Thornwatch Preview - Talking Cards & RPGs With Penny Arcade's Gabe

[JonB]

Thornwatch Preview - Talking Cards & RPGs With Penny Arcade's Gabe

Penny Arcade's Mike Krahulik has been making this game for years, and it's finally coming to fruition.

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[TiberiusEsuriens]

I'm loving the increase in card-based role play. It's incredibly difficult to get into a RPG even if the game master is very cooperative. There's too much unnecessary bloat to keep track of, and new players just want to get in on the action.

Card RPGs have the amazing ability where anyone can simply pick up a deck and start playing immediately, and almost all the rules are self contained on their relevant cards. Having all of the game elements physical also means that it's incredibly easy to just mash together a campaign in moments.

 

[Jburton9]

I'm loving the increase in card-based role play. It's incredibly difficult to get into a RPG even if the game master is very cooperative. There's too much unnecessary bloat to keep track of, and new players just want to get in on the action.

Card RPGs have the amazing ability where anyone can simply pick up a deck and start playing immediately, and almost all the rules are self contained on their relevant cards. Having all of the game elements physical also means that it's incredibly easy to just mash together a campaign in moments.

Good points, a card game can get the core rpg elements in there as well as be more accessible to players. Also maybe the idea of being a base game or gateway game kinda like a new version of the D&D basic red box set while the Advanced D&D with all the detail and extras available if people want a larger experience.

 

[Trisha Lynn]

Towards the end of the article, it says the "Sister of the Eyrewood" is like a pet class. Why are the female characters the "pets"? I understand that much of the design came out of Krahulik's concept of what he doesn't like about RPG games, but I think that it was incredibly short-sighted of a man whose most recent continual story arc of comics involved female role play gamers who want to be badass heroes [http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2014/04/09/the-dungeon-mistress-part-one] and not relegated to "pet" classes.

 

[WoodyBBad]

Maybe you are reading too much into that? Can the Thornwatch or Lookouts include females also?

 

[Nalgas D. Lemur]

Towards the end of the article, it says the "Sister of the Eyrewood" is like a pet class. Why are the female characters the "pets"? I understand that much of the design came out of Krahulik's concept of what he doesn't like about RPG games, but I think that it was incredibly short-sighted of a man whose most recent continual story arc of comics involved female role play gamers who want to be badass heroes [http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2014/04/09/the-dungeon-mistress-part-one] and not relegated to "pet" classes.

I assume they mean "uses pets", not "are pets", especially based on The Tithe [http://penny-arcade.com/comic/2013/09/06/the-tithe-part-one] and how it suggests they have control over/some kind of link with nature and magical beasts/creatures. I'm totally blanking on if they've said anything about whether the classes are staying assigned by gender the way they are or there'll be more added or alternate artwork created as there's more time for that after basic things like the core rules get sorted out. It'd be nice though.

 

[Trisha Lynn]

Towards the end of the article, it says the "Sister of the Eyrewood" is like a pet class. Why are the female characters the "pets"? I understand that much of the design came out of Krahulik's concept of what he doesn't like about RPG games, but I think that it was incredibly short-sighted of a man whose most recent continual story arc of comics involved female role play gamers who want to be badass heroes [http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2014/04/09/the-dungeon-mistress-part-one] and not relegated to "pet" classes.

I assume they mean "uses pets", not "are pets", especially based on The Tithe [http://penny-arcade.com/comic/2013/09/06/the-tithe-part-one] and how it suggests they have control over/some kind of link with nature and magical beasts/creatures. I'm totally blanking on if they've said anything about whether the classes are staying assigned by gender the way they are or there'll be more added or alternate artwork created as there's more time for that after basic things like the core rules get sorted out. It'd be nice though.

After chilling out, I totally grok and get what you mean. It would make sense for Daughters to have powerful pets that they control and use to deal damage/aid in healing/whatever pets do.

I sure hope that classes aren't aligned by gender. It's bad enough that only girls have a link to the forest and are Daughters and only boys can be Lookouts.