Nerd Pride Radio

So I'm trying to work on my stuff for tomorrow and my mind keeps drifting back to the yet unmade game that we (Mike, Darcs and myself) were discussing at Harold and Izzy's. Since Mechanics are fair game...

I love the idea of the card-mechanic. I think it can fit really well for what we were trying to do. Because:

Each card can have (at least) four pieces of information on it. It would have an action, which you could play on your turn. A reaction, which you could play on someone else's turn. Attack and Defense Numbers. And finally Movement Points.

There would be six 'ranks' of card. The weakest, or sixth rank, would have 6 cards in it. The fifth rank would have five. The fourth rank, four. Etc. Until you reached your single most powerful, epic card. Each card in a rank would have some distribution of attack and defense cards, the stronger cards having the least variability in their numbering, the lowest having more. Maybe like this:

1 - Strongest (6/6)
2 - Stronger (5/4, 4/5)
3 - Strong (5/3, 4/4, 3/5)
4 - Weak (5/2, 4/3, 3/4, 2/5)
5 - Weaker (5/1, 4/2, 3/3, 2/4, 1,5)
6 - Weakest (6/1, 5/2, 4/3, 3/4, 2/5, 1/6)

This is just my mind working on things, I would probably need to crunch some numbers. It means that each player would have a deck of 21 cards that they cycle through.

Each deck would be tailored to that particular character's powers/theme. So maybe some characters have a different distribution of attack and defense, or some have greater movement points. They would all have Actions and Reactions.

A turn would look something like this, I think:

All players start with 3 cards. The character currently holding the <object redacted> is considered the active player.

Phase 1 - Movement
The active player goes first, playing a card and moving that number of spaces. Then, moving clock-wise from the active player, all other players play a card and move that number of spaces.
Phase 2 - Actions
All players then place a card face down. When all are ready, the cards are flipped up. First resolving all reaction cards, and then finally the action card of the active player. (This would need to be tested, but my theory is that by reversing the action phase, you give the non-active players a chance to disrupt the active player before things get out of hand.)
Phase 3 - Attack/Defense
The players then place their third card face up on the table. This card serves as the attack and defense number to resolve any conflicts between the actions.
Phase 4 - Draw
All players draw three more cards.

REPEAT!

What I'm hoping for this particular mechanic is to force players to make choices based on their current hand, but still give them some flexibility. Powerful cards will be powerful in all three "action" phases of the game, which will force a player to decide /how/ they want to use that power. Or maybe you use a weaker maneuver, but have a really strong attack and defensive posture.

Anyway, these ramblings are probably as clear as mud. But I have to get back to other work. I will write more later.

That's more coherent than anything we had at the restaurant. Good base to work from.

Yay! I think there's something here. Maybe we should brainstorm several mechanics...in case something else feels better!

To go with what I was saying in my set...I realized that we don't need to call them actions or reactions. We just call them actions, but maybe we reverse the order of how the actions are resolved. The last player to move is the first player to act, and then proceed counter-clockwise back to the active player.

Just kidding, I'm totally going to keep going with the card mechanic right now. I'll try and make a set for: Hermes, Loki, Ra and Morrigan.

To help me think of powers and such, I'm thinking of archetypes to help guide my thinking.

Control - Powers that keep the opponent from doing things. Powers that trap opponents or put obstacles in their way would be examples of Control powers.

Blaster - Powers that attack opponents directly, trying to knock them down or knock the ball away.

Mobility - Powers that enhance the mobility of the character, like flying, dodging and speed boosts.

Protection - Powers that protect the character, or the ball from harm. Circles of protection, turning invisible/ethereal, Shields and the like.

Uh...others.

I like it - it reminds me of the class roles from 4E.

And I think 4e took it from MMORPGs. It's a good way to group things, but there's still room for flexibility within the type. Or maybe each God gets a pair of archtypes for their powers.

ALSO MIKE! I figured out how to make it a team game. The object remains the same, get the ball from one side to the other while maintaining control. You are not allowed to pass the ball, but your teammates /are/ allowed to block and use their powers to aid your path across the board. I think it's a way of playing with 6 (3v3 or 2v2v2) people that still keeps everyone relevant as well as have a possibility of scoring a point to end the game.

I can work with that concept.

Okay, complete change of mindset here.

I've been thinking of this game very tactically. I created a game back in college called Gravball that played out very slowly and tactically. It used dice instead cards. But it was plodding and extremely slow and long. I've been thinking of Godball in terms of a similar setup, but updated and improved.

That's all wrong.

If this is gods playing ball, then they gotta be all godly and amazing and impressive. I don't know what that all means for sure, but I feel like once I put things into play, I should be feeling lightning bolts and withering death curses and gale force winds and immovable objects being battered mercilessly by unstoppable forces. That sort of thing. And not just see it in the names on the cards but be able to imagine it in the play. This is a rugby game between titans and should be shaking heaven and earth.

And maybe that comes in the artwork and terminology and movement as well as in the actual card mechanics. But as I'm looking at Beneath Nexus, I was completely into the conceit of that as we played, and I felt the clash between adventurers and the sinsiter blight lord. It was in the artwork and the cards and the rise and fall of our HP and mana. It worked well to support the story. As we work on mechanics, I just don't want to lose that feel of the game.

Crazy suggestion, and think about it for awhile. Do we really need a board?

What about this?

A card consists of an action, a reaction and a movement icon.

You start with five cards. On your turn you get to play two cards as either an action or as movement. Opponents are allowed to play reactions to your plays.

At the end of your turn you draw back up to five cards. This allows you, by choice, to react to your opponents.

If on your turn you don't have any cards left in your hand, or only one card. You get to flip the top card of your deck, however you must declare if you are using the action or movement portions of the card /before/ you draw them. So you can expend all of your energy on opponent's turns, and you still get to do /something/ it's just up to the fates what you're going to do. Then you draw a new hand of cards and carry on.

There would need to be some way to resolve actions and reactions that are at odds with each other...

You don't need attack and defense stats. You only need actions and reaction. Powers work. They're gods, of course their powers work. There should be defense reactions that can offset the attacking action, but all of the powers should work all the time.

Power Brainstorm

Force Field - Nothing can penetrate the force field...in either direction. It makes those inside impervious to powers from the outside...but it also means they can't use their powers against opponents outside the force field. Lasts x turns.

Haste - This round you may play one additional card for movement.

Create Water - You create a lake in the play field that cannot be crossed except by flight. (And maybe a couple of other exceptions.)

Create Ice - You create a sheet of ice, anyone who moves into the sheet of ice must continue moving to the opposite end of the sheet without changing direction.

Earthquake - Anyone touching the ground falls prone.

Teleport Ball - The ball disappears and reappears elsewhere. This does not count as losing control of the ball unless someone else touches it first.

Fly From this moment until the end of your next turn you are flying above the terrain.

Wall of Fire - Create a wall of flame that covers part of the battlefield. The gods are unaffected by the flame and can pass through freely...the ball...not so much. Destroyed ball materialize at the center of the table.

Gust of Wind - Blow an opponent 1 unit in any direction. The ball may be targeted if it is not held. The ball can be blown three units.

Create Tree - Create a large tree, thick with branches, that serves as an obstacle to gods and powers alike. It is flammable.

Gemini - Create a duplicate of yourself. The duplicate disappears in two rounds.

Entangle - Vines erupt from the ground, grasping at the god's legs and feet. The may not move next turn before breaking free.

<3

Boomerang
You think you did a thing; you did it only to yourself x3.

Hobbits
The craving for a comfortable place to eat a full meal and have a relaxing nap overpowres the enemy.

Separation anxiety
The target cannot leave presence of whoever is closest withoutcrying and possibly urinating.

I just discovered this old thread. This is a pretty good idea. You guys ought to think about developing this.

Woah, this is trippy as hell.