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Hello Everyone

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doseofstyle
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Joined: 02/21/2019

Hello Everyone, my name is Dan and I am from Manchester, UK.

I started my Currant Game Escape Or Dice back in December. I still have a a lot to do with it. up until last week the people I tested it on said they enjoyed it. But after taking it to a playtaster workshop last week they were not that keen and advised me to drop the Roll and Move aspect.

But as I want that to be a Main Part of the game i'm hoping to work on it!.

let-off studios
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Hello...

...and welcome to BGDF, Dan!

There are lots of ways to change up a roll n' move type of game into something that still uses dice, but not necessarily for determining to where the players' pawns will move. Avoiding hazards, using skills, combat, etc. are all other ways players can use dice, regardless of how they move from place to place in the game world.

Best of success on Escape or Dice! Keep at it. Please share details here so others can have a clearer picture of your game, and so they can offer useful feedback and suggestions.

Jay103
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Welcome! Yeah, roll-and-move

Welcome!

Yeah, roll-and-move CAN be used in a good game design, but frequently it's more of an albatross.

If you can handle criticism that is sometimes without too much tact, you should definitely post details here. We see all sorts of stuff, including full print-and-play-ready games (and no, nobody is interested in stealing your game.. that's not a thing). There are almost certainly people here who can help streamline or re-direct things for you.

wob
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howdy. obviously i know

howdy.
obviously i know nothing of your game but i am guessing your players disliked the luck element of roll and move.
luck is used more for games aimed at younger players and non gamers as it evens out the skill levels (a toddler and a chess grand master have an equal chance of winning snakes and Ladders) which is great for those types of audience.
even games with older themes like zombie dice work fine with huge amounts of luck because its such a light game no one is expecting a game of skill and no one really cares who wins (its more about wasting half an hour).
is your game a light filler or a kids/family game? if it is then roll and move could be perfect.
if not, and its a heavy, thinky (and/or long) game it can be extremely frustrating to plan, plot and play perfectly for the whole game then lose because you roll a 3 instead of a 4.
in general its better to have the random at the start of a problem than the end. ie "here are some random resources, how do you best manage them" instead of " you put your resources in these places, roll this dice lets see if you win" (there are exceptions obviously)
a happy medium might be the way a lot of games deal with fighting. dice mitigation, still use roll and move but give a way to reroll and add or subtract pips. if the mitigation comes at a cost it can add some strategy to the luck.

Tim Edwards
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Joined: 07/30/2015
Hi Dan, I like rolling and

Hi Dan,

I like rolling and moving. There's a timeless (for me) excitement in it and I'm often not in the mood for something more taxing - Ludo goes really well with a gin and tonic at the end of the week.

I think wob made a really good point about the problem being usually when the luck element undermines a serious thinky dimension. If you're going with a test-your-luck experience, great. If you're going with an outsmart-your-opponent one, also great. But combining them can create an awkward tension.

BUT...then there are the ingenious games which are driven by dice - whilst managing to be highly strategic, like Backgammon. I suppose that works because, although the dice gods are still at work, you have plenty of choices about how to use the gifts they give you.

So, luck and strategy can be in tension OR luck can really create the conditions for strategy.

All this is really just to say: If you want rolling and moving to be the main part of the game, maybe your most likely solutions will be to a) reduce the intensity of the thinky bits, or b) something very, very clever where the luck CREATES strategy instead of competing with it...

I'm dying to know more about your game now :)

questccg
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Welcome to BGDF...

One way to replace Roll & Move in a game is to give players X Action Points (APs). For example you get 6 APs per turn. To move costs 1 AP per space. To draw a card takes 2 AP, etc.

The point is everything you do costs a certain amount of APs... Each action can have its own cost as explained above.

Cheers and welcome to BGDF...

doseofstyle
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Joined: 02/21/2019
Hello Everyone and thank you

Hello Everyone and thank you for your comments.

I am looking at creating a game in which is fun for everyone. not too tricky and fun.

Here is a link to the rule book I had before the playtest. http://escapeordice.com/rule-book/

There is also a blog which shows Pictures of the board.

Since then I have recreated the board and rule book. below is what I have come up with so far. I know that its all work in progress and that my game will be tweaked a whole lot more and I am enjoying it.

STARTING THE GAME
At the start of every round every player will roll their dice at the same time.
In the first round whoever went to the toilet last picks which roll they want then play proceeds clockwise.
Every one will then take turns to pick first.

(This is an idea which i found online and its good as if a player is 4 spaces away from the dungeons then they will want to have another dice if there roll was 4.)

Each player has 5 lives.
These can be lost by being set to the dungeons, attacked by monsters and losing to other players.

During every round each player can Pick up another loot card and can use attack and other cards on other players.
What then happens in the game depends on what you land on.

A – Attack from the Dice
If you land on A you have been caught by the Dice. This means you lose all your loot cards and bottle tops.
If you have an attack card you can use this to battle the dice. To beat the dice, you Roll another dice and your attack card must be higher or the same as the dice.

C- Castle
If you land on Castle you have the chance to raid it.
Pick up a Castle card from the deck

Be warned though as some cards mean you are either caught and sent to dungeons (lose a life) or you must run! (You pay 5 bottle tops to run)

D- Dungeons
Land on this letter and you could get sent to the dungeon and lose all your treasure and lose a life.
Once in the dungeons you must make your way through back to the start of the city again. You can fight Monsters in the dungeons to gain loot cards and pick up Bottle tops.

Attacked by Monsters
If You land on this icon it means you are under attack from the monsters that are in Talon.

Bottle tops
If You land on this icon it means you pick up 3 bottle tops. You can use these at add to your treasure or buy more loot cards.
Loot cards
Loot card gives you Bottle Tops to add to your treasure, Attack cards and more.

S- Spawn from Dungeon
land on S in the Dungeons and you escape to S on the main board.

That is what I have so far. I do hope this makes sense and I do apologize if it doesn't

I have a full week off next week and I am looking forward to adding more to the game.

Thank you
Dan

Tim Edwards
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Joined: 07/30/2015
Hi Dan, Thanks for posting

Hi Dan,

Thanks for posting your game. It's funny - I've just been spending the evening nostalgia tripping over Fighting Fantasy, so I like the idea of your very accessible dungeon-dice-battle game. I think the movement mechanism is interesting - 2 die, move forward if total's Even...it's original.

I wonder if that's enough dice play? You've got various encounters being resolved with dice too - but do they have to be? Could you collect cards and battle with those instead perhaps?

I'm just thinking that it might be cool if the experience of the game was: Movement = dice and your distinctive movement mechanism; Fighting = a different mechanism with a different component.

Maybe your play-testers would find that actually it wasn't the roll and move they objected to, but the double dice action of movement AND fighting?

Nice clear rules by the way!

doseofstyle
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Joined: 02/21/2019
Thank you for the

Thank you for the feedback.

The evens move forward I have removed from the new set of rules for now but I may test that again.

And I will be creating attack cards that will be used to face each other and these can be got by the loot pile.

Jay103
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Joined: 01/23/2018
(1) I'm not sure I really get

(1) I'm not sure I really get the theming. Bottle tops?

(2) "If you have an attack card you can use this to battle the dice. To beat the dice, you Roll another dice and your attack card must be higher or the same as the dice"

You're really just asking for trouble with this naming (though saying "dice" when you mean "die" isn't helping).

A rule book should be giving clarity, not taking it away.

doseofstyle
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Joined: 02/21/2019
Jay103 wrote:(1) I'm not sure

Jay103 wrote:
(1) I'm not sure I really get the theming. Bottle tops?

(2) "If you have an attack card you can use this to battle the dice. To beat the dice, you Roll another dice and your attack card must be higher or the same as the dice"

You're really just asking for trouble with this naming (though saying "dice" when you mean "die" isn't helping).

A rule book should be giving clarity, not taking it away.

Sorry for the confusion.

Bottle tops is like coins in the game.

The attack cards and dice bit is what I am hoping to work on next week.

A friend of mine came up with the name of the game as it means your goal is to escape the city or stay and die. And the dice can kill you.

Once again sorry for the confusion. I hope as I progress I can make it better to understand.

Jay103
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Joined: 01/23/2018
I mean, when you name the

I mean, when you name the opponent "the dice", and you refer to them as "D.I.C.E.", "Dice", and "dice", and you fight them by rolling your dice against dice dice (or maybe there's a card involved), you have a big problem with the lack of clarity.

At the very least, you need to be absolutely consistent about that opponent name. I'd suggest "D.I.C.E.", or "Dice" if you prefer, but never ever "dice". Because "dice" are the cubes with spots.

Also, I'd say that "play until an hour is up" is an unusual mechanic. Consider having an end point, and if the game needs to end early, have that be driven by something other than the clock (like running out of cards, for example)

Tim Edwards
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Joined: 07/30/2015
Jay103 wrote:I mean, when you

Jay103 wrote:
I mean, when you name the opponent "the dice", and you refer to them as "D.I.C.E.", "Dice", and "dice", and you fight them by rolling your dice against dice dice (or maybe there's a card involved), you have a big problem with the lack of clarity.

At the very least, you need to be absolutely consistent about that opponent name. I'd suggest "D.I.C.E.", or "Dice" if you prefer, but never ever "dice". Because "dice" are the cubes with spots.

Also, I'd say that "play until an hour is up" is an unusual mechanic. Consider having an end point, and if the game needs to end early, have that be driven by something other than the clock (like running out of cards, for example)

Yes, actually that part of the rules was confusing.

Thematically, I wonder what the Dice is/are. I sort of saw them as actual giant dice bouncing down the tunnels, a bit like that big balloon in The Prisoner.

If that's not it - maybe D.I.E or D.I.C.E could stand for something. Death Inducing Energy, Dungeon Inhabiting Chaotic Ectoplasm...something to justify the initialism. But obviously referred to as D.I.E or D.I.C.E throughout.

doseofstyle
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Joined: 02/21/2019
The D.I.C.E are The Knights

The D.I.C.E are The Knights of the mad King. I am Still coming up with what each letter will mean.

Tim Edwards
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Joined: 07/30/2015
The Knights Of The Mad King I

The Knights Of The Mad King

I like it. That could even be the name of the game. :)

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