From the front page annoucement…

http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_news.asp?eidn=3775

So, what does everyone think about the new PC backgrounds mechanic/option that's included with the game?

I personally think it's a great idea, and is the most elaborate narrative/roleplay focused idea I've seen for a WFRP3 product yet.

I'm thinking that half of my players will probably continue to play their current characters for this new campaign, but the other half are gonna love the ability to tie their new character's backgrounds so closely to the plot.

The preview's art misses the mak for me a bit, but I really like the mechanics presented. This is easily the kind of thing I'd expand for future characters beyond the campaign.

Hi,

Liking it alot.

One of the issues i have had with pre gen pcs is that despite the attatchment to the story it can leave players underwhelmed with the character they are given. This option gives all the goodness of a story motivated backround and relative freedom to generate a character that they are inspired to play.

Now to continue with the painful waiting bit….

I agree that some of the art while really good does not feel like warhammer. I like the backgrounds! They have a lot of potential. I love how this game continues to add additonal roleplaying elemements.

This isn't a bad start and should help players who need a little help in the originality department come up with more ideas, but it looks like a direct ripoff of the 5th Edition of Dungeons & Dragons playtest and there's not enough "Warhammer" fluff indicated in connection to make the cruch serve any purpose other than just more stat modification for the sake of stat modification.

Without knowing more about this "connection to the NPCs of Averheim," it's appears as just another layer of accounting mechanics added to the game. Would a Warhammer fan such as Mr. Davis really add these statistics without any connection to "the world?". We'll see if it can be expanded on or if it's just another leftover from their boardgame department. It had better not be just lame character power-escalation with 3 sentences of text on the other side, or I'm likely to throw a temper tantrum and stomp my feet on the ground

jh

Emirikol said:

There seems to be plenty of "Warhammer fluff" on the background cards. Look at the example below:

There's clear names of various noble families and locations that are all directly tied to the campaigns people and places. Try reading through the other examples again….seems as if you just skimmed over them.

That's what I was hoping for.

We'll have to see what we can do with the mechanic to make it portable to other campaigns as well.

jh

This looks rather brilliant actually.

The stat side gives you enough of a benefit so it is valuable but not massive. Something to urge people to spend some time to consider thier characters background a bit more. The fluffy back side is really nice though as it throws some names, places and questions at the player to get them thinking a bit about their character and the greater city and its inhabitance around them.

Seems pretty good to me. Would be neat to see more, but I think GMs will have to fill in the fluffy sides themselves.

I like anything to try and "trick" players into thinking about character backgrounds, personalities and their place in the greater game world. Probably because I play with too many people who don't, so maybe others have no need.

The background options are nice, the mechanics that come with them are totally unnecessary. An option could be to use the fluff without the mechanic component.

These cards look very good but with one major negative. They give bonuses to characters who use them, but there is no negative side apart from a limitation on which character classes can use them.

I may use these these in my Grunburg fan supplement, but the fluff on the back will be the negative to the front sides positive. Rather than aerie-fairy possibilities, there will be actual ties to one or more of the towns inhabitants which will place the PC under certain obligations while they are in town.

Nice idea though, but not thought through completely.

I think having associations and connections that tie the player to major NPCs and ropes them in to pursue the adventure may turn out punishment enough .

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The bonus is only at character creation and once per session, doesnt sound too game breaking. People will have to calculate whether to use it or save it.

Am trying to work my head around a dwarven Bureacrat/Noble Gently born having a relation propose to a human. It could happen, I have a good idea for that.

Funny thing would be the outcast being family member who became a troll slayer due to the last bit, You've heard rumours that the Outcast……

Does anyone remeber that the Dwarf Agent from "Journey to Blackfire Pass" was actually serving an Averland house which have fallen into ruin?

Also in the Box about the Dwarfs there are some sentences about Averland in turmoil of the absent Elector Count. So all in all with each and every new adventure and box the metaplot of the 3rd Edition comes clearer and clearer.

It starts with Reikdorf/Übersreik and then goes to Edge of Night where the Orks around the Grey mountains are mentioned and that they are gathering, then this culminates into Heros Call with the Waaagh.

If someday my PCs will finish 3rd Edition and TEW 2.0 then the 2nd Edition after the Storm will follow absolutely naturally.

So I'm quite excited if Forgeworld will release its supplement if we will see some actors who will have a reapearance in TEW as the Battle for Blackfire Pass has happened zwo years earlier.

Daedalum said:

+1

I hope that Connections & Motivations will be used in the adventure's plot also in a bad way for Players just to raise the tension in a group

Hi,

I've got to say the bonuses on the backround cards with no negative mechanics arent too much of an issue to me. Its way more important that the fluffy stuff on the back be relevant to the plot. If these details improve the fun and flow of the adventure then its still a win, I only hope its not left to us GMs to do everything to involve these pc/npcs plot threads.

In terms of having extra mechanics to track, the players should be able to track the extras for their characters pretty easily. And hey if its not working for your group, ditch them…

I like the idea immensely and it's getting me stoked.

My last non-WFRP campaign used character creation process that saw each Player have to create two sorts of connections/linked interests with other PC's and then two to NPC's. That sort of "common/conflicting" interests web can drive a campaign right there never mind any other plot. It can provide grist for situations meriting fortune and misfortune dice too.

I will be interested to see what other rules exist around these features (e.g., are they a permanent bump up at start or is there a balance). It doesn't look like too much of a bump up, and starting characters really don't need one in my view. I would make it all be roleplayed in any case. The gently born doesn't get to swap out those dice without roleplaying how their background accomplishes it.

Rob

It's funny that they make such a point about it all being optional, because when I present it to my players, I'm going to tell them how manditory it is.

Well, the mechanical bonus is sadly a bit of a bribe I think, kind of a "yes you can have the nummy carrot, but first you need to put a little effort into your character amd background for Mr. GM." As pathetic as that may sound a lot of the people I play with need some kind of device like this to get them thinking about their characters.

I dont think any tool to encourage players to get more involved with the game and thier character is bad.

Good point Badger, some players need to be "encouraged" (bribed) to do this stuff. Though in long run I don't enjoy running games where those are the majority. I can have about 33% "ride along, pure reactive, don't contribute input to story" at table but over that and it becomes "not fun" for me.

BTW, I am still finding when I mouseover the post editing functions (font size etc.) that they appear in Spanish (tried on two different computers)

I think these background cards are great. They provide fantastic story hooks for the PCs. There is no way for the PCs to know in advance what NPCs will be involved with an adventure and these background cards give them story hooks so that when they meet these NPCs they have some history. If these NPCs are involved in the stories, as it sounds like they will be, then these cards will add a lot of depth.

Looks great, hard to say if it works great. That depends on the rest of the campaign I guess. If they help the PC's get invested in the campaign in a good way it can be great. If it only feels forced (i.e. "I'll go talk to this person on my background-card because we have nothing else to do"). The bonuses seems to be nice and not game breaking, once per session stuff seldom breaks the game. The players in my group needs all the help they can get so this will be a nice addition and I think they'll be all over the cards when we start TEW.

Only thing I see as that might be an issue with these cards at this point is that 6 different backgrounds are quite few, and I feel that the re-usability of the cards is quite low. Use them once (we are 4-5 players) and almost all of them have been used. It is enough that one or two characters die and you have to start re-using cards or create a character without a card, that might feel boring.

Lastly, it's nice to get a "real" update about TEW at last.

valvorik said:

I normally only post from a tablet, so don't notice mouse overs. On the PC now and all my mouse overs for the post formatting is in a foriegn language too.

Doc, the Weasel said:

]

Same here !

JH

DevoutBadger said:

I have emailed tech support about that, for me it's Spanish and doesn't matter what PC or IP address I'm on. Unless Spain just annexed Canada, something is up.

valvorik said:

..still so insulated

Yes, I'm getting the same thing. Esta kinda' fun'a using'a de language-o' por el RPG supposedly-a set-a en de Germany de old-o'. They could have at least-o put it in German. Then we'd be onto something!

jh