Countdown Clue

I was looking for a version of clue with a player controlled killer, or some other mechanic to up the tension. I found some more complicated versions, but then I had an idea. Thus, Countdown Clue was born.

Materials

• Clue - The boardgame.
• RPG dice, specifically d4, d6, d8, d10, & d12.

Process

Play clue like the original rules prescribed. No intrigue cards, no individual abilities. Just move and guess.

But make the following changes.

• All players begin outside the house's front door.
• Players roll the normal 2d6 plus an additional RPG die, beginning with the d12.
• When the RPG die results in a 1 or 2, it drops down one size for all players.
• When a player rolls a 1 or 2 on the d4, they complete their turn as normal, after which they are eliminated.
• Eliminated players continue to observe and debunk guesses as normal.

Game End

The game ends when 1 of the players guesses correctly or when all of the players have been eliminated by the killer.

In the event all players have been eliminated by the killer, their spirits then make one final guess, based on the information the have. As they are dead, they can guess any room they wish. The players write their final guess before the hidden cards are revealed. The player(s) that guess the most hidden cards correctly, wins!

In Play

In play the game was fast. We played 3 games in about 35 minutes. With the additional die, the meeples practically soar around the house. 

The RPG die counting down has a double effect. First, players feel the visceral dread of the game coming to a close before having all of the information. Second, it slows down the meeples. 

When two or three rolls in a row resulted in 1s or 2s, everyone began to panic, but they couldn't traverse the hallways fast enough.

I also feel like other players were making better guesses, which improved the available information. Also, players were not spending as long thinking and making notes. Even though the timer was partially under our control (the dice only risk downsizing when you actually roll them), we still felt like we had to hurry.

In two games, I had the correct answer by my first turn with a d4. The other players had parts of the answer as well.

In the third game, another player and myself had two thirds of the correct guess. This game was also the quickest as we were all eliminated during the third round.

Episode 3 - Jaephing and Nala

 In this episode we chose Jaephing to be out main character.

We then went through the process of generating a plot.

We ended up with a police detective working for a cult, that wants to heist something from the Central Train Station. They tried to work Jaephing into the cause. Jaephing has their interest piqued, but so far has been reluctant.

Mistakes Were Made

One of the issues of running everything live, without editing, is fact that mistakes will be made. Here are the corrections for Jaephing so far.

1. Jaephing only had 1 Coin and 4 PD. So Jaephing should have 2 additional trappings. So I updated the character sheet to include the Rope d6, and Jack Knife Easy Nautical.

2. In episode 2 I had rolled that Jaephing was a female, but I forgot about this and later rerolled Jaephing to be a male. I am going to keep Jaephing as a male. I will explain my reasoning later.

And that is it so far.

This week, I'll try to do some setting posts.

Episode 2 - Characters

 In this episode we made 4 characters. Ugby, Thaki, Jaephing, and Laeth.

We used a weird table I made that gives you a series of vowels and consonants to throw together into random words.

We then randomly rolled the rest of the characters.

That was it really. 

Episode 1

 The ReLaunch of Roll 4 Saves is upon us. See previous post for an explanation.

This is the explainer episode.

I introduced myself, 

Hi, I'm Wayne.

I introduced the show,

This is an solo, actual-play, beta test.

I introduced the game system,

Start with a d6. Bump it up if something makes the roll easy, if you have a matching skill, and/or if you have a matching background. Bump it down if something makes the roll hard. A roll of 4 or higher avoids consequences.

I introduced the setting,

Pretty much just humans. But archipelagos separated by abyssal leviathans. Then Technology! and Airships! and the discovery of a continent. The continent is named Lurr. The greatest city on the continent is Nyrborg. Magic is a thing that exists, but it is weak.. There was once a great civilization in the world. Their towers and catacombs are testaments to their power. Electricity is generated by Furthstein, magic, glowing stones that can be threaded together to create more powerful currents.

That is pretty much it.

Show Relaunch

 A few thoughts were running through my head this past week.

1. I need to find a way to adjust the gain on my big microphone...
2. It is a bit difficult to follow the mechanics and story and all in a purely audio format.
3. I'm 5 episodes into the story of the Charbone Collectors, and bored.

So I did some experimenting.

• If I record with Zoom, I can mess with the Gain.
• If I record in Zoom, I can record a video along side the audio.
• If I'm going to use videos, I'd like to have it available for all episodes.
• If I start over, I can use my plot cards, which I had recently rewritten for a more generic setting, AND had added to the text of Roll 4 Saves.

So Friday, I took the nuclear option.

I made 3 episodes, and started a plotline I'm much more interested in.

One of the main differences is that the story will focus on a single character, instead of a full party.

Also, there is video on YouTube (see links below and in the sidebar).

As the older episodes had worse quality audio, and might dissuade new listeners that want to start at the beginning, I nuked them.

On the otherhand, I uploaded all three episodes that I recorded on Friday.

I am still planning to have Episode 5 up by Friday (November 5th, 2022), and then an episode released each week after that.

So if you read the previous posts and wonder what is happening to Melillot and the others, sorry, there story is gone.

But I'm sure Jaephing will more than make up for it.

Post Nuked Episode 4 Character Update

This Episode referenced here has been taken to a farm upstate. I learned how to record with better audio quality, and I wanted a more interesting story line. This post is left here to remind me of all the lovers I failed before. 

As mentioned in episode 4, I'm planning to post Character Updates after each even numbered episode.

The following might be spoilers. So read at your own risk.

Nuked Episode 4 - Blade Beetle

This Episode has been devoured by the flames of my passion. Or, I learned how to record with better audio quality, and I wanted a more interesting story line. This post is left here to remind me of my own  inevitable acceptance of the emptiness of the grave.

 In this episode, the group started with some last minute shopping. They mostly bought sources of light.

Then it was time to officially enter the tournament. The announcers are a pair of goatkin. They famously get drunker as the day's events go on.

So by the time the Charbone Collectors were up (they started 12th out of 12). The announcers were pretty inebriated.

I explained how combat works (I'll put up some separate posts on that when I get a chance), and randomized the first room's encounter.

The Blade Beetle

• Grit 10
• Base Damage 1
• Special 1d6 Damage to a Single Target.

This large beetle is about the size of a Great Dane. It is similarly lanky, and its legs end in sharp, semi-metallic blades. The beetles' diet gives them hardened chiton which makes the weapons formidable.

Amber was able to get a quick blowgun needle into the beetle's eye, and Mellilot was able to use her long rapier to impale it through the abdomen.

Then Onzo disabled a flame trap, but took 1 damage from one of the flame spouts.

They then found some armor and a sword, but they were obviously designed to fall apart in any real skirmish.

Next episode should be something tougher in room 2!