Hi all,
I am excited to finally be joining in the fun of owning and playing some of FFG products. I have been a long time 'observer' and basically lusted over their games and expansion in all the local 'comics & games' stores.

Thanks to some gift cards, good sales and a little extra work I have purchased MoM and most of the expansions as well as Tannhauser and all the expansions. I know I probably should have played both extensively before buying the whole thing but I just really like having all the options, variations and gameplay available through obtaining the entire lineup.

So far I have only played MoM twice and it was enjoyable if a bit rough due to the complexity and everyone learning the game. We are about to play again this weekend and will be going through the Inner Sanctum scenario with a full group of 5. I think that it will go smoother now that I have the game organized better and know how to setup and 'play' as the keeper.

I was curious if there were any pointers, hints, house rules, or any other observations that might help this game go smoother and be involving for all the players. Since I take the game over to another house I cannot pre-setup the game but I do take all the cards and such I'll need for the scenario and put them aside in the box so that I am more ready to go when I arrive.

Anyway, glad to finally be joining the fun here and looking forward to many years of enjoyment from the crazy-complex and beautiful games I am finally able to play instead of stare at on the store shelves.

Cheers,
Droshack

You'll figure it out for yourself with time and experience.

LOL - so much for the first response being of any help or friendliness.

Moving on then...

Danger Nerd said:

Well... MoM is a magnificent game, but can be a little discomforting if the Keeper pushes players too hard. I mean, both sides have to play for winning, but (you'll see) Mythos and Trauma cards can be quite brutal. Let me make you an example: being the Keeper during a game, I had the investigators trying to enter a bathroom to recover one of the clues. Without it, they couldn't go any further with the game.
I had Mythos and trauma and monsters sufficiently nasty that I forced them to stay 5 (or 6, don't remember) rounds in a row without being able to open that door and gather the clue. In this way, I easily won the Scenario.

Even if this kind of exploits are totally legal, my suggestion is to avoid doing this kind of things early in the game. Save those cards for the last rounds of the game, in order that your players can have some fun exploring the mansion, before being struck with inevitable madness

(I'm not saying don't push them. Push them. Just don't be a too hard at the beginning, in order they can enjoy the game as much as you do)

Hey - Thank you for a mature and open-ended response!!! Too bad about the trolls :-(

It seemed like the Keeper would usually need to alter playstyle and 'aggression' level according to the players, scenario and knowledge/skill level of all involved. I don't mind this as it seems like a good experience and if we really get into it then the cutthroat competition will come in time. Not that it's necessary, but those games can be great fun too if all are into it.

I'm looking forward to playing this weekend and hope to come back with some stories or at least a positive mention. It's such a lovely game; I realize how easy it would be to not like it after the money spent but as far as I see it - you get out of it what you put in... AFTER you actually purchase it. I'm excited to put more in... I just wish I had more game groups, more people available to play, and more time to meet up with them if they were available!

Never enough time.

Thanks again!

Hey Danger Nerd,

welcome to this forum and to the exciting gaming-worlds of FFG ...

As about the trolls ... Don' t brag on it; also there is at least some truth in what Mr. Trololo says, if he mentions that you will have to make your experiences and draw conclusions of the time. But that again is just something pretty regular, normal and very likely redundant information ...

Anyway: I would like to point you to this topic:

www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_foros_discusion.asp

Not, because I, too, have written something about the "how to" play the Keeper role, but because some a lot more MoM experienced gamers have shared some very interesting and imho important ideas about the role of the Keeper.

I stress this topic here, since you and Julia already spend some words on this topic. And I need to agree: Playing the Keeper too forcefully during the first rounds of the game might cripple the fun and especially drive of the other gamers.

But also one needs to consider that it really depends on the scenario as well as the individual Keeper's goal for a particular scenario you may face situations in which you cannot do a lot for a long time during the scenario, since you neither have creatures of darkness around nor the gamers move into rooms which are prerequisites for certain Mythos - and then the Trauma-Cards. During the few times I played MoM as keeper now I faced such a situation twice: sitting around and waiting ...

Another thing which really is a pain is the game set-up. Although the Investigator gamers build the Mansion and place some special items on it (like altairs, boxes, blocked doors), you still have so many more things to do. This takes time. Once I needed more then an hour to set it up ... So, when I decide to visit friends in order to play the game, I prepare a couple of things; this speeds up the situation, and still you need a lot more time for getting started - even compared with different other complex FFG like Arkham Horrors, Battlestar Galactica and other games ...

Anyway: Am looking forward to seeing more activity about you, too, on this forum.

All the best!

Mad

I had read a lot of that post a month or so ago and it was good to revisit it now that I have played a few times.

I like to keep the game as tense, dark, and 'too-close-to-call' as I possibly can (playing the Keeper)... no picking on people unless it seems right in thematically correct (i.e. one player is doing REALLY well), balancing powers with gentle guidance if needed and making sure everyone is having a good time.

More than anything it is cool to read how people accomplish this balance without breaking the immersion and theme going on once the game gets rolling. I don't want it to seem like I’m doing anything other than playing along and fighting tooth-and-nail along with them.

Thanks for the link and additional conversation. (although the one poster above should not be defended... their post was pointless, rude and already obvious... thus the posting of it is merely self-interested need for attention and not really something to defend or encourage). Every post / question here could be answered with - 'figure it out for yourself'... despite the fact that those answers are in direct conflict with even the definition of 'community'. Apologies for the rant; however, that behavior just has no place and until people refuse to allow it that will be the prevailing sentiment on the internet - anonymous, aggressive, and appealing to the lowest common denominator).

Cheers

Hi there.

About Mr tenandahalf Words I did not aim at defending him - especially as I agree with you about the conflict between of "community" and "less then eleven words-redundancies .... And also there is no need to apology for a rant, which is none, unless you make a valid point a rant, in which case I would accept the apology anyway ...

Since you have already gathered a couple of experiences with MoM, would you mind sharing some of your clues you drew from gaming?

All the best!

Mad

Lol, am I troll?

I figured everything for my self with time and experience. Thought that overloading someone, unfamiliar with the game itself, with deeper houserules and tricks would be too much and question of a taste. Suggested the same for you, and you consider me trolling? What's wrong with this world.

MyNeighbourTrololo said:

Actually you make some valid point over there (highlighted stuff). Probably it is just a huge misunderstanding about your advice to experience things as time goes by.

And no, there is nothing wrong with this world. I assume that different forum experiences lead to different conclusions regarding forum-postings and the way to read and understand them. Consider it just a real-life measurement of loosing sanity ... *giggle*

That you are "kind of a trol" may be true; just take a look at your forum-name which contains "Trol" in it ... *lol - and just kidding* I did not mean to offend anyone anyway ...

All the best!

Mad

Oh yeah, I forgot everybody by default thinks I'm a troll , just from looking at my nickname, and very rarely catches the movie reference.

MyNeighbourTrololo said:

Again: Didn't mean to cross lines; please accept my apologies.

Movie Reference? Which one?

All the best!

Mad

I guess it's Hayao Miyazaki's My Neighbour Totoro, one of the most poetic movies of all times. It's worth noticing that "Totoro" was switched in "Trololo", which is similar in sound, but also contains the root TROLL ::laughter::

Danger Nerd said:

Yeah, you hit perfectly the point. In such a game, the most important thing is to have fun together. You can push your players a little more every round, building a crescendo leading to a grand finale. This can be a little risky for the keeper (maybe) but then you'll have all your friends enthusiastic of the game (regardless of the result).

As soon as your group becomes more experienced, then you can start pushing harder.

Besides, some of the Scenarios are a little easier then others. You could possibly consider starting from the first one (IIRC): it's kinda short (only three clues to be found), leaving more time to your friends for learning the rules and practicing the basics

Julia said:

Thank you very much. Yeah, that is what I found via ixquick/ google-fu/ wikipedia; but back then I did not think that MyNeighbourTrololo referred to that specific movie; I haven't watched it, but will do soon, I guess ...

All the best!

Mad

Hi Danger Nerd,

I have found having the game ready to go when your friends get there to be really helpful. It also allows you to study the scenario ahead of time to better understand the flow and theme without the pressure of keeping your friends waiting (I have my kids help me set it up the night before, they seem to enjoy it). It is important to identify any game breaking issues ahead of time and be ready to improvise as needed. The forum is a good place to preview scenario issues ahead of time. Here are a few thoughts...

1) Remind players to remember that their characters have special abilities (easy to forget while playing)

2) Read the errata for the game. (e.g. Named monsters can not be killed by a characters special ability, cost me a game)

3) Just because one side can not achieve its objective does not mean they can not win. The final event card can assign victory to one side or the other even if a side has not achieved its victory condition. This occurred in a game of 'Til death do us part' where the investigators knew the final objective and felt they could not win but would prevent the keeper (me) from winning by denying the keeper their victory condition (hence forcing a draw). The final event card assigned the victory to the keeper (as was appropriate for the theme of the scenario). If the players are not aware of this they will feel cheated by it. (even despite several "sure thats a good idea?" statements).

4) One strategy is to weaken but not kill the investigators until death is permanent, it is effective but can be a little bit of a let down if they know you are not really going to kill them. If you get a chance to kill an investigator early in the game consider taking one of them out - adds excitement without giving them a huge setback (as they get a new investigator).

5) There is an optional rule about extending the game length. Think hard on that one, and decide on using it before the game starts if you feel it would make for a better experience and let the players know up front the game has variable length. In general the clues about the game are all there in some form or another (clue cards, prolog etc) about how the game will play out. Less experienced players may not pick up on them as fast and a tight time limit may be harder on those players.

I posted a similar list on another post that may be of interest to you.

http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_foros_discusion.asp?efid=208&efcid=1&efidt=557152&efpag=0#557544

best of luck,

John