Daggerheart: Broken Lands - 7

Hello, dear reader. This is where I would normally spend half a page describing what’s going on. But the wolves are at the door and the action is pending, so join me at the end, and enjoy.

GM: Howls echo and thumps can be heard against the doors. Does anyone do anything other than scramble around to fetch their gear? [Everyone shakes their heads] Cool, then I’ll take the spotlight to start things off.

The howling intensifies and as lightning illuminates the storm outside a huge wolf crashes against the window, causing the wood and glass frame to shake. It scrambles and scratches at the window. The door shakes again, starting to push open.

To decide who starts off the combat we perform a Spotlight Check (see part 5). [3] – Kpeshyo will take the spotlight to begin.

Kpeshyo: We have to stop them getting in. You said that the common room has a couple of long tables? I attempt to tip one over, shouting at Su to help me.

GM: Su’s hefty as well. Grumbling but moving quickly, they put their shoulder to it, and together you go to tip and move the table. Make a Strength Check. Su’s help lets you roll with Advantage.

Kpeshyo: I roll a 20 with Fear, and the table tips with a crash. Su and I push it up against the door.

GM: Chyitshaa shouts to be careful as it scrapes along the floor. You both shove it against the door, barricading it and effectively stopping the creatures from getting in that way.

Nyĩt, from outside you hear the cackling call of Si̊nhĩ. You recognise the tone, he’s warning you of something.

Nyĩt: How many wolves do I think are outside at the moment?

GM: By the howling and the thumps, you think there might be two.

Nyĩt: There were more than two when I was scouting. I turn and make for the fireplace again.

Sha’nesh: What is it with you and fireplaces?

Nyĩt: Do you want me to open a door or window and go out that way?

GM: I’ll remind you, it’s still on fire. And there’s a storm out there. If you’re doing this it’s going to be an Agility roll vs 15 and cost 1 Stress. You’re not on Si̊nhĩ any more.

Nyĩt: I’ll pay the cost and do it. [Rolls]. Oh. With everything added up that’s an 8. With Fear. I guess I don’t get out.

GM: Oh no, that’s far too simple. You get to leave, but there are two consequences. One, as you’re exiting the chimney Si̊nhĩ is buffeted by the storm and sent crashing down into the ground below. He’s fine but he’s out of reach and having issues getting airborne. No relying on Si̊nhĩ for now. Even more fun, I also spend one Fear and downstairs, Paas̊h is trying to get the shutters closed.

Kpeshyo: No, you idiot, get away from the windows!

GM: Good instinct, but too late. The wolves come through the window, crashing through on each side. They’re going to attack Paas̊h, with one lunging at him for a paw swipe and the other snapping, using Pack Tactics to try and take him down. Chyitshaa screams at him to get away. Things aren’t going to go well for him.

Kpeshyo: We get reactions right?

Sha’nesh: [At the same time] We can respond?

GM: You can. It’s an action roll but you don’t gain Hope or give me Fear and you can’t get help from allies.

Kpeshyo: Okay, then I’m going to try and block the attack.

Sha’nesh: And I’m trying to pull Paas̊h out of the way.

GM: Strength reaction for Kpeshyo and Agility for Sha’nesh.

Kpeshyo: I succeed. I get in there between the wolves and Paas̊h

Sha’nesh: Meanwhile I grab Paas̊h and shove him back out of the way.

GM: While Sha’nesh yanks Paas̊h clear and pushes him over to Chyitshaa, Kpeshyo gets between the pair of wolves with her shield. Chyitshaa grabs Paas̊h and pulls him behind the counter. Su grabs a chair and stands guard near them, looking terrified.

Hey Nyĩt, you’re outside now, up in the air being buffeted by the storm. You see a wolf, solitary and split from the pack, it’s scrambling along the barn roof and is using it as leverage to get up onto the inn roof.

Nyĩt: What are you up to, fella? Why have you split from your pack and where’s your red-eyed friend? I shake my head, it doesn’t matter. I stay up high, keeping out of reach and attempt to shoot it with my short bow.

GM: You’re rolling with Disadvantage thanks to the storm.

Nyĩt: Yeah, figures. Alright, that’s… [rolls] 3. It was a Failure with Fear.

GM: Wind sends the arrow spiralling nowhere near the wolf who has scrambled up onto the inn roof. Even worse, the wind drives you down crashing into the roof near it. I spend the Fear you just gave me to have the wolf on you, snapping and snarling.

Sha’nesh: It’s not worth it, she’s tiny. Barely a snack!

GM: The wolf attacks but its jaws snap shut inches from you. Enemy attacks are different. They roll a D20 against your evasion. A roll of 5 is nowhere near close enough.

Nyĩt: I’m scrambling backwards along the roof keeping clear of its jaws.

GM: Back in the common room Kpeshyo, you’re facing down the other two wolves. There is a bit of a gap between you and Sha’nesh.

Kpeshyo: I have an axe and I’m not afraid to use it. [rolls] But with a Failure with Fear, I’m not doing anything good with it either.

GM: You’re trying your best. Unfortunately, the wolf slinks lower as it sees the flashing metal and your axe sails over it. It’ll respond with its own attack, but misses. However this gives the second wolf the chance to get right in close and they’re able to deploy Pack Tactics. I’ll spend a Fear and have the second wolf attack. It succeeds, keeping you boxed in, and manages Minor Damage.

Kpeshyo: My armour absorbs that, so no HP damage.

GM: As I’ve gained quite a bit of Fear I’m going to keep pushing. Two Fear spent, two more attacks, two more hits. They’re driving you back against the wall, the wind and rain lashing at you from the broken window. Both of them manage to land Major Damage on you.

Kpeshyo: My armour is able to absorb some of it, but I still end up taking 2 HP. I’m feeling a little hemmed in here!

Sha’nesh: As this is happening I get increasingly panicked. Kpeshyo is being forced back and I don’t like seeing her hurt. So one of the wolves will have a shadow rise up behind it as I lift a chair and bring it down hard!

Kpeshyo: You have a rapier!

Sha’nesh: I’m not thinking this through! You’re being mauled!

GM: Okay. The rules are a bit vague about improvised weapons. A chair is unwieldy but I’ll go with finesse and say that the chair is a 1D4+1 weapon, similar to what a Merchant NPC with a club would do.

Nyĩt: OH MY GOD! IT’S SHA’NESH WITH A CHAIR, CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!

Sha’nesh: [Rolling his eyes at Nyĩt]. I bring the chair down hard to bash the wolf away from ‘Pesh. I hit, with Hope! And I get maximum damage on my damage roll!

GM: The wolf goes tumbling to the side. You’ve broken Pack Tactics and are now back to back with ‘Pesh, a wolf on either side. The chair has shattered in your hands with a splintering crack and Chyitshaa moans a bit, still clutching Paas̊h to her.

Kpeshyo: Hang on, "‘Pesh"?

Sha’nesh: I don’t know, Kpeshyo feels like a mouthful every time I say it.

Nyĩt: Oh yeah, they’re doing it again, aren’t they. In the middle of combat too, right when I’m having to backpedal and stop a wolf from chowing down on me. Fuck that, I roll forward into the wolf. I remember I’ve got a weapon and stab up with my short sword. I hit with Hope (hope that they remember they’re in mortal danger) and manage a whole 1 on my damage roll.

GM: That’s still Minor Damage.

Nyĩt: I press the advantage and keep attacking. The wolf was trying to get across the roof so I’m trying to force it back in the other direction. Success with Fear… and the GM has just started grinning. I don’t like that grin. I don’t like how much Fear we’re feeding them…

[Nyĩt taps the table]

I’m going to use Luckbender to reroll.

Kpeshyo: Are you sure you want to waste that on a success?

GM: Oh it’s fine, I’m only up to a pool of 8 Fear. Now might be a good time to reveal a six-step countdown. ‘Roof wolf reaches its target.’

Nyĩt: I knew it! I knew there was something up with this wolf. I’m definitely using it. Oh for… 3 Hope spent and I succeed with Fear again. I slash at it and hit. At least I rolled well on damage, getting an 8.

GM: That does 2 HP of damage. A solid hit that leaves the wolf with 1 HP of damage. The wolf utters a loud whining sound and scrambles on the slick roof. With the Spotlight coming to me, the wolf breaks away and starts running for its target. I’m going to spend 2 more Fear and it will be off. The countdown ticks down to four of six. Meanwhile, inside…?

Sha’nesh: A bit embarrassed, I ditch the broken remnants of the chair and pull out my rapier. With my back against ‘Pesh… Kpeshyo... I stab forward into the wolf facing me. 21 with Hope and a 1 for Minor Damage.

Kpeshyo: I’m hurt, I’m angry. Sha’nesh is being weird. I yell and with a savage throw send my axe arcing around us and spinning through both wolves. That’s 1 Hope to get a bonus using my ‘but not today’ Expertise along with 1 Stress to let Spirit Weapon target a second enemy. 13 with Fear. I get 7 Magic Damage to one and 6 to the other.

GM: The wolf facing Sha’nesh is just about to lunge into him when it’s stabbed by the rapier, followed by the axe strike. It falls, blood spreading from it into the wooden floor of the inn. The second wolf takes 2 HP from the axe as well and is standing shakily and hurt, growling in fear and shying away.

With the Fear I just gained I shift focus again outside and advance the countdown as the wolf runs. The countdown is now at three of six.

Nyĩt: At this point can I please get Si̊nhĩ back? I want to spend my last Hope on his ‘precision hunter’ to go after the wolf.

GM: That’s fair. The penalty for the failed roll at the start of this has more than expired. And with a Hope spend I can hardly say no. Make an Agility roll.

Nyĩt: I whistle for Si̊nhĩ and give chase, leaping onto his back as we take off low over the roof. Agility is… a Success with Fear. This is ridiculous.

GM: You manage to set back the countdown one step, bringing it back up to four of six. And with the Fear, we’re back inside and the last wolf will charge past ‘Pesh… I’ll ignore that look… and it will attack Sha’nesh, who it sees as the weaker target.

Sha’nesh: Hey!

GM: It bites in, and its jaws close around your arm for Minor Physical Damage.

Sha’nesh: My armour will soak the damage, and I’ll respond with my rapier. ‘Weaker target…’ phah. I get… a Success with Fear.

GM: You shake it off and stab it in response, giving it Minor Physical Damage and leaving it on its last HP. Back outside, Nyĩt is gaining on the wolf as it scrambles over the rain slicked roof, it glances back and redoubles its efforts. I’m going to blow two more Fear and get the countdown to two. It’s clearly aiming for the balcony that gives access to the first floor guest rooms.

Nyĩt: No, that’s it. I’m as done as Kpeshyo was earlier. I hold out my hands and the light of the Shimmer swells and curls around me. From the wooden beams supporting the roof branches spring to life and wrap around the wolf. I get… a Success with Hope and they catch the wolf, wrapping around it.

GM: It’s caught in the vine's grip and there is a snapping sound of bones breaking. Then it goes limp. From the room below the familiar voices of the Fauns from earlier give startled cries as the beam above them warps slightly.

Nyĩt: Oh, shit! They were after Shůůkcha or one of the others, trying to finish the job!

GM: That’s certainly a supposition that you can make. Downstairs there is one wolf left. I’m going to spend a Fear and say that the final wolf is bolting out the window, effectively ending the fight.

Kpeshyo: Like hell it does! My axe flies after it. It tried to maul Sha’nesh. I get a 21 with Fear, and get 7 on the damage roll.

GM: A Major Hit and the wolf goes down. I’ll take that Fear into my reserves for next time I need a nice big fear pool. Silence descends in the common room, except for a sudden startled yell from upstairs and the creaking of wooden beams.

That was exciting, wasn’t it? A fight, and more. So now is the part where we peek behind the curtains. In the past, I’ve delayed the action for a half a page getting into things. From now on, this end part will describe what’s going on beyond the Shimmer.

So what was this fight? In Daggerheart the advice is to design an encounter around the party’s value in battle points, and the GM is given a nice equation with which to estimate that value. Our three friends come in with a score of eleven, and the encounter had a value of six. This is the first combat, after all. I chose three Dire-Wolf skulks. A simple fight considering the party’s abilities, but not one without drama. And whatever happened to that red-eyed shade?

The combat was played in the form of “theatre of the mind.” In this case, very much so. There was no battle map, just the player and GM’s image of what the landscape looks like. The writer has a real advantage here, the GM and the players are all on the same page by definition. At the real table you could probably expect a lot more back and forth as everyone sets the scene.

And what's going on with the combat flow? It was all very dramatic and all, but who goes when? What was all this Spotlight and Fear talk?

Well dear reader, Daggerheart doesn’t believe in being orderly. No, instead the players get to pass the spotlight around and look as cool as they want, and the GM doesn’t get a say. At least, unless they fail. Or roll with Fear. At that point the GM gets to take the spotlight and act. Alternatively, the GM can choose to spend some of their Fear pool to take an action or showcase an enemy.

But what’s to stop the GM with a large Fear pool just decimating a character? Acting over and over again until a character is dead? Nothing, technically. But then, there’s nothing to stop the GM declaring that rocks fall and everyone dies, or that there’s a bomb in the organ while the character is playing La Cucaracha.

What stops the GM in some games is a rigid structure of turn order, cause and effect. But in a narrative game like Daggerheart, it’s the story, drama and GM principles and best practices. The GM and players are storytellers. All of the principles are important, but I feel that this principle cuts to the core. Gain your players’ trust. If the players don’t trust you, you won’t have players for long, and you won’t have a game. The players trust that you will use your resources in service of a fun and exciting story.

I hope that I was able to showcase this, and that you are excited to see the fallout in the next instalment as Broken Lands moves to session two.