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Dramatic Scene Structure

Started by Spike, September 26, 2020, 01:40:53 AM

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Bren

Quote from: Slipshot762 on September 30, 2020, 06:16:04 PMI'm satisfied with the way it was handled in D6 Star Wars, episode/scene/round.
That nomenclature always bugged me.

The published Star Wars adventures seem like they were intended to have about the same amount of action and varied locales as one of the Star Wars movies. The published adventures usually have 4-6 or so episodes. And a scene (sometimes labeled event) is about like one scene or event in the movie. So the visit to the Death Star would be one of what a published adventure would call an episode. The Death Star Run would be a different episode. When Luke and Leia are on the Death Star and they become trapped on the unextended walkway or ledge and he uses his grapnel to swing them both across the gap, that would be like an event or scene in a published adventure.
But, the movies each are labeled as an episode, e.g., Episode IV: A New Hope. It seems like what WEG called an adventure episode would be analogous to an act in play or movie terms.

In the most recent campaign I divided a named adventure into Chapters instead of Episodes. That bugged me less, but I don't know that any of the players (other than the GMs) in any of the campaigns cared what the subdivisions of an adventure were named.
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VisionStorm

Quote from: Bren on October 01, 2020, 12:39:01 AM
Quote from: VisionStorm on September 30, 2020, 05:32:37 PM
I ask everyone what they're going to do at the start of the round...
Is that asked of all the players as a group or do you ask each player individually? What I'm trying to figure out is in what order the players announce their actions and what is the order based on.

Both basically. I layout the scene and what is going on, then ask what they're going to do in general, which may include their plans as a group, if they have an overarching strategy that requires coordination (such as a group of melee characters moving to block a path between the mountains from incoming enemies while a handful of ranged characters climb onto the surround higher terrain to snipe at the enemies from above, etc.), but also what each character does individually, even if there's some coordinated strategy involved (does your character climb into the mountains to go ranged or join the melee group blocking the path? And if he climbs up what side of the mountains does he take? etc.).

I collect the intended actions from all players first in whatever order they come up (whoever speaks first), then once I know what everyone is going to do (or at least intends to do) the round starts and flows from there. I usually handle ranged attacks first if they're ready and within target range at the start of the round (unless they wanna hold off their attack for some strategic reason), then melee already in melee, which I usually assume happen roughly at the same time (melee may attempt to interrupt a ranged attacker if they're in melee reach; otherwise I tend to resolve ranged attacks first). Then I handle half moves (characters using their full movement that round move half their distance by this point), followed by actions requiring minor preparation (characters moving into melee or firing range, drawing out weapons, etc.). Then finally all actions taking up the whole round (full round actions, full moves, long charge attacks, etc.).

If something happens along the way that messes up a PC's planned action (enemy caster casted a wall of fire along the path they planned to take, perhaps) I may ask the player again mid-round what they're going to do, if they still have time to adjust their plans and do something else from their current position. Otherwise it just tends to flow from the actions declared before the round started.