No one knows how it happened. To understand, you’d have to go back to a time before D&D Next or Monsterhearts. In a blaze of madness and surrounded by the hum of computers, we tried Apocalypse World. It was a world and there had been an apocalypse. I guess it was too much to ask for a more creative name.
In this episode, we talk about Apocalypse World. We played it over Skype, so we share our experiences with that as well.
Plus: Our next entry in our D&D Next Diary
Noclue says:
Commented on your post at apocalypse-world.com –
Cool. Your first game went about like our first game did and I think your next go would be better. It’s become one of my favorite games. I jotted down some thoughts while I listened.
Did the MC ask probing questions during Hx? You run a sandbox, but you should be asking all kind of questions. They have a caravan? Cool, of cars? Where do they get their gas? What do they trade for it? Who’s responsible for that? Who’s in charge of the caravan for that matter? Why? Who wants to take over? Why haven’t they made a move yet?
NPCs, why does it matter if they know them? Ask how they know them? What is their relationship? Are they sleeping together? Were they together in the past?
Yes. You should have approached AW the way you did in Monsterhearts.
Scorched worlds are boring????? Have you seen Mad Max?
Vegetable gardens are not boring. You have a vegetable garden? Cool! How do you protect it in a world of scarcity? Who was the last group that tried to take it from you? How long ago? Who did you lose in the fight? What was she to you? Who blames you for her death? Now that she’s gone, who’s watching out for her little brother? What’s your relationship like with him?
Threats and problems grow from the questions. See above.
Yeah, fuck profanity 😉
Don’t baseline. Just get into your characters and answer the MC’s questions.
Noclue says:
Also, the text could be more explicit about the fact that the MC needs to bring all his daydreaming about the apocalypse to that first session, not just sit there going with what the players throw out. The MC definitely needs to come to the first session with ideas–stuff he wants to see, the way things look, questions he needs answered.
Also, did you make lots of maps? Did you give everyone a name?