Exalted 3e Playtest Leaks - Discussion

[JayTee]

Given how "daily/scene-ly powers" are a thing that were spoiled in this thread, would you be willing to talk about the design logic that went in to them? The idea that they exist baffles me, because they seem to reinforce the idea of "charms as spells" rather than "charms as expressions", which is something that I thought that 3E was trying to get away from.


EDIT: To be absolutely clear - I am not asking that you justify or defend the decision, I just want to know the "why" behind them, as they seem counter-intuitive for Exalted charm technology.

 

[Ashurbanipal]

It's not Charms-as-spells because the Charms in question don't exist in universe. A Charm that lets you unleash your inner power once per scene for a megaton punch isn't saying that the character in question has one cast of the punch spell; it's a punch that's so beefy and requires just the right conditions to come out that once it's done he's too tuckered out to repeat it.


The rules of the game don't exist inside the game. They're narrative tools.

 

[JayTee]

Oh, yes, I absolutely agree that charms don't exist in-setting and are a game mechanic for the benefit of the player. My concern is that charms with a restriction other than mote cost would reinforce the (out of setting) idea that charms are rigid rather than organic, and encourage people to view them as spells rather than natural expressions of skill.


This is something I thought the devs were trying to get away from, so it confuses me to see charms with a daily restriction. As I said before, it seems to run counter to their design intentions and I'm curious as to the reasoning behind it. It's not something I'm going to object to or demand be removed, I'd just like to hear the rational behind it so I can better internalize it.

 

[Ashurbanipal]

If a Charm is made better via restriction, whether due to balance concerns, a desire for a narrative where that power comes out infrequently, or anything else, it will be restricted without regard for potential perception issues. I wouldn't worry over specific Charms defining how people view Charms as a whole in-character, especially if they've been told Charms aren't spells.

 

[Eric Minton]

While I am not privy to the specifics of the design decisions involved, from what I know, Ashurbanipal has the right of it.

 

[JayTee]

Huh, okay, fair enough. I'll admit that I'm not fond of the idea of once per day/scene charms, but considering how it's literally the only thing that I've heard about 3E that I don't like out of all the other spoilers, I consider it to be an indication that I'll greatly enjoy the new edition :smiled:

 

[Ashurbanipal]

It's a pretty good game.

 

[Eric Minton]

Once-per-scene effects feel more organic in Exalted 3e than they do in, say, D&D 4e.

 

[JayTee]

I remain skeptical, but I still look forward to being able to play, regardless :smiled: I get the feeling we're on the home stretch.

 

[MAXedOUT]

I unfortunately do not feel like we are close to the end. I would not be the least bit surprised if they hold off on the PDF being sent to us until the hard copies are in the mail. I hope you are right but it just seems like they don't even want us to know anything until we get the book, in all its glory, in our own hands.

 

[Mei]

Uhhhh, I've Kickstarted a couple of Werewolf things now and I know for a fact that they always give out PDFs earlier to backers as a mass quality check before they sent it to DriveThru, which is months before physical copies are sent. They are not changing that.

 

[Ashurbanipal]

That suspicion isn't really supported by the leak, the frequent spoilers, or the dev communication, MAXed.

 

[MAXedOUT]

Well this is my first KS for Onyx Path. I have never really been into the WoD books. I like fantasy themes a bit more. I love Exalted because it is a very unique system and seems like 3rd Ed could be my favorite RPG ever.


Basically, I don't think this length of time between the KS and the launch is very healthy. I am happy they want to get it right the first time, so I understand the hesitation to say it is done, but when the campaign was running they made it seem like they had tons of ideas and knew the direction they wanted to go with it.


Mei, I hope they do release the PDFs before they ship the books, and Ashurbanipal, have they ever said they will send us the PDFs before the book is sent to us? The only thing you can go on is their other campaigns, witch were for other WoD settings. I hope you are right.

 

[Mei]

It's part of how they do things. They love to do a mass quality check before giving us shiny books. It works, why do something else?

 

[Ashurbanipal]

They've said the PDF will go out before the book, yes.

 

[horngeek]

This is not exactly unexpected, given the current state of books vs. digital copies.

 

[Eric Minton]

If it helps, I'm done with my role on the corebook and am currently working on Arms of the Chosen.

 

[JayTee]

A weird question, but assuming Warstriders are still going to be in Arms of the Chosen, would be be possible to... mundane-ize Warstriders for mortal use a more sci-fi mecha game? I really enjoyed Heaven's Reach and Modern Exalted, and I can't not see Mecha being involved in those sooner or later.

 

[El Phantasmo]

A weird question, but assuming Warstriders are still going to be in Arms of the Chosen, would be be possible to... mundane-ize Warstriders for mortal use a more sci-fi mecha game? I really enjoyed Heaven's Reach and Modern Exalted, and I can't not see Mecha being involved in those sooner or later.

Ooooo. Instant Exalted-Cthulhutech crossover springs to mind. Without the issues of Cthulhutech, naturally, just the basic premise .... Solars in mechs, Lunars in Engels etc .... Swish!

 

[horngeek]

I'm partially curious how easy it might be to fudge playing Abyssals with the core rules as a hold-over until the Abyssals rules get released.

 

[Eric Minton]

I'm partially curious how easy it might be to fudge playing Abyssals with the core rules as a hold-over until the Abyssals rules get released.

You can do it the same way we did it with the 1e corebook: use Solar Charms and slather on some death and darkness flavoring! (Alternatively, you can wait 'til the Exigents book comes out and homebrew Abyssals from that.)

 

[horngeek]

I'd likely pull the former trick, primarily due to the fact that this character would explicitly be seeking redemption (which is really where my interest in Abyssals has always been, at least in their capacity as PCs- NPCs is another matter, of course!).

 

[Eric Minton]

There's currently an "Ask the Developers" thread on RPGnet where John and Holden (plus Lea) are answering questions about Third Edition. I've been compiling answered questions here:


http://ericminton.wordpress.com/2014/08/08/ask-the-developers-thread-summary/

 

[hellrazoromega]

Of all the changes so far, I for one am glad to see what they are doing with stunts. I have never been one of the, "assume a 2 die stunt crowd". I have always thought stunts (any stunt not just 2 or 3 die ones should be above and beyond. IMO a one die stunt should be interesting, two dice amazing and 3 dice something everyone at the table refers to years after the fact. I have always thought, as they have stated in the updates that Willpower should be a precious resource and not one that Exalted are spending like it was motes of essence. IMO it should be something you really need to think about rather than using every round. So far the changes IO have seen look really good (especially streamlining combat) to me and I am looking forward to see how Evocations work.

 

[Eric Minton]

A week later, the devs are continuing to answer questions on the RPGnet thread! Don't hesitate to jump in and ask a question. I'm also continuing to compile answered questions here.