Learning this new system has been interesting. I've been wrapped up in D&D and WFRP for so long, that this has been an eye opener. There may be a couple things that I won't get out on the table just yet.

* Initiative: I'm just going to use a sheet of paper. Trying to remember which player is which skull-face chit probably doesn't need to be done yet. I"m also going to fudge the opponents initiative so they always go last. One extra step of rolling for the monsters isn't really necessary afterall and we're expecting plenty of people wanting to test this stuff out.

* Stance phase ring for the PC's miniatures. Not going on there initially. Not necessary to track additionally on the mini especially since time will be of the essence.

* I printed out the dice translator for players to reference during the game.

I get the impression that a crappy GM who doesn't prep for this could really leave a BAD impression on potential new players.

jh

I thought that initiative wasn't decided all at once, but on the spot each turn, by the players? Hence no tracking needed for each individual Hero Skull chit?

I think the game doesn't have so much as a steep learning curve, but more like a learning hump.

Istm that there's a lot of stuff in the core mechanic, and that's actually quite complex, but once that is sorted, everything else seems to fall into place around that. I recall when I first ran it, it was a lot easier than I thought it was going to be, especially once everyone was comfortable with creating their pools. So I'd suggest making an effort to establish that.

fwiw, I think the shared initiative is a very cool thing, so I'd try to keep the intiative track in. That's another thing that seems to run itself. So I recommend setting it up and letting the players deal with it.

Printing out the dice translator is an excellent idea.

For prep, I would recomend to GMs:

- Writing/printing a list of the skill descriptions (pp.16-19) for the players

- Making a copy (or two) of pg 44, Dice Symbols for the players

- Writing/printing/copying pg 52, a list of maneuvers that can be made in combat for the players

- Adding a separate sheet (or copying to the back) of the pre-gen PC sheets with information on: racial bonus (for example, humans get a free [W][W] once per session), as well as information about any gear they have, such as the Attuned of the wizard's staff and the Pierce quality of the pistol, etc)

- Copying pg 51 of the Tome of Adventure for the GM to use, instead of trying to use it from the book.

I also plan on printing up my own initiative track, and influence track, so I don't have to use the puzzle pieces and can write on them if needed.

dvang said:

I was actually thinking of placing the puzzle track pieces on top of a dry erase sheet so that I can take notes beside the track itself.

I'd like to eventually create a rule cheat sheet for players (including dice reference) and making it follow the "booklet" format of the Character Sheets so that it can fit into it.

Excellent tips.

Jay H

I plan on using some of the 4e materials to build an extra set of cards, at least until I can get my hands on the Adventurer's Toolkit. There's things out there like online 4e card creation and www.godeckyourself.com that can probably handle some of the stuff, as long as you're creative on how to display "boon" vs "bane" on the cards.

The back of the basic rulebook has the basic dice symbol key, making it a useful reference even when closed. Genius!

If you wanted to replace the initiative puzzle pieces, I'd do so with an identical system, only a bit larger. Just draw a set of boxes labeled 0 to 6, then one of two colors of poker chips on the appropriate box. Printing anything out seems like overkill for such a simple set-up, and you'll drive yourself crazy writing down "hero, blank, enemyx2, herox2, blank, etc" and erasing it every turn.

All you folks expecting four people:

• Someone will have to play the wizard. Either give them time to read the basic magic rules, or have a spiel prepared.
• If you hit card constraints, why not just put a single spread of the basic action cards above the party sheet, where everyone can see them, and only give each player a hand of their unique special cards.

I just made a photocopy of the basic actions (including bash, even though it's not used) for the wizard character..although I realized I'll need one for myself as a GM!

jh