[19:09] <+Stewart> Raphael, please intro Hellywood.
[19:10] <+RaphaelAndere> Well… Hellywood is a noir tabletop rpg with a fantastic touch
[19:11] <+Stewart> For my part… I’m Stewart Wieck. I founded White Wolf in 1986 to publish White Wolf Magazine. In 1991 I co-created and published Vampire: The Masquerade and the World of Darkness was born. I owned WW for a total of 20 years before selling to Icelandic company CCP (creators of EVE Online).
[19:11] <+Stewart> Since then I founded Nocturnal Media where one of my main objectives is to publish great European games in English.
[19:12] <+Stewart> Hellywood is the second such game that is actively scheduled for release.
[19:12] <+RaphaelAndere> it comes from our love of Raymond Chandler’s books as well as James Ellroy’s or Dennis Lehane’s work, or Frank Miller’s Sin City
[19:12] <+Stewart> Hellywood is set in 1949 California. A fictional city called Heaven Harbor that’s nicknamed Hellywood.
[19:12] <+Stewart> That’s plenty for me to start.
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[19:13] <+Stewart> bingo!
[19:13] <~Dan> Welcome to #rpgnet, Emmanuel!
[19:13] <+RaphaelAndere> bonsoir emmanuel
[19:14] <+Stewart> Hello Emmanuel.
[19:14] <+RaphaelAndere> godfather in the place
[19:14] <~Dan> Emmanuel: Your friends were just introducing themselves and Hellywood. Would you like to introduce yourself? 🙂
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[19:15] <~Dan> (Howdy, DaneAsmund!)
[19:16] <+DaneAsmund> (Hey! You can mostly ignore me tonight, here to listen in : ) )
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[19:16] <+Catseye> Stewart: So you are to blame for unleashing that absomination upon the world! I kid. I’ve spoken to Mark Rein-Hagan as well.
[19:16] <~Dan> Oh dear.
[19:16] <+Max_MoscowGM> (Wow,that Stewart Wieck. I chose the night wisely)
[19:16] <+Stewart> Ah well, I bet I can say more good things about the abomination than you can bad…!
[19:17] <+Stewart> Thanks, Max.
[19:17] <+DaneAsmund> (Oh I came in on an abomination?)
[19:17] <+Catseye> Stewart: I used to be a pretty dedicated WOD follower.
[19:17] <~Dan> Heh. Stewart here is the founder of White Wolf. 🙂
[19:17] <~Dan> So this is a noir game. What does that mean to you guys?
[19:18] <+RaphaelAndere> us guys ? or you guys ?
[19:18] <~Dan> You, our guests. 🙂
[19:18] <+Stewart> Hellywood is a city of greed, violence, corruption and all the little people who powerlessly get caught up in events they cannot control or fully understand.
[19:18] <+RaphaelAndere> well im a huge fan of this genre obv
[19:19] <+Stewart> Thanks, Catseye. I hope you still enjoy WoD.
[19:19] <+Catseye> Most of my commentary is very tongue in cheek. So no offense meant.
[19:20] <+Stewart> In the case of Hellywood, the game is noir plus a splash of supernatural.
[19:20] <+RaphaelAndere> for me a noir novel is like a mistery novel but more complex and with more grit and more desperation
[19:20] <+Ismellzombies> That art is brilliant
[19:20] <~Dan> How much of a splash? How obvious is the supernatural? Is it in the opoen or hidden?
[19:20] <+Abstruse> The name “Hellywood” seems to imply a tie to the entertainment industry. Is that a big part of the setting, the sort of celebrity-focused nature that started rising up in the 40s in LA?
[19:20] <+Stewart> It’s set in 1949, but in 1942 there was a “Day of Ashes” when supernatural creatures entered the city.
[19:21] <+SirGene> Is there a link to Kickstater or somewhere else on the game yet?
[19:21] <~Dan> (Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1861515217/hellywood-a-noir-tabletop-rpg?ref=nav_search)https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1861515217/hellywood-a-noir-tabletop-rpg?ref=nav_search
[19:21] <+RaphaelAndere> dan i’d say not open but not hidden
[19:21] <+Stewart> Abstruse, I think it’s most to communicate the California setting and supernatural elements.
[19:22] <+RaphaelAndere> for instance there are “supernatural people”but they’re not changing the world, just making it a bit weirder
[19:22] <+RaphaelAndere> (Emmanuel has connection issues he’s trying to fix as we speak)
[19:22] <+Abstruse> What sort of supernatural elements exactly?
[19:22] <+Stewart> There are not “demons” per se, but there are creatures… playable as PC creatures, which is of course something I hold dear… living in the city.
[19:22] <+Catseye> Stewart: To tell you the truth. My WOD days are over. I was alienated by the creative direction that the Revised era took. But I still see a great deal of potential in the WOD properties. However. Not in the hands of the authors whose material I clashed with.
[19:24] <+RaphaelAndere> like stewart said “creatures”, and also more supernatural things that do not live in this reality but can interact with it
[19:24] <~Dan> Man, I have to agree with Ismellzombies… The art is stunning.
[19:24] <+Stewart> You can play as a golem, succubus. seraphin or possessed.
[19:24] <+Eainix> is there any magic in this setting?
[19:24] <+Stewart> The art definitely evokes the setting.
[19:24] <+RaphaelAndere> magic = dealing with the things on the other side
[19:25] <+Eainix> so no direct “spellcasting” or “sorcerous” magic per se
[19:25] <+RaphaelAndere> definitly no fireball
[19:25] <+Ismellzombies> Who is the artist* *my question mark is broken
[19:26] <+Stewart> The magic is very subtle, but it’s very present.
[19:26] <+RaphaelAndere> but you can go to a shady place talk to a shady guy who can get you something out of the realm of “plausible”
[19:26] <~Dan> What sorts of things can magic accomplish in the setting?
[19:26] <+Stewart> For instance, there is a character “Nature” called Already Dead. So you can be beat to a pulp (as often happens in noir…) but you can’t actually die (again).
[19:27] <+RaphaelAndere> dan my answer would be : whatever the game master (or voice over) thinks is fit for his session
[19:28] <+Abstruse> What’s the adventuring paradigm?
[19:28] <+Stewart> I think that like Mage: The Ascension, magic in Hellywood is a powerful narrative tool.
[19:28] <+RaphaelAndere> fantastic can be used as a narrative trick to make impossiblethings happen
[19:28] <~Dan> So there aren’t actually rules for spellcasting? It’s more like GM fiat?
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[19:28] <~Dan> (Welcome back, EmmanuelGharbi! 🙂 )
[19:29] <+RaphaelAndere> no rule for spellcasting but rules for negotiating with the “other side”
[19:29] <~Dan> Ah, I see.
[19:29] <+RaphaelAndere> welcome manu
[19:29] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Hello ! I am so sorry ! Internet was down
[19:29] <+Catseye> is there a metaplot?
[19:29] <~Dan> No problem!
[19:29] <+Stewart> The scenarios are all very hardboiled/noir.
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[19:30] <~Dan> How does something like a golem or a horn-headed succubus interact with human society?
[19:30] <+Stewart> Catseye, yes and no. The only setting for the game is the single city of Heaven Harbor, so to the extent that the city is extremely detailed, there is a built-in plot.
[19:30] <+Eainix> so highly detailed setting that you can tool around in
[19:30] <+RaphaelAndere> abstruse the advernture paradigm would be something like : a guy/girl sends you on an investigation that reveals to be something else, that reveals to be something big, and you end up fighting against major forces (human or otherwise) that you cannot really beat
[19:31] <+Eainix> but nothing that’s going to lock you into going by a certain story set in place by the creators
[19:31] <+Stewart> Correct Eainix.
[19:31] <+Eainix> just the way I like it
[19:31] <+Eainix> lol
[19:31] <+Stewart> Heaven Harbor is a huge sandbox.
[19:31] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Yes. you can pick what you like in the setting
[19:32] <+RaphaelAndere> usually you play a private eye but you can also play a ganster or a (corrupt) cop
[19:32] <+Stewart> The first thing the translator said to me was his surprise at the detail provided.
[19:33] <+EmmanuelGharbi> We tried to describe Heaven Harbor thoroughly. Then the Voice Over (game master) ca pick up a neighborhood, some npcs, and run a story
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[19:33] <~Dan> Did my question get lost in the shuffle? 🙂
[19:33] <+JamesGillen> ey
[19:33] <~Dan> (Howdy, JamesGillen!)
[19:33] <+Stewart> The so-called “hornheads” (the name given to the creatures that arrived on the Day of Ashes) have largely blended into the fabric of the city.
[19:33] <~Dan> (Ah, there we go. Thanks! 🙂 )
[19:33] <+Stewart> Is that the answer you needed, Dan?
[19:34] <+RaphaelAndere> “justice of angels”, the campaign, is a 1-year story that shakes the world of Heaven Harbor a little, though
[19:34] <+SirGene> How are Characters Generated? Did I miss that?
[19:34] <~Dan> Are they able to disguise themselves, then?
[19:34] <+EmmanuelGharbi> They are clearly not welcomed in the city
[19:34] <+Stewart> Character creation is a pretty simple process.
[19:35] <+Stewart> You choose two Natures, spend some points on Backgrounds, then allocate for Attributes and Skills.
[19:35] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Succubs could disguise, regarding what features they have, for the others it is difficult
[19:35] <+RaphaelAndere> some hornheads (succubus, possessed) can pass as humans, some cannot (golem, seraph)
[19:35] <+Stewart> Emmanuel or Raphael can correct me if I’m wrong… and as a whole believe what they tell you about the game over me…!
[19:35] <+Catseye> I felt that at the worst the WOD games during the Revised era were more designed for spectators. Rather than for player characters to actually be participants or stars of the show. I think it’s important that in RPG design that the role of the player characters in the story is never diminished.
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[19:36] <+JamesGillen> Hear hear
[19:36] <+RaphaelAndere> in hellywood im confident to say that the player character is the main character
[19:36] <+Stewart> That’s a great design imperative.
[19:36] <+EmmanuelGharbi> I don’t think the role ins diminished.
[19:36] <~Dan> How can players play something that can’t pass as human?
[19:37] <+EmmanuelGharbi> It is a challenge to play a hornhead, because it is, plainly, playing a pariah
[19:37] <+SirGene> Now is the is Translation of a French Game, or is it a redo into an American setting?
[19:37] <+RaphaelAndere> even if it’s noir, which means that the really bad guys usually win in the end, but the PC have a real influence in the story
[19:38] <~Dan> It’s an English translation of a French game, but I think it always had the U.S. setting.
[19:38] <+EmmanuelGharbi> you have to assume who you are. It is part of the pleasure of playing a hornhead. Some people will distrust you on sight.
[19:38] <+Stewart> We’re translating the French game as it exists now.
[19:38] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Yes, the setting was always set in the US
[19:39] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Well, what we know (and dream) of the US
[19:39] <+RaphaelAndere> dan hornheads are not welcomed, they’re segregated, but everybody know they exist and they’re not killed on sight
[19:39] <+Stewart> “Noir” has got to be in California, right…!?
[19:39] <+SirGene> I was wondering. I guess if you want to tie in the Hollywood theme it has to be a US Setting. Although I understand they make movies in France!
[19:39] <+Abstruse> Noir, to me, has always been about the small victories. You’ll never beat the corrupt system, but you CAN take down this one judge if you work for it. Cyberpunk’s kinda the same, now that I think about it…but would you say that’s accurate to this setting?
[19:39] <~Dan> EmmanuelGharbi: Well, let me rephrase: Does the average person know what a golem is?
[19:39] <+SirGene> Noir to me is just gritty and on the edge. Bogart type.
[19:39] <~Dan> Oh, n/m — you answered me while I was typing. 🙂
[19:40] <+RaphaelAndere> Heaven Harbor is a fictionnal city between San Francisco and Los Angeles, on the pacific coast
[19:40] <+Stewart> I think, yes, Dan. But the average person keeps his head down and trudges along through life.
[19:40] <+RaphaelAndere> abstruse you got it right !
[19:40] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Abstruse : you got it right, that’s the feeling of Hellywood. You can have victories. But the corriuption endures
[19:41] <+Stewart> SirGene, that’s a good question about the translation, and I want to say in general that my first priority is to be true to the original game.
[19:41] <+RaphaelAndere> (i swear Emmanuel and me are separate entities but on the other end we’ve spent a lot of time together on this game… 😉 )
[19:42] <+SirGene> I was just curious if the French version was set in say Paris or the Med or something. I think you could do this right in either of those settings, but maybe not with as much Hollywood.
[19:42] <+EmmanuelGharbi> SirGene : we have indeed in France a Noir tradition, in litterature or cinema (Jean-Pierre Melville for instance)
[19:42] <+Abstruse> How big is the city? I mean geographically, not necessarily how much is detailed in the book.
[19:43] <+RaphaelAndere> about as big as LA
[19:43] <+EmmanuelGharbi> But Heaven Harbor was a tribute to all the american cities that we have seen and dreamed of
[19:43] <~Dan> Can you tell us a bit about what makes each type of hornhead special?
[19:43] <+SirGene> I am not familiar with Jean Pierre, but I imagine France is a great setting for Noir fiction.
[19:44] <+RaphaelAndere> succubus is the ultimate femme fatale, with “supernatural” glamour
[19:44] <+Abstruse> What’s the game system like? The task resolution seems a little…non-traditional based on what’s shown on the Kickstarter.
[19:44] <+EmmanuelGharbi> That was a concern I shared with Stewart when we talked about the game : is our city too much of a phantasized version by two frenchies ?
[19:44] <+SirGene> I am working on a game where is it called Harbourburg, my west coast city. Everyone’s Second Favorite West Coast City. Like San Francisco and LA rolled together with a little Seatle on top for flavor.
[19:45] <+RaphaelAndere> golems are just like marv in sin city – big guys made of stone, usually employed as bodyguards or henchmen
[19:45] <~Dan> I love Marv. 🙂
[19:45] <+SirGene> Emmanuel – I think working in a Fantasy setting based on real cities is great.
[19:45] <+EmmanuelGharbi> HH is a mix between L.A, San Francisco and New York. Other fictionnal inspirations would be Isola (from Ed Mc Bain 87th District)
[19:46] <+Catseye> I like succubi. They have always been something close to my heart in a variety of RPGs.
[19:46] <+RaphaelAndere> seraphims (not sure about the english name) are fragile creatures with wings, that were made to be messengers in the other side
[19:46] <+SirGene> You can roll the best plot elements into from each and not be tied to too much real history. Especially if that is the limit of your characters environment.
[19:46] <+Stewart> The game mechanics are Craps-based. Roll 2d6, 7 or 11 you’re a winner.
[19:47] <+SirGene> So I can say “Oh Crap” most the game.
[19:47] <+Stewart> 2,3 or 12 (I think) a loser, and you fail the roll.
[19:47] <+Eainix> so what’s the in between stuff? It said on the kickstarter that it’s up to the GM, but is there any sort of guideline?
[19:47] <+Stewart> Anything else is what the rules call a “maybe” or “tell me more” and that’s where the narration really shines.
[19:47] <+RaphaelAndere> possessed are demons that took over cadavers and perverted it – they’re powerful since they’re still linked to the other side but nobody likes them
[19:48] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Your talents extend the range of success on the dice
[19:49] <+Catseye> I have to ask about the Possessed: What about them would actually work with a group of player characters?
[19:49] <~Dan> Seraphim are a type of angel. Are they generally “good guys” in this setting? Or does the name mean something else in this context?
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[19:49] <~Dan> (Howdy, Mike_Myler!)
[19:49] <+Mike_Myler> (waves)
[19:49] <+RaphaelAndere> in hellywood there’s no such thing as a “definitly good guy”
[19:50] <+EmmanuelGharbi> no good guys in Helywood. I mean, you can play a seraphim and be a bad bad boy
[19:50] <+Stewart> Eainix, here’s a still only roughly translated example from the rulebook:
[19:50] <+RaphaelAndere> (or that’s the innocent guy that dies in the beginning)
[19:50] <+Stewart> (1) Example: Sergei is driving his 47 Dodge Coupé at full speed in the streets of Heaven Harbor. At the backseat, Nicolai is bleeding like a pig and urgently needs to be taken to an unlicensed doctor working illegally at the back of a gambling den in the Forbidden City. Sergei is a professional driver.
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[19:51] <+Stewart> (2) He will drive Nicolai on time if he gets a 6, a 7 or an 11. He will be stuck in traffic or stopped by the cops – the Nicolai will croak like a dog – on a result of 2, 3 or 12. For any other result, Sergei will reach the doc, but not fast enough for Nicolai to avoid a consequence form its wound.
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[19:51] <+Stewart> The fact that Sergei is a “Professional” driver allows him to succeed on a 6 too.
[19:52] <+Abstruse> Gotta love translating from French where everything has a gender…
[19:52] <~Dan> What are the attributes, and what effect do they have on skills?
[19:53] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Catseye : It is a problem of social prejudice. People don’t like possessed but nothing says that a possessed will be a monster or a traitor. In Noir, people are often individualists, strong headed personnalities. So building the links in a group will be a concern for every one
[19:53] <+Eainix> ok that makes sense
[19:53] <+Eainix> so it’s like partial success on the “maybes”, success with a setback
[19:53] <+EmmanuelGharbi> and a good opprtunity to roleplay and common background creation
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[19:54] <+RaphaelAndere> in the rule book and in the campaign we give two different ways to deal with the problem of group building
[19:54] <+RaphaelAndere> in the core book : an agency of detectives and allies
[19:54] <+RaphaelAndere> in the campaign : individuals linked by a common past
[19:55] <+RaphaelAndere> of course there are many other solutions !
[19:56] <~Dan> What are the attributes, and what effect do they have on skills?
[19:57] <+Max_MoscowGM> Are Sergei and Nicolai Russian? Are Russians a big thing in the Hellywood?
[19:57] <+EmmanuelGharbi> the attributes are reserves of points. You bet an amount of it when you throw your dice
[19:57] <+SirGene> By group building you simply men a collection of Characters tied to each other at creation?
[19:57] <+Stewart> Three pairs of Attributes.
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[19:58] <+RaphaelAndere> Max_MoscowGM russians are not such a big thing at that time. Italians are.
[19:58] <~Dan> Do you have a character sheet we can see?
[19:58] <+Stewart> Sorry, was trying to get to that. One sec.
[19:59] <+RaphaelAndere> (Link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/9mymdipc7awokf2/HellywoodChSheetEnglish.pdf?dl=0)https://www.dropbox.com/s/9mymdipc7awokf2/HellywoodChSheetEnglish.pdf?dl=0
[19:59] <+Stewart> (Link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/9mymdipc7awokf2/HellywoodChSheetEnglish.pdf?dl=0)https://www.dropbox.com/s/9mymdipc7awokf2/HellywoodChSheetEnglish.pdf?dl=0
[19:59] <+Stewart> Yeah that.
[20:00] <+Stewart> So sorry, three triplets of Attributes.
[20:00] <+Max_MoscowGM> Looks neat.
[20:00] <+Max_MoscowGM> I like how the triplets are done.
[20:01] <+Stewart> You can see the game system success chart in the lower right.
[20:01] <+Max_MoscowGM> And the revolver chamber is a nice touch.
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[20:01] <+RaphaelAndere> that’s the russian roulette
[20:01] <+RaphaelAndere> very nice rule
[20:01] <~Dan> What do the skills “Bouncer” and “Bum” do?
[20:01] <+Stewart> I think there are a lot of nice touches in this game. Like the GM is the “Voiceover”.
[20:02] <~Dan> That is a nice touch, I agree. 🙂
[20:02] <+SirGene> That is a nice looking Character Record Sheet with a very unique looking system.
[20:03] <+Stewart> Bouncer is like Intimidation.
[20:03] <+RaphaelAndere> Skills are a generic skillset of said job, “bouncer” can be used to scare, block or throw out someone
[20:03] <+Stewart> Bum is like street smarts.
[20:03] <+Stewart> <Stepping away for a moment.>
[20:04] <~Dan> What about Demonist?
[20:04] <+RaphaelAndere> it’s the skillset you have to use to deal with the other side
[20:04] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Demonist is you capacity to contact the other side
[20:04] <+RaphaelAndere> it’s mainly your knowledge of how things work and who is who on the other side
[20:04] <+Abstruse> So they’re less like firmly defined skills and more like a background or training? Like I could argue that my Bouncer skill might let me tell how drunk someone was?
[20:04] <+EmmanuelGharbi> and strike bargains whith what ies there
[20:05] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Exaclty
[20:05] <+EmmanuelGharbi> They are “jobs” more than precise skills
[20:06] <+RaphaelAndere> right
[20:07] <+Abstruse> So there’s overlap too…like I could say both a Psychologist and Actor could detect if someone’s lying?
[20:07] <+EmmanuelGharbi> overlap is possible, yes
[20:08] <+Abstruse> The psychologist looking for the standard markers of someone in a deceptive mindset, while an Actor looking for the tricks and methods used to be believable?
[20:08] <+RaphaelAndere> i think so… but they would not get the same kind of info
[20:08] <+EmmanuelGharbi> and the taste won’t be the same
[20:08] <~Dan> Okay, so… skill level determines what numbers indicate a success, and attributes are a pool of points to use…how?
[20:08] <+RaphaelAndere> abstruse that’s it yeah
[20:08] <+Abstruse> I was looking for an example, but I just realized “Safecracker” and “Thief” picking a lock on a car door might be a better example…
[20:09] <+RaphaelAndere> when you lose you lose your points when you don’t have any you can’t play anymoe… you’re out
[20:09] <+EmmanuelGharbi> You bet points on the success of your dice roll
[20:10] <~Dan> I’m not clear on what that means, though.
[20:10] <+RaphaelAndere> it’s like chips in a poker game
[20:10] <+EmmanuelGharbi> It is mainly used in oppositions
[20:10] <~Dan> Can you give an example of this in play?
[20:11] <+RaphaelAndere> when you keep winning everything’s fine but when you start losing you have fewer and fewer chips and at the end…
[20:11] <+RaphaelAndere> ok
[20:11] <+RaphaelAndere> im a golem
[20:11] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Talent is one thing. But enduring is another. So the goal is to bet more than you adversary, and to keep some poins
[20:11] <+RaphaelAndere> i want to punch emmanuel in the guts
[20:11] <+RaphaelAndere> i bet 140
[20:12] <+EmmanuelGharbi> an usual writing session…
[20:12] <+RaphaelAndere> (i’m not holding back)
[20:12] <+RaphaelAndere> i’m trained as a brawler +
[20:12] <+Stewart> No wonder you guys made a noir game if you’re punching each other.
[20:13] <+RaphaelAndere> i throw the dice : 9
[20:13] <+RaphaelAndere> so it’s the “middle” result
[20:13] <+RaphaelAndere> i lose 70 points of my “muscle” attribute
[20:14] <+RaphaelAndere> but emmanuel’s character also suffers a 70 points loss to its “toughness” attribute
[20:15] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Not being a golemn that hurts
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[20:15] <+RaphaelAndere> (but he has a gun)
[20:15] <+Stewart> I need to bow out. Thanks for hosting, Dan. Thanks for assisting, RaphaelAndere.
[20:15] <~Dan> Take care, Stewart! Come by any time!
[20:15] <+EmmanuelGharbi> By stewart
[20:15] <+Stewart> Glad you made it Emmanuel. Sorry it’s so late for you guys.
[20:15] <+RaphaelAndere> bye stewart
[20:15] <+SirGene> Thanks Stewart
[20:16] <+Abstruse> You said when a pool is out, you’re out of the game? Like dead? How would you handle something like getting the crap kicked out of a detective and leaving him unconscious as a “warning to stay off the case”?
[20:16] <+EmmanuelGharbi> no problem, glad to be here
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[20:16] <+RaphaelAndere> “out” doesn’t mean dead
[20:16] <+RaphaelAndere> that’s what the russian roulette is about
[20:17] <+RaphaelAndere> it’s the only way to die in this game
[20:17] <+Abstruse> I’m thinking specifically of Gutman slipping Sam Spade a mickey in Maltese Falcon.
[20:17] <+EmmanuelGharbi> to handle something like that, I’ll use the f*******strd points
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[20:18] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Here is the deal : whenever you are not happy with the result of your dice, you can reroll. But you earn a f*****strd point. They pile up.
[20:19] <+RaphaelAndere> in hellywood there are the rules. And then there are the ways to cheat. And it’s all in the game.
[20:20] <+EmmanuelGharbi> When the Voice Over decides it is time for a beating (or any other troublesome event for your character), she can use those points.
[20:20] <+JamesGillen> hmm
[20:20] <+EmmanuelGharbi> She just tells you how much are redeemed and what unpleasant thing happens
[20:20] <+EmmanuelGharbi> So, when you reroll, you know your risks…
[20:21] <+RaphaelAndere> like a car key breaking at the “right” moment
[20:22] <~Dan> Is there a guide to how many points can be spent on how much trouble?
[20:22] <+Abstruse> Or running out of gas in the middle of a car chase, or a cop suddenly hassling you while you’re on a stakeout, or the bad guy’s thugs ready to “send a message”, etc. etc.
[20:22] <+EmmanuelGharbi> yes Dan
[20:23] <+EmmanuelGharbi> we provide a scale
[20:23] <+RaphaelAndere> abstruse is going to be a hell of a voice over 😉
[20:23] <~Dan> 🙂
[20:24] <~Dan> So gambling Muscle points determines damage in unarmed brawling… but how do weapons work?
[20:24] <+Abstruse> Honestly, it’s more Robert B Parker for me. I have all 60+ Spenser novels and have read them multiple times. Considering his doctorial thesis was on Hammett, Chandler, and McDonald, it’s pretty close to the genre tropes, just set in modern day (at the time of writing).
[20:25] <+RaphaelAndere> dexterity for handling weapons… and they also do additional damage
[20:25] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Did you guys talk inspirations when i was unable to connect ?
[20:26] <+RaphaelAndere> yep : i said chandler, ellroy, lehane and sin city
[20:26] <+Abstruse> Also, Harry Dresden, of course…but one of Jim Butcher’s main influences was Parker…
[20:27] <+EmmanuelGharbi> OK, great. Ah Parker ! So sad about Darwyn Cooke
[20:27] <+RaphaelAndere> but we can add Connelly for the cop’s side, Angel Heart of course and many more
[20:27] <~Dan> Hmm… So doesn’t that mean that a huge golem using a club won’t do any more damage than an equally-nimble human?
[20:27] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Dan : it depends if he decide to strike a full strength (bet a large amount)
[20:28] <+RaphaelAndere> he’s going to take you down faster… but that doesn’t mean he’s going to kill you
[20:28] <~Dan> Right, but if it’s based on Dexterity rather than Muscle, he wouldn’t have an appropriately high number of points to gamble.
[20:28] <+RaphaelAndere> also a golem is considered a weapon as itself due to its stone fists
[20:29] <+RaphaelAndere> handling a club is muscle
[20:29] <+RaphaelAndere> (except if you’re using it as a fencing weapon)
[20:30] <+RaphaelAndere> (but who does that seriously ?)
[20:30] <~Dan> Ah, I see. Okay, that makes more sense, then.
[20:30] <+Abstruse> A highly dextrous but not that strong person?
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[20:31] <+RaphaelAndere> in the end it’s up to the player and the voice over
[20:31] <+RaphaelAndere> the point being : attributes are reserves of chips
[20:32] <+RaphaelAndere> when you’re running low, you’re in trouble
[20:32] <~Dan> On a success, do you get more “chips”?
[20:32] <+RaphaelAndere> no
[20:33] <+RaphaelAndere> what you gain is inflicted upon something or someone
[20:33] <+RaphaelAndere> like a door, an enigma, or someone’s skull
[20:33] <+EmmanuelGharbi> but on a succs, you don’t lose what you bet
[20:33] <+Abstruse> Is there a way to get them back during the game? Resting or via a mechanic of some sort?
[20:34] <+RaphaelAndere> resting
[20:34] <~Dan> So how does that work when the roll isn’t opposed?
[20:35] <+RaphaelAndere> you oppose a difficulty
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[20:35] <+RaphaelAndere> you try to beat a virtual opponent that doesn’t strike back
[20:35] <+EmmanuelGharbi> the only risk then is to strain yourself
[20:36] <+RaphaelAndere> like the door : you need to inflict 80 points to break it
[20:38] <~Dan> I see. Hmm…
[20:38] <~Dan> This seems like a pretty clever system.
[20:38] <+JamesGillen> could be
[20:39] <+JamesGillen> I’d like to see how it plays
[20:39] <+EmmanuelGharbi> It will be difficult for us to come and make and demo 🙂
[20:39] <~Dan> So if you need to jump from rooftop to rooftop, you’d have a number of points of Dexterity “damage” you’d have to inflict to get over the gap?
[20:40] <+JamesGillen> “Run out of rooftops, huh?”
[20:40] <+RaphaelAndere> exactly
[20:40] <+EmmanuelGharbi> More than damage, the points are effort
[20:40] <~Dan> Do players know how much they have to bid in advance?
[20:41] <+RaphaelAndere> usually…
[20:41] * ~Dan nods
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[20:42] <~Dan> (Howdy, GKG_Alan!)
[20:42] <+Abstruse> Going back to the setting for a second, are the supernatural elements all in Hellywood or is it nation/worldwide?
[20:42] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Hi !
[20:42] <+EmmanuelGharbi> The elements are limited to Heaven Harbor
[20:42] <+JamesGillen> The Hellywood Hellmouth
[20:42] <+Abstruse> Is there something keeping them there?
[20:42] <+EmmanuelGharbi> but we clearly focus on the city
[20:43] <~Dan> What has the reaction been around the world to the revelation that demons exist?
[20:43] <&GKG_Alan> (Dan is it still going?)
[20:43] <~Dan> (Yup!)
[20:44] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Well it happened in one city, and the war was raging on. I don’t say it wasn’t groundbeaking event, but it stopped there.
[20:45] <+EmmanuelGharbi> The hornheads are real, you can meet them in person (not on every neighborhood though)
[20:45] <+EmmanuelGharbi> but for the rest… It is gossip stuff
[20:45] <+Abstruse> Can they leave if they want to?
[20:45] <+EmmanuelGharbi> No the hornheads are trapped here
[20:46] <+JamesGillen> What is it that traps them there?
[20:46] <+Abstruse> Like say one says, “Screw all this, I’m going to Chicago. Capone’s got to be easier to deal with.”
[20:46] <~Dan> Are there any supernatural creatures other than the hornheads in Hellywood?
[20:46] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Well, there is a sort of “veil” separating our world from the other. The only moment it became thinner enough was on the day of ashes
[20:47] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Dan : they are demons (same stuff than possessed but not in a body) on the other side, but no other supernatural creatures in our side
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[20:48] <+EmmanuelGharbi> What we wanted to achieve with the supernatural side of hellywood was enhance the mood, that expressionnist feeling of Noir. And add a new layer of corruption.
[20:49] * ~Dan nods
[20:49] <+EmmanuelGharbi> So the supernatural is thin : no fireballs or magic display.
[20:49] <~Dan> In the time remaining, is there anything we haven’t covered that you’d like to bring up?
[20:49] <+Eainix> so minor question, slightly off topic, but if and when you guys succeed with the kickstarter, would you guys be accepting donations post kickstarter for, say, those who don’t have the money right now but want to get in on it? XD
[20:50] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Oh, I don’t know, that is Stewart domain
[20:50] <+EmmanuelGharbi> sorry !
[20:52] <~Dan> Any final questions, folks?
[20:53] <~Dan> Any final thoughts, EmmanuelGharbi or RaphaelAndere? 🙂
[20:53] <+Eainix> well if stewart comes back around the post kickstarter question stands
[20:53] <+Eainix> but yea otherwise I’m good
[20:53] <+RaphaelAndere> just a precision about hornheads trapped “here”
[20:54] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Yeah, that was a good moment and I am very happy and proud to see Hellywood translated
[20:54] <+RaphaelAndere> what we meant is that they’re trapped on this side
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[20:54] <&GKG_Alan> This is all super interesting
[20:54] <+RaphaelAndere> not necesseraly in the city of Heaven Harbor
[20:54] <~Dan> Ah, I see. Interesting.
[20:55] <+RaphaelAndere> also there may be other hell holes around the globe, although the game focuses only on Heaven Harbor and nothing else
[20:55] <~Dan> Thanks very much for joining us at what is an appropriately unholy hour for you guys! 🙂
[20:55] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Our pleasure !
[20:55] <+RaphaelAndere> yep now im going to sleep for… ugh !
[20:56] <~Dan> If you’ll give me just a moment, I’ll get the log posted and give you the link. 🙂
[20:56] <+EmmanuelGharbi> Gladly
[20:56] <~Dan> Also, if any one is feeling generous, my tip jar is here: (Link: https://gmshoe.wordpress.com/the-gmshoes-tip-jar/)https://gmshoe.wordpress.com/the-gmshoes-tip-jar/ 🙂
[20:56] <~Dan> One moment, please… 🙂
