We played the DCC Saturday night, running the "funnel" through the included 0-level adventure in the book. Quick thoughts: I didn't have a full grasp of the rules, I did some page-flipping during the game, we rolled up 12 total characters, my players tended to be easily distracted but quick to move through adventures, so the whole session clocked in at about 3.5 hours. Also, a lot of people died.

The Funnel
Three players, each rolling up 4 characters (in hindsight, I should have gone with five and stressed to the players about keeping their personal members of the gang separated, we had one guy lose 3 of 4 in one round). The players really liked this. We had only one 18 rolled (for Personality) and two 3s rolled (both on intelligence). I could tell the players already were getting attached to some characters even while making claims how they were all going to die horribly.

The Action
Die horribly they did. Some spoilers incoming for the adventure (Something Under the Stairs ... Stars? I forgot the name of it). Two of one player's guys got speared by the iron statues in the very first room. I kinda felt bad about this, since it included the player's clear favorite among his four peasants. Even despite my earlier warnings, I don't think it was until this point that the players fully came to grip how deadly this was going to be. The moving stature in the next room lit 3 of another player's characters on fire. They died horribly.

The deaths came pretty quickly, so I tried to take it a little easier so that at least someone would make it out of this alive. The players all got a kick out of the animated skeletons that were so rotted only the skulls actually attacked. They made short work of the skulls, but still took some damage here and there, making even that a tough spot for our heroes.

In the climax, the players got the initiative on the clay warlord. He missed in his first (and only) attack, allowing the peasants to just overwhelm him. No one was able to find the secret door, so I fudged it in their favor so they would at least have something to show for their efforts.

The Players' Thoughts
Everyone liked it. One player mentioned he enjoyed the system in Savage Worlds better (it was the game we had most previously played), but said he still had fun. It took a bit for them to find the right style of play. They became a little more selfish and survival-centric as the game went on.

My Thoughts
I didn't get to see a lot of the system in action. With just the peasants trying not to die in the worst way possible, we didn't do much more than simple combat. So we didn't see the Fighter's Deed actions in play, and there was no magic use. But with the things characters found in the adventure, it sure looked like the potential for this stuff in the near future is definitely there.

We rolled two or three times on the critical and fumble charts. The one critical we had left the character with his axe embedded in the monster, but the blow had killed it. The funky dice only really came up in character generation (I bought a D30 a day before we played, and it was used for the Luck sign portion of chargen.) I think a D24 was needed once or twice, but I did the control die with a D12. I tried to explain this to my players, but it was late as shit and nobody was interested in math. So I need to get my hands on some legit dice.

A lot of the stuff that I think will make DCC shine (the feeling of accomplishment of getting a character up in levels, having a wizard interact with his patron, etc.) can't be seen this early in a campaign. In order to see this game really stretch its legs and hit full stride will take more than just a handful of sessions.

Conclusions
I really like the game. I really want players to get to the point where they are bargaining with patrons, carrying badass magical weapons they've earned, and feeling as if they have truly accomplished something by getting their characters to such a point.

I want to run The Temple of Elemental Evil with it. I will create a 0-level adventure to run that leads directly to the players setting up in Hommlet. I also think I will go with five 0-level characters to start and characters can hold on to them as long as they want. So if they end up with a pair of level-2 dudes, that's OK. One of them will probably beef it, too.

Hope this helps anyone waffling on picking up a copy of the book.

Awesome. I like the game of course, but seeing that you had fun with it is great to read in any case.

BTW I'll just move this to the Design, Development and Gameplay forum.

Weird. It's more of my thoughts AFTER a game session that an actual play thread or anything.

But wevs.

Fits the bill as a game log, to me, but I do see your point in that it's not an actual play report more than it is a report on the feelings of the players after playing the game for the first time to spawn conversation about the game in general from there. Hm. I'll restore it. If Pundit or OHT think it'd be best in D&D&GP, they can always move it back.

OK Moving on. I have a question. Did the survivors acquire the 10 XP needed to be first level next time?

That's interesting, because I didn't even keep track. I just hustled them along through the adventure.

I am not certain if they would have gotten the 10 points. I was sorta operating under the assumption that whoever survives the first adventure becomes level 1.

Do you think it would be better to keep track and have the character reach level 1 between encounters during the first adventure? So that maybe a handful of them are already clerics or fighters when they get to the climax?

Quote from: Kaz;549662I am not certain if they would have gotten the 10 points. I was sorta operating under the assumption that whoever survives the first adventure becomes level 1.

Do you think it would be better to keep track and have the character reach level 1 between encounters during the first adventure? So that maybe a handful of them are already clerics or fighters when they get to the climax?

Nah, whatever works. The idea that if they survive the first adventure then that's cool, they're level 1 is just as good. No need to be anal about it. The 10 XP baseline is just there to tell you that they got to survive some amount of danger in some way rather than cruising away from the adventure to get their first level. If you think they were in jeopardy enough and prefer to move on next session, I don't see why you would stick to the letter of the rule on this one.

Quote from: Benoist;549663Nah, whatever works. The idea that if they survive the first adventure then that's cool, they're level 1 is just as good. No need to be anal about it. The 10 XP baseline is just there to tell you that they got to survive some amount of danger in some way rather than cruising away from the adventure to get their first level. If you think they were in jeopardy enough and prefer to move on next session, I don't see why you would stick to the letter of the rule on this one.

It's actually in the rules to advance zero levels to level one and assign 10 XP on Page 26 of the DCC RPG Core Rulebook - just for reference:

The XP Table: The table below shows the experience points
required for each level.

As an optional rule, consider allowing any 0-level charac-
ters that survive their first adventure to automatically ad-
vance to 1st-level and 10 XP. Zero-level adventures are a
harrowing, deadly experience with particularly high fatal-
ity rates. As long as each player controls a portfolio of mul-
tiple 0-level PCs, such a play style can be fun. However, too
many games with a 0-level character exchange novelty for
enforced cowardice.

So I think you are all good.  

Awesome!

Yeah, i'd just give the survivors of the funnel 10 xp and be done with it. Then, if anyone is lucky enough to have more than one survivor, let them choose their favourite - although i don't think it will be hard work for players to operate more than 1 1st level character if they have more than 1 left. Also, the other survivors can be ready made replacements for the ones that cop it at 1st level!

Quote from: IronHelixx;549697It's actually in the rules to advance zero levels to level one and assign 10 XP on Page 26 of the DCC RPG Core Rulebook - just for reference:

The XP Table: The table below shows the experience points
required for each level.

As an optional rule, consider allowing any 0-level charac-
ters that survive their first adventure to automatically ad-
vance to 1st-level and 10 XP. Zero-level adventures are a
harrowing, deadly experience with particularly high fatal-
ity rates. As long as each player controls a portfolio of mul-
tiple 0-level PCs, such a play style can be fun. However, too
many games with a 0-level character exchange novelty for
enforced cowardice.

So I think you are all good.  

Eh. There you go.

Welcome to the RPG Site, mate!

Quote from: Benoist;549702Eh. There you go.

Welcome to the RPG Site, mate!

Thank you, Sir.  

Now that I come to think of it, when I start a campaign for reals, I will probably count the points as we go. That way if someone comes up as a Level 1 or whatever, we can take a break to level up and people can lean on this new badass in the group.

My FLGS also has some blank white dice. I really want to turn a D12 into a D3 and a D10 into a D5. Then I would just need a D14, a D16, a D24 and a D14 that can be a D7.

I gotta figure out the best way to get those dice marked. I saw a blog on ironing shit on them, dunno how that will work.

Quote from: One Horse Town;549699Awesome!

Yeah, i'd just give the survivors of the funnel 10 xp and be done with it. Then, if anyone is lucky enough to have more than one survivor, let them choose their favourite - although i don't think it will be hard work for players to operate more than 1 1st level character if they have more than 1 left. Also, the other survivors can be ready made replacements for the ones that cop it at 1st level!

Yeah! I'm thinking maybe all the members of the roster who survive the first adventure can be back at the homestead (Hommlet, whatever) and if one beefs it, they can just bring out the alternates.

How do people feel about having any PCs that die being replaced by a peasant? A 0-level hireling that gets promoted by staying alive with the veterans? Or would you have the player roll up a 1st-level dude?

This games sounds like a hoot.  Got no idea on the viability of a peasant in a 1st level group, though.

Question on something I honestly may have missed in a prior review of the game: are all the PCs' characters run through the grinder, er...adventure at the same time or are they treated as replacements brought in as space opens up in the party?

You're a mass gang of worthless turds.

So, the game I ran this weekend started with a dozen guys climbing into the dungeon. By the end, we had half that number left.

The players were pretty heartless. They stripped whoever died and took their shit before the body even started to cool. The only significance of them belonging to one player is that whoever's character it was who died got dibs on their crap.

If that's what you meant, Danger.

Once the characters survive and become level 1, I suppose you can use the leftovers as replacements, if you wanted. Or let the players bring them along, too. I don't get the sense that the game gets any less deadly just because the characters have a handful more HP and a better chance at hitting shit.