Burning Wheel Gold: Interest?

Hi everybody!

So I helped kickstart the BWG Codex and the thing is burning a hole in my pocket (see what I did there?). But really I've never even (successfully) played a "hub 'n' spokes" game under the core rules. I managed to get a PbP game going over a year ago (on another forum) but it quickly fell to the usual pit-falls of PbP (players kept flaking). Well, here I am wanting to give it another shot, I think the system has some really intriguing concepts that I want to put to the test, and maybe some day put this gorgeous supplementary tome to use. But first I want to start at the start.

Would anyone be interested in a pretty basic, "Hub n Spokes" BWG game? I'd like to go through the campaign burning process and all that, together. I will run it or be a player, if an experienced BW GM wants to step-in and help us out. I only ask that those who throw their names in the hat to play have read the H'n'S (available for free on their website), and can claim some level of understanding of that portion of the system (or a willingness to read it very very soon).

So, yea, any takers?

[EDIT: Looking for 3 or 4 players max]

I'd definitely be interested in playing this, but will allow some others a shot first. If you're still looking for some players after a bit then I'll jump on in!

Thanks for expressing interest, szemely.

I mentioned it to a guy from my IRL group who has expressed interest in the past, and put the word out on another forum, so I'm hoping we might still get off the ground...

Interested. Played and GMed a bunch of BWR, ran The Sword in BWG, never played BW PbP before. I'm about to be running a BWG game in meatspace so I don't think I'm up for GMing this one, though I can act as a pretty good reference.

I recently started up a game here and I'm very glad to see another game starting!

I'm in the same situation as you emsquared. The Codex just has me wanting to play! So I'm in. I've been playing Burning Wheel since classic so like Epigone I can help with rules knowledge.

If there's still a spot for me, I'd certainly be interested! I'm currently three sessions into my first BWG campaign, though our group meets infrequently. I've also got about a year of Torchbearer experience.

Epigone, Verrain, shughr glad to have you on board!

Little intimidated that you all have more experience than me, but so long as you're willing to have some patience and understanding, I look forward to it!

szemely, I feel like 3 players is the sweet spot for me here - given that these 3 will likely have no problem exerting their agency and using the system to engage the gameworld - but I would love to have a 4th player in the queue, ready to jump in should life get in another's way. So I hope you'll accept my invitation to join us in the campaign and character burning process? If that doesn't interest you however, I of course understand, and thank you again for jumping in to begin with.

With regards to campaign burning, I figure we may as well start that here and now? I want to reiterate my desire to keep things on the basic side of things. Towards that goal, would you three (or hopefully four) mind all that terrible much if we limit PCs to one Stock (flexible as to which but just so I don't have to keep track of 3 or 4 different Emotional Attributes)?

Beyond that I'd like to open things up, what interests you guys?

What place will our story take place in and around?

What's the immediate conflict?

What's the big picture?

And so on, you guys know how it goes ... my ears are burning to hear your ideas and desires!

I am fine with us all being the same stock. Now, I would love to try out some of the new stuff in the Codex but I'm not sure if we all own a copy. So if my GM and fellow players are good with it, might I suggest sticking with the Lifepaths of Man but allowing one of the new magic systems? I'd love to give spirit binding a try.

All one stock: fine.
I own the Codex.
I like humans, racism, quests, intrigue.
I've never used spirit binding, but two players in the game I'm starting in meatspace will be using it.

Here are some setting seeds I wrote for my group who wanted an "intrigue campaign": https://docs.google.com/document/d/1yg9KTxJemoF212Opyh92B9vbwr4eSmMTHaswp08QngE/edit?usp=sharing

I think I'll just let you folks to it and jump aboard something else for now. Hope you all have a good time! :-)

Human stock sounds perfect. I also have a codex and have been reading through it. Spirit Binding sounds dope!

Quests are great! I'm comfortable exploring issues of race, so long as it's done in a serious, respectful manner (not that there's any reason to suspect it wouldn't be, just putting it out there). Intrigue is also cool!

Oh yeah to be perfectly clear I don't like racism. But I do like the issue to be present. Not at all a deal breaker if it's not, though.

Human stock it is!

I haven't looked at Spirit Binding, but sounds like everyone's on board with it and conceptually it seems like it should tack onto normal Sorcery fine, as that doesn't have much of any "real" summoning.

Intrigue and quests are pretty broad conflict ideas, working from that base how about we focus on setting for a moment, which I think will help us put a finer point on the exact type of intrigue and or quests?

I browsed your prompts Epigone, and a Mages College setting was actually amongst a list of my own I had created. Could be cool... I also had a Thieves Guild thing, a Pirates/Privateer thing could be rife with drama, or a City Under Siege... I would like to stay away from a straight Noble setting just cuz it's ... well, I feel like it diminishes some of the risk and interest of Lifepath choices as they're just the best everything - years, resources, skills, etc.

What are you guys feeling?

I like Thieves Guild! Not a big fan of boats. Fine with no nobles.

Don't get me wrong, if you "work your way up" into Noble Lifepaths that's cool (whatever setting we decide on), I'm not excluding them, I just don't want to have everyone Born Noble.

I can make Spirit Binding work in a Thieves Guild campaign. Stealing is easy when you can summon the spirit of the door to open for you. :)

I like the idea of a City based campaign. I have this gorgeous map of the City of Greyhawk and always wanted to a campaign that didn't leave it, but that is hard in D&D. So Thieves Guild, under Siege, maybe a Thieves Guild in a City Under Siege! Do we take advantage of the chaos or become heroic smugglers for the people? I'm liking that idea the more that I think of it.

Verrain, is there a digital version of the map? Sounds cool.

I'd like to hear shughr weigh-in on setting if they want to, before we move forward with anything, but I think all that's been mentioned is ripe for picking. And if anyone has other interests they've been burning to try, feel free to bring them to the floor.

The version I have is a poster that came with old D&D box set. I tried to take a picture of it: https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipM8KdP7_QjR7CFKEaXbERukjOzVe88Xl-fLtiEW

This website is a recreation of it for a DM to mark up. http://melkot.com/locations/cogh/cogh.html

I looked into Spirit Binding and it is a bit more involved than I expected, and while I don't yet feel fully comfortable with it I'm fine with proceeding using it as everyone else is on board too. It seemed quite powerful, so about all I can say is, if you fail your check don't ever expect there to be no Retribution... >:D

Verrain, regarding the map; the picture link wasn't working for me even logged onto my google account, but the other link was good. And yea, that's a pretty cool/detailed map. Found a decent high res version to work with. I am not familiar with Greyhawk however and I think we should still burn-up the world itself for ourselves (or if everyone else knows/likes Greyhawk I can learn, ha!).

If we haven't heard from shughr by the end of today, we'll move forward exploring the Greyhawk city/Siege/Thieves Guild ideas, if that sounds agreeable?

Especially once we get going with the actual campaign, everyone please be sure to subscribe to the appropriate threads, and try to post at least once a day even if it's just to say, "I'm cool with whatever." or "I am busy the next day or two, move on without me."

Thanks guys, I'm excited for it!