Hi All,

I have just received my copy of 3E in the post and have read an inwardly digested. I seems a great and flexible system.

We are currently playing CoC, taking a short break from our 4E DnD game. We are enjoying 4E but finding that the powers 'get in the way' a bit, we don't play that often and the players are busy, so a lot of time is spent searching through powers and discussing tactics. Now what I am after is a very flexible system that is quick and still gives lots of options. So I feel we have a couple of ways we can go, to real old skool style (like Dragon Age, simple but balanced with one mechanic) or WFRP3E style.. which has more complexity but the card system should make it easy to play for the players.

However I am worried about 3E for a few things time wise.

1. How long does it take to assemble dice pools for each action? Is it a pain and takes a while or does it become so second nature that you do it in seconds?

2. As the characters get higher levels do the number of cards etc become hard to manage? Take ages to search through etc. I know dedicated players (as in 4E) can learn their powers etc and use very quickly. But a couple of my players just have the time for the session, no other RPG reading/learning time.

Thanks for any input. MP.

Dice Pools don't take long to gather, you'll think it's cumbersome at first but I've been able to do it real quick recently.

It takes more time to evaluate then it does to get the dice and roll.

OK that could be a good point. The symbols, while thematically cool, are a little similar to tell at a glance. But is it mainly actually comparing success/fails or boons/banes that takes the time?

I have another Q for anyone here, a couple of action cards have slayer (and another name) I guess they are only available to those with the slayer career? Like the 3 from the Adventurers tool set (pet, way of the sword and ancestor). Oh a couple of the ancestor actions have SAGA as a keyword, what does that mean?

Ta

slayer doesn't mean slayer only it just means it responds to anything that refers to slayer cards, for example other slayer cards might read do X damage +1 for each slayer card with at least one charge token on it.

although some people are playing that it means slayer only because they find that more fitting to the setting, the same applies to some of the action cards... watcher cards etc...

About the dice: It certainly helps you save time if each player has his own ready pool so that the basic of it is already made and you only have to had inherent card difficulties and GM difficulties to it.

Thanks for your replies guys... another question how do 'impromptu actions' work. Like the traditional jumping to the chandiler, and swinging into the guard. Not mechanically but in play, doe sit gel with the action. Is it easy to set up and envisage? Do your players use them a lot?

Coordination (Ag) check, challenge level would be off what the character was planning on doing, grabbing it with two hands? Average. Grabbing it with one hand? Hard. Grabbing it and swinging up into the chandelier with the same action? Daunting.

See? That took me longer to type than adjucate (and then keeping it in the back of my mind for the next time someone tries something similar so I'm consistent).

Impromptu actions: is there a skill that would cover it? Go with it, otherwise use the closest stat.

keltheos said:

Yep. And use Perform a Stunt maybe.

Upon initially reading the game, it seemed to me like Perform A Stunt was intended to be used when no other action card was being used.

For example, someone could use a social card to influence someone, or just use a skill to do it with Perform A Stunt. My base assumption was that there are no plain ole "roll your stat/skill" rolls, but rather that Perform A Stunt is the default. Thoughts?

Edit: Looking over the book more specifically, it would seem my assumption was incorrect. I suppose Perform A Stunt is only used at player / GM discretion.