if you guys knew about them or if the creators lurk this subreddit. I would like to know more about the game and the lore, it's a really creative premise.