Re: The Altdorf Chronicles - Chapter One: A New Beginning
Posted: June 26th, 2015, 7:46 am
Yes, it's my feeling too.
The randomness takes something away that is quite unique to Hero Quest. I don't play arcane quest as well, just because i know that everything in there is random.
If i know that everything's random, then i know there is nothing to explore. If there is nothing to explore, you remove at least half of what it means to play Hero Quest.
Exploring is fun because the things we see might add to a meaning. You won't find the fireplace and the Throne together with the torture instruments, because they are not fitting together. And if you find them together, then it's because the boss of the dungeon is exceptionally cruel and likes to sit in front of his fire while watching how people are being tortured.
--> These kind of things, together with the quest notes, have a meaning, and while we explore, we discover the meaning. If you generate the rooms at random, the meaning is gone. What is left is noise only.
Ok, while my example is a little bit exaggerated, you do the same to me with random monsters each and every turn. Normally, you open a door, and you are being confronted with a tactical situation. Then, you can resolve the tactical situation by acting on what you see and choosing a proper tactic. In an evening-event, when you sit together, it is here when the players start their discussion about how to, who to and what to do. And when it is solved, the situation is solved. It will not re-emerge. A feeling of "small sub-mission accomplished" is coming your way, rewarding you for what you have done.
While in the PBP Games, the communication is lacking, the rest is still there. However, if the Monsters reappear at random, they are not planned, there are more of them each turn, and nothing you can do solves this situation, then... well, then this part of the game fun is gone.
I gave feedback after your last game: That i didn't like to be killed by randomly diced goblins. Well, the sewers are a little bit worse. The small animals do hardly hurt us - that'll be rare. But we have the choice of fighting them (so each turn we spend all our energy on that, not coming forward at all); or we ignore them with the effect that they stack up and fight each other hopefully, so there is no disadvantage not to kill them. Plus, because they are random, i don't care to kill them. Would i clean this room and then we could peacefully solve the riddle with the doors and the lever, I would go long ways to kill every single one of them. As I know that there are just coming more, i won't kill them until they block my way.
For you as well, imagine you have to do all the long dicing procedure each and every single turn on the real gaming table. Wouldn't you go mad after a while?
Take a look at Zombicide if you really like random monsters. There are loads of random monsters. However, their mechanics is so simplified, that they do not cost time at all. Maybe this would be a good idea if you really want to keep the random monsters.
However, i would not play another quest with the kind of randomness you were introducing this and last quest.
The randomness takes something away that is quite unique to Hero Quest. I don't play arcane quest as well, just because i know that everything in there is random.
If i know that everything's random, then i know there is nothing to explore. If there is nothing to explore, you remove at least half of what it means to play Hero Quest.
Exploring is fun because the things we see might add to a meaning. You won't find the fireplace and the Throne together with the torture instruments, because they are not fitting together. And if you find them together, then it's because the boss of the dungeon is exceptionally cruel and likes to sit in front of his fire while watching how people are being tortured.
--> These kind of things, together with the quest notes, have a meaning, and while we explore, we discover the meaning. If you generate the rooms at random, the meaning is gone. What is left is noise only.
Ok, while my example is a little bit exaggerated, you do the same to me with random monsters each and every turn. Normally, you open a door, and you are being confronted with a tactical situation. Then, you can resolve the tactical situation by acting on what you see and choosing a proper tactic. In an evening-event, when you sit together, it is here when the players start their discussion about how to, who to and what to do. And when it is solved, the situation is solved. It will not re-emerge. A feeling of "small sub-mission accomplished" is coming your way, rewarding you for what you have done.
While in the PBP Games, the communication is lacking, the rest is still there. However, if the Monsters reappear at random, they are not planned, there are more of them each turn, and nothing you can do solves this situation, then... well, then this part of the game fun is gone.
I gave feedback after your last game: That i didn't like to be killed by randomly diced goblins. Well, the sewers are a little bit worse. The small animals do hardly hurt us - that'll be rare. But we have the choice of fighting them (so each turn we spend all our energy on that, not coming forward at all); or we ignore them with the effect that they stack up and fight each other hopefully, so there is no disadvantage not to kill them. Plus, because they are random, i don't care to kill them. Would i clean this room and then we could peacefully solve the riddle with the doors and the lever, I would go long ways to kill every single one of them. As I know that there are just coming more, i won't kill them until they block my way.
For you as well, imagine you have to do all the long dicing procedure each and every single turn on the real gaming table. Wouldn't you go mad after a while?
Take a look at Zombicide if you really like random monsters. There are loads of random monsters. However, their mechanics is so simplified, that they do not cost time at all. Maybe this would be a good idea if you really want to keep the random monsters.
However, i would not play another quest with the kind of randomness you were introducing this and last quest.