For those of you who are running (or have run) Ironsworn with a couple of players and a GM, is there anything worth...

For those of you who are running (or have run) Ironsworn with a couple of players and a GM, is there anything worth keeping in mind or any good advice in general? We’re all familiar with PbtA games in general, but I’ve never run one with only two players.
Should I consider playing it in co op instead, with the three of us as players?

Comments

  1. Shawn TomkinAugust 20, 2018 at 5:51 PM

    Hey, Christian Stenz. I just ran a GM'd game for a couple of friends this weekend. It works great. I think that 2 players is Ironsworn's sweet spot, so no reason to add a 3rd if someone wants to GM.

    For a GM'd game, I would suggest that your group discuss the level of control you want players to take over the narrative, just to get everyone on the same page. Because Ironsworn is designed to support GM-less play, it gives lots of implied narrative agency to the players. Depending on how much you take that ball and run with it, that can make your GM feel a bit like a third wheel.

    When I GM, I typically help facilitate the initial world setup and campaign. I like for the players to take the lead in defining their background vows and inciting incident, in order to ensure they'll be engaged in the story. Then, as we begin play, I'll bounce between fairly proactive GM'ing, asking questions or asking for input, and leveraging the oracles. It's a bit of a middle ground between traditional GM play and a shared narrative.

    So, just talk out where you'd like to set those dials. It sounds like you have some experience with narrative games, so I expect it'll be perfectly comfortable for you.

    Let me know how it goes!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Christian StenzAugust 21, 2018 at 3:09 AM

    Shawn Tomkin Hey Shawn, thanks for replying :) It's quite an outstanding product you've created!

    Your input about narrative control is greatly appreciated - it was exactly one of the things I had in mind but weren't able to quite put into words. Many moves seem to handle a lot of the story if you let them, so I think you're spot on when you say, that the GM could potentially feel like a third wheel (that GM would be me) so I'll try and be a bit proactive in that regard.

    Can't wait to try and use the Oracles in play (found the digital versions on Chartopia) - I'm curious to see how they work in game and if they'll help my creativity as a GM. :)

    I'll post again when/if we get the game off the ground :)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment