15 May 2007

Dr Quantum and the Illuminati

We played a game of Spirit of the Century last night. It went well, and I can see why the game has such a reputation.

My preparation comprised basically just noting down a few random ideas for a plot inspired by some of the character aspects, and this was plenty. In fact, I had to cut the final scenes short as we were in danger of running over time.

No more detailed issues came up - it's clear that the first few sessions will be slower, as people get a handle on how aspects work and what their stunts do. I expect that each following one will go notably smoother.

3 comments:

Jason Pollock said...

I think it played really well, and I had a great time. :)

I think that a lot of games have the same problems. They frequently come down to a physical contest between individuals. It's simplest and fastest. However, my character just isn't the physical type. I mean, how often do you need to dodge a falling crocodile?

In this game, I'd say "At least once per session..." :)

Jason

Unknown said...

I'm not sure that the physical contest thing was really a problem. I mean, those crocodiles rolled the best possible result on Dr Quantum.

Your non-combat stunts and skills came into the story pretty often as well. Recall that the Illuminati were ultimately defeated by deception and confusion that you guys all sowed (even Sarge Slaughter refrained from ripping their heads off during the conclave).

Anonymous said...

IMO, despite being a pulp RPG where things are solved with two fists flying, SotC is one RPG that really gives equal preference to whatever method a player decides to employ to resolve a situation; be it combat or some other way.

It does this by giving all skills and Aspects equal mechanical impact.

On a related note, I went into this in more detail here: http://community.livejournal.com/gametime/7355.html where I discussed how SotC didn't give an "attack" anywhere as near as much weight over another physical (or even social or mental) action in combat, compared to most other RPGs.

Once you get a grip on declarations, assessments and maneuvres (as well as social combat), there is a lot of influence a PC may have outside of simply attacking :)