Did I mention that I've started in a new department at my day job? It's true! It's a writing-centric job, which I balked from for a long time, but a tiny amount of time in, it hasn't soured me on writing yet. If anything, my time on this Earth has led me to think that perhaps a balance can be struck, between being ground beneath the heel of capitalism (in this one, particular instance) and bEiNg FuLfIlLeD, I can hone my writing skills without burning out. Famous last words!
But anyhow, that's one reason that I've been able to catch back up on my podcasts, stay atop my theatre's agenda, and write these very articles, which no one reads. I don't actually mind that no one reads them by the way. No, honest! People see my plays and talk to me about them and it makes me want to die, whether they're being positive or negative, so frfr it's nice to just have a quiet little corner of Al Gore's Internet where I get my reps in working both sides of my brain without any real consequence.
I also want to peel back the curtain a bit on my process for this blog. I keep a Google Doc for it, where I start various entries (most eventually become a full-blown MM, in time) underneath a list of possible mechanics to dive into and tinker around in. Mechanics pop into my head all the time, and tend to bounce around the old rock tumbler for a bit before seeing the light of day. Not always though; sometimes the post gets written before anything even hits the Google Doc. As is self-evident from this blog, sometimes what emerges is at least a little refined, or honed over the course of a series of interconnected mechanics (what up Amberlodge and Fantasy GM Squared), and sometimes it's still just a raw lump of potential. Today's is the latter.
Wealth-Dependent Player States
In GREEM, you engage in a series of auctions or tricks to build wealth and turn it into victory points. Depending on how much you have of either resource, however, different rules apply to you. For instance, the lead player must always bid first; no player with more ten wealth may bid more than a quarter of their total wealth; the leader of a category is the one with the highest tens digit but the lowest ones digit; etc. Various rules, which change game to game, act as regulations to ensure tight competition.
So let’s be upfront: It’s a fancy-schmancy rubber band mechanic. An entrant into that reviled family of mechanisms that all amount to a spiked blue shell wearing a variety of false mustaches. But I like it! I envision each player having a board where the wealth track and the VP track both have milestones to avoid or to strategically reach for; as well as certain tokens that are claimed and auctioned and passed around (I love any game where you can trade in rules or even first-place status). I can see the auction lots comprising of mixed ratios of Wealth and VP; ongoing sources of income (which may increase in value, or dry up randomly, at a certain time, or according to the whims of the market), various player powers and shields against the regulatory rules; cool shit like that. Maybe inject a little bit of the old Birch Crown set-building DNA in there? Let’s ride THOSE coattails to nowhere.
Ah, self-deprecation. That thing everyone likes reading, which never puts off or depresses the audience. What a joy. Anyway, here’s another Mechanic Monday in the books! Have a not terrible week!
But anyhow, that's one reason that I've been able to catch back up on my podcasts, stay atop my theatre's agenda, and write these very articles, which no one reads. I don't actually mind that no one reads them by the way. No, honest! People see my plays and talk to me about them and it makes me want to die, whether they're being positive or negative, so frfr it's nice to just have a quiet little corner of Al Gore's Internet where I get my reps in working both sides of my brain without any real consequence.
I also want to peel back the curtain a bit on my process for this blog. I keep a Google Doc for it, where I start various entries (most eventually become a full-blown MM, in time) underneath a list of possible mechanics to dive into and tinker around in. Mechanics pop into my head all the time, and tend to bounce around the old rock tumbler for a bit before seeing the light of day. Not always though; sometimes the post gets written before anything even hits the Google Doc. As is self-evident from this blog, sometimes what emerges is at least a little refined, or honed over the course of a series of interconnected mechanics (what up Amberlodge and Fantasy GM Squared), and sometimes it's still just a raw lump of potential. Today's is the latter.
Wealth-Dependent Player States
In GREEM, you engage in a series of auctions or tricks to build wealth and turn it into victory points. Depending on how much you have of either resource, however, different rules apply to you. For instance, the lead player must always bid first; no player with more ten wealth may bid more than a quarter of their total wealth; the leader of a category is the one with the highest tens digit but the lowest ones digit; etc. Various rules, which change game to game, act as regulations to ensure tight competition.
So let’s be upfront: It’s a fancy-schmancy rubber band mechanic. An entrant into that reviled family of mechanisms that all amount to a spiked blue shell wearing a variety of false mustaches. But I like it! I envision each player having a board where the wealth track and the VP track both have milestones to avoid or to strategically reach for; as well as certain tokens that are claimed and auctioned and passed around (I love any game where you can trade in rules or even first-place status). I can see the auction lots comprising of mixed ratios of Wealth and VP; ongoing sources of income (which may increase in value, or dry up randomly, at a certain time, or according to the whims of the market), various player powers and shields against the regulatory rules; cool shit like that. Maybe inject a little bit of the old Birch Crown set-building DNA in there? Let’s ride THOSE coattails to nowhere.
Ah, self-deprecation. That thing everyone likes reading, which never puts off or depresses the audience. What a joy. Anyway, here’s another Mechanic Monday in the books! Have a not terrible week!
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