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Mechanics preference question

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mcobb83
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Joined: 06/07/2016

I need a bit of input. I'd like to know which of these mechanics you feel is more advantageous, but first let me describe Defenders of Wessex in mechanical terms.

The game centers on set collection. Players move around the board to various nodes to collect specific resources and then return those resources to a specific location to score points. The game is 100% coop, so the players are working together to score points.

There are 8 characters, each with unique abilities. Thus far all of the abilities are balanced, except for one that I find to be a little underwhelming.

This character currently has the ability to alter one resource in any other players inventory to any other resources. He can do this one time per turn. Now it seems really good on paper, but in truth the ability is used maybe every 2nd or 3rd turn. Other special abilities are used regularly, every turn. The other thing u should indicate is that the game lasts 8 turns.

Now the alteration I was thinking of doing was changing this characters special ability to allow him to take two resources from a single node (typically each node provides only 1 resource per turn). He would also have a 1 use per turn free action to send a resource to any other character (all characters have the ability to spend an action to send a resource).

So what do you think? Alteration of resource, or getting more resource?

gpetersen
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Joined: 03/16/2017
I don't think anyone can

I don't think anyone can really say what a power like that can do without playing the game.

Quote:
Now it seems really good on paper, but in truth the ability is used maybe every 2nd or 3rd turn.

The important thing is whether this power affects the strategy in interesting ways. Is the player constantly thinking ahead to the times when he will use this power? Is he building a strategy in a way that is unique from the strategy he would use with a generic character?

The Odd Fox
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Joined: 01/19/2017
Could you allow the player to choose between them?

I like what you've described here and my thought is to thematically integrate both abilities and allow the character to either do one or the other on any particular turn. By doing this you can allow an otherwise "blah" character to feel like there are some interesting choices to make on any given turn.

Rick L
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Joined: 08/22/2016
So far some good suggestions

So far some good suggestions for you above - what occurred to me is that if one ability is only used 1/2 as many times as the others, compensate by making it twice as powerful. That makes it more anticipated as you wait to be able to use it.

AbErRational
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Joined: 12/02/2016
Sounds like nobrainer if

Sounds like nobrainer if everybody uses their special abilities every turn. I would alter the whole special ability system based on the information you shared. After that, the suggested doubling might work quite nicely and the character ability you developed for replacement can be a completely new character.

ssm
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Joined: 04/06/2017
If I played I would use that

If I played I would use that ability every turn I could, whether coop or pvp.

People tend to like me to playtest because I don't play to win- I play to see what I can do in the given space provided and to see what I can do to skew things all around.

So, I would use it every turn just to see what the other players would figure out what to do about it.

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