[Q&A] Taylor Hadfield (Bronze Age: Collapse)

[7:38 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Hello Everyone! Taylor From Standard Studios here to talk about our recent Project, Bronze Age Collapse!

[7:39 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/behemothwargame/bronze-age-collapse-spear-and-sorcery-ttrpg-ruleset?ref=project_buildKickstarterStandard StudiosBronze Age: Collapse, Spear and Sorcery TTRPG RulesetOpen Source Ruleset and Setting for Greek, Mesopotamian and Egyptian adventures during the collapse of the known world.

[7:40 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: We are releasing a tabletop rpg set during the collapse of the bronze age civilization1

[7:41 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Coming with it are 3 adventures:

[7:41 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios:

[7:42 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: The Rage of Achilles(Set during the siege of Troy, alongside the Greek gods and hero’s such as Achilles and Hector)1

[7:43 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Against the Sorcerers of Babel(The Cult of Babel, Under the Sorcerer King Nabonidas seeks to rebuild the tower of Babel, collect its lost knowledge and dominate the world. The longest and most complex of the three)1

[7:44 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: And the Plight of Ugarit(Contend with societal collapse, the marauding sea peoples and antediluvian horror’s during the last days of the city of Ugarit)1

[7:44 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Ask away!

[7:45 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Thanks, @Taylor, Standard Studios! The floor is open to questions!

[7:45 PM]Dan the GMshoe: So clearly, this is historical fantasy. How prevalent are the fantasy elements?

@Dan the GMshoeSo clearly, this is historical fantasy. How prevalent are the fantasy elements?[7:47 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Absolutely, a good descriptor for the game is Epic Historical Fantasy

[7:47 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Set in a real time period, with embellished real places and real people, but with the interventions of the Gods, Words of power and Ritual

[7:48 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: and not to mention the monsters, tropes and sorcerers that inhabit these myths

[7:49 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: I would be remiss if I didn’t mention a healthy sprinkling of Lovecraftian elements, and hints at long collapsed civilizations that were old to the people of this time as well

[7:51 PM]Beyla 🎉: This looks so freaking cool!!1

[7:52 PM]Dan the GMshoe: I note that the first adventure you mentioned is based in Greek mythology, while the second is based upon a Biblical tale. Can you describe your overall cosmology?

[7:53 PM]Dan the GMshoe: ( @Beyla 🎉 should hire herself out as a professional ego booster. )111

@Beyla 🎉This looks so freaking cool!![7:53 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Thanks!!1

[7:53 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Absolutely1

[7:55 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: The bronze age world was really a long list of civilizations, connected by huge amounts of trade across the majority of the Mediterranean

[7:55 PM]Beyla 🎉: Do you have a character sheet? Or an Npc sheet we can see?

[7:56 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: The setting draws on all of the myths, locations and stories of that interconnected world. From Ur in southern Mesopotamia, to Memphis in Egypt, to Hattusa in modern day Turkey and Lacedemonia in Greece! (edited)

[7:57 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Hold on ill see what I can get11

[8:00 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1L0lhi5xS7I4SoFm6cJCWbuDqqXtNio7L_D7rPpxVd30/edit?usp=sharingGoogle DocsBronze Age: Collapse Alpha QuickstartBronze Age: Collapse Alpha Kickstart *The following playtest rules are subject to change, and do not fully represent the final game Building Your Character Stats: Either use the numbers 5, 4, 3, 3, 2, 2, or Roll 6d6, and change any 6’s to 5’s Assign these individual numbers to each of the …1

[8:01 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Here is an early version of the quick start rules our early testers are using, there is a more complete and polished one in the works that we plan to hand out to the public/beta testers in the next week or so! (edited)1

[8:02 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Some of the things that especially excite me are the different kinds of Sorcerers, How we’re handling combat and timers, and “Braving Hades”

[8:02 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Tell us more!

[8:03 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Sure!

[8:04 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: One of the challenges we’ve had so far is explaining the “Master of Symbols” in an easy to grasp way, but ill try here1

[8:04 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: One of the kinds of Sorcerer a player can be is a Master of Symbols

[8:04 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: On the surface, their knowledge of the symbolic world lets them counter the machinations of other Sorcerers1

[8:05 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: But the main draw is their ability to collaborate with the GM to Cast a ritual1

[8:06 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: The Player goes to the GM, and describes an effect they want, and how their Ritual is going to symbolically work with that outcome

[8:07 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: The Gm Chooses a difficulty level, (If it makes no sense, or is too hard, the Gm instead tells the player as such and the player knows the ritual will not work)

[8:08 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: The Player rolls a Spirit check, and if they Succeed, They roll 1d4 as a timer that ticks down every turn, and essentially spend their whole turn casting that ritual

[8:08 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: If they player fails, they may still get some effect, or the timer is automatically set to its maximum value(4 on 1d4 for example)

[8:10 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: At the end, the effect(Calling down the evil spirits of a tomb to kill ones enemies within the tomb, or Blessing a Spear in concert with the god of Saltwater so that it may sink a ship in a single blow), happens!

@Taylor, Standard Studioshttps://docs.google.com/document/d/1L0lhi5xS7I4SoFm6cJCWbuDqqXtNio7L_D7rPpxVd30/edit?usp=sharing[8:10 PM]Beyla 🎉: SO COOL loving the art

[8:10 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: In my view, Table top RPG’s are about collaborative storytelling, and the looser magic system of Bronze Age: Collapse will really encapsulate that

@Beyla 🎉SO COOL loving the art[8:10 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Thanks!

[8:11 PM]Dan the GMshoe: So rituals take between 1-4 turns to go off?

[8:11 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Many yes, especially those in combat

[8:12 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: but more powerful ones, like bringing on an Earthquake, or Plague and the such would take days, weeks, months etc. Arbitrated between the player/GM, and guided tables, reccomendations and ideas in the book

[8:13 PM]Joel Velazquez: Out of curiosity, in the in-game lore of the world, how do people perceive individuals of such magical nature? Are they widely accepted or shunned?

[8:14 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Fairly well, depending

[8:14 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: and depending on location

[8:16 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: For example, In the Greek world a community of sorceresses might sequester themselves at a certain shrine to Gia/Apollo high in the mountains that Rhymes with “Phelphi”

[8:17 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Egyptian Sorcerers might find high esteem in the Pharonic Court, or as prolific merchants

[8:17 PM]Dan the GMshoe: So is magic totally freeform?

[8:18 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Babylonian Sorcerers might enter the struggle for sorcerous power that permeates that area, and meet a jealous, brutal end

@Dan the GMshoeSo is magic totally freeform?[8:18 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Not totally, but there is a massive amount of room for freeform

[8:18 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: The Master of Symbols is the most freeform

[8:19 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Whereas the Binder and Speaker are a little more restricted and focused in their discipline1

[8:21 PM]Joel Velazquez: Very cool! What is the overall tone of the game’s setting? Is it darker, bleaker or more optimistic? (edited)

[8:23 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Depending on when you start your campaign(And who’s side you’re on), it might start hopeful, and rapidly descend into the dark collapse of the civilized world from natural disaster, war, the sea peoples, loss of communication between cities

[8:24 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Or if you start during the collapse(1250-1200 bc) You are progressively sliding away from humanities first confirmable golden age. A downward spiral that they will not recover from for at least 3-400 years (edited)

[8:25 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: “The Rage of Achilles” Is the shortest, and most optimistic one there

[8:25 PM]Dan the GMshoe: How epically-powered are the PCs? Can they be the likes of Heracles?

@Taylor, Standard StudiosOr if you start during the collapse(1250-1200 bc) You are progressively sliding away from humanities first confirmable golden age. A downward spiral that they will not recover from for at least 3-400 years (edited)[8:25 PM]Beyla 🎉: Cool!

@Dan the GMshoeHow epically-powered are the PCs? Can they be the likes of Heracles?[8:26 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: If the weight of their deeds and feats of arms stack up to that, absolutely

[8:27 PM]Beyla 🎉: What’s your favourite part so far? And countering that what is your least favourite?

[8:27 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Good question!1

[8:28 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: My favorite part I think is two really

[8:29 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: How well the combat runs at the moment I’m the proudest of, but I’m most excited about the uniqueness that is the Master of Symbols1

[8:30 PM]Beyla 🎉: Ooooo

[8:30 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: The part that’s given me the most trouble are the talent trees right now. They solve alot of the problems we have, but I feel like we could do better, while still keeping thing uncomplicated enough to let players pick it up in the first half hour1

[8:31 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Oh, were you able to find a character sheet?

@Dan the GMshoeOh, were you able to find a character sheet?[8:32 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Thats in the process, too

[8:33 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: I’m a software engineer by day so I figured id start by making one from scratch in roll20, and its been more of a task than expected1

[8:33 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Right now the testers are Grog’narding it with text/paper, but the sheet is coming soon

[8:34 PM]Joel Velazquez: I feel that 1000%1

[8:34 PM]Dan the GMshoe: No problem. Can you describe the elements that make up a character?1

[8:34 PM]Dan the GMshoe: (Attributes, skills, etc.?)

[8:34 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Absolutely

[8:34 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: So, imagine if you will, a player sits down at the table1

[8:36 PM]Joel Velazquez: loving it already1

[8:36 PM]Beyla 🎉: Same

[8:38 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios:They either roll 6d6 or pick a standard array of 5, 4, 3, 3, 2, 2 , and assign those numbers to Might(The Weight of ones deeds, physical strength and martial prowess), Agility(A characters speed, physical dexterity and ability to react to danger), Spirit(A characters force of will and devotion), Wisdom(A characters knowledge and insight), Talk(People skills), and then adding one of the numbers to their health(12 for Sorcerer, 18 for Warrior)(edited)

[8:38 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Formatting for clarity*1

[8:39 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: They then pick a Homeland, granting an extra stat bump, abilities, and if they wish, a fantastic wealth of cultural and societal inspiration for the character

[8:39 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Then they look at the Weapons chart, and pick 1-2 they want

[8:40 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: and grab something they want from the armor chart

[8:41 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: If the character is a sorcerer, they get the initial class ability of Binder, Speaker or Master of Symbols, and get some thematic hints on how they should operate

[8:41 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: and we’re done!1

[8:41 PM]Beyla 🎉: That’s super streamlined and easy

[8:41 PM]Dan the GMshoe: So this is a class-based system?

[8:41 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: The idea is to get the Players and GM sitting down, and ready to run from absolute scratch in under 30 minutes1

@Dan the GMshoeSo this is a class-based system?[8:42 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Less of a class-based system and more of a class-encouraged system

[8:42 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Ah, I see.

[8:43 PM]Dan the GMshoe: I notice that you didn’t mention skills back there. Are there any, or is everything based off of attributes?

[8:43 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Carrots instead of sticks if players choose to stay one one path, but the option is there to drift

@Dan the GMshoeI notice that you didn’t mention skills back there. Are there any, or is everything based off of attributes?[8:44 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Everything is based off of the attributes, with the implication that If your character has a reason to know some special information, to drop the difficulty on the check, and vice versa

[8:45 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Some backgrounds(Like the Hittites, Greeks, etc) gain bonuses to their Talk checks if they can relate it back to the topic of metallurgy, or to their own mighty deeds for example

[8:47 PM]Joel Velazquez: Does the game lean more towards shorter, one- or two-session tales or is it meant more for campaign-length storytelling?1

[8:50 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: I assume 3-4 hours sessions because that’s what I typically run, but they could definitely be shorter

@Joel VelazquezDoes the game lean more towards shorter, one- or two-session tales or is it meant more for campaign-length storytelling?[8:50 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Oh i see

[8:51 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Either or! our examples, for example

[8:51 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Rage of Achilles is estimated 3 sessions, while Against the Sorcerers of Babel is a campaign length, 10-16 session adventure about Evil eating Evil

[8:53 PM]Dan the GMshoe: What is the task resolution system?

[8:54 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: If i was going to compare some of the themes of each adventure to a story, The Rage of Achilles would be the first chunk of the Illiad, Against the Sorcerers of Babel would be the internecine warfare of the Black Company by Glen Cooke, and The Plight of Ugarit Fits any post apocalyptic story of civilization collapsing, with major Cosmic Horror undercurrents

@Dan the GMshoeWhat is the task resolution system?[8:55 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Can you give me an example of an interaction?

[8:58 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Well, our standard example here is jumping over a gap of some sort.

[9:02 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: So, in that case if the gap was big enough the players involved would have to make an Agility check(With a difficulty dependent of the size of the gap/GM desecration), or if the gap was 2 feet or something just jump over it and not bother with a check

[9:04 PM]Dan the GMshoe: What would be rolled for the Agility check? A single die? A dice pool?

[9:05 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: d20+The characters Agility!

[9:05 PM]Beyla 🎉: Super easy 1

[9:06 PM]Dan the GMshoe: How does combat work?

@Dan the GMshoeHow does combat work?[9:08 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Gm declares combat has started, On a group/Team basis the GM Rolls d20+Agility, and each individual player also rolls d20+Agility

[9:09 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: The game then revolves through that turn order in descending order, based on the roll

[9:10 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: A concise cheat sheet is included with Bronze Age: Collapse to speed along combat and let the players know what they can do1

[9:11 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Each combatant gets 1 Action(Attack, interact, Knock down, Grapple), and 1 Move(Move tiles up to your Move value, or Get up from Knocked Down)

[9:12 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: If it is not their turn, each Combatant can use up to 1 Quick Action(Quick attack, Quick Move, Dive for Cover) per turn, and cannot use the same one more than once per round

[9:14 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: If a character drops to 0 health from damage, they can either Fall unconscious, or Brave Hades(Take an immediate action, get back up and go to 1 hitpoint. But if you take damage before the end of the encounter, die in an epic, fitting way)1

[9:14 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Attacks work as such:

[9:18 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios:Leontes the Warrior Makes an attack at an enemy Leontus Rolls 1d20+Might to attack with his Spear. He needs to meet or beat 9+ the Might of the Enemy If Leontus hits, a spear deals 2+Might damage, so he deals 7 damage because his might is 5 The enemy is wearing armor however, and while the enemies Hide armor is Reducing its Move stat by 1 in combat, the hide also reduces that 7 damage by 2, down to 5 The enemy takes 5 damage

[9:19 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Easy enough.

[9:19 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Although… by making Might the melee attribute, you risk falling into what I call the “Ninjasaurus Effect”.

[9:20 PM]Dan the GMshoe: By that, I mean that big, presumably clumsy creatures become master combatants by default.

[9:22 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Do you have any means to counter that?

[9:23 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: Yeah! i totally get that

[9:24 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: before I dig in, as an aside, Swords, daggers and bows use Aglility instead of might1

[9:25 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: So you could imagine Ajax the Musclesaurus fighting Aakia the Ninjasaurus there1

[9:26 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: One major design philosophy here is that in a party, while there will be skill crossover, Sorcerers tend to excel more in social and out of combat situations and encounters, while Warrior Dominate in combat

[9:28 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: And again, there is solid crossover both ways, but if you want to really push combat, dominate your enemies and contend with your rivals, Warrior is the choice. Whereas if you really want to push investigating, diplomacy(That doesnt involve warriors) and narrative spell craft, that Sorcerers are for you

[9:29 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: There is no “Firebolt” in this game, but in a tight spot, the Binder Sorcerer can entreaty the Fire spirit from that Brazier over there to leap onto his club, and become a risky, short term devastating combatant

[9:31 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Speaking of sauruses, does the game have a bestiary, and if so, how large?11

[9:31 PM]Beyla 🎉: I was just gonna ask that!!1

@Dan the GMshoeSpeaking of sauruses, does the game have a bestiary, and if so, how large?[9:32 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: The Book is going to have a bunch of examples(For the Adventures), and we aim to make it exceedingly easy to build your own monsters/enemies! (edited)

[9:33 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: We’re taking some lessons from Mork Borg and trying to simplify the creature sheets

[9:37 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Gotcha.

[9:37 PM]Dan the GMshoe: In the time remaining, is there anything we haven’t covered that you’d like to bring up?

@Dan the GMshoeIn the time remaining, is there anything we haven’t covered that you’d like to bring up?[9:43 PM]Taylor, Standard Studios: I think we covered most of it! The system is geared to be incredibly easy to learn, especially for players of popular RPG’s, and as a system build for bronze age games, gives you a unique way to explore the exciting and little explored historical setting, with an epic fantasy twist!1

[9:44 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Sounds great!

[9:44 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Thanks so much for joining us, @Taylor, Standard Studios!1

[9:44 PM]Beyla 🎉: 

[9:45 PM]Dan the GMshoe: I hope you’ve enjoyed your visit and that you’ll continue hanging out with us when the mood strikes.

[9:45 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Usual reminder: If you’ve enjoyed this Q&A and would like to treat me to a coffee or two, you can do so at https://www.ko-fi.com/gmshoe. Anything’s appreciated! Ko-fiBuy Dan Davenport a Coffee. ko-fi.com/gmshoeBecome a supporter of Dan Davenport today! ❤️ Ko-fi lets you support the creators you love with no fees on donations.1

[9:45 PM]Dan the GMshoe: Now, if you’ll give me a minute, I’ll get the log posted and link you!

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