Kai Tave <kaitave@harborside.com> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>more spoiler space...
I guess I'll chime in too, not like anyone really cares much. Keeping in
mind that this IS my opinion...
I tend to agree with Jeff for the most part. The campaign felt, to me, like
a great many ideas all competing for space, with none of them really winning
out. It just felt CRAMPED. Yes, I was expecting something else, and no,
Shane doesn't have to cater to my tastes specifically, but I was
disappointed with some of the directions taken.
I suppose I should list exactly what I didn't like and why (or this would be
a pretty pointless post).
>>1). I thought the battles were a bit disappointing in that they were reduced
to simply using the mass combat rules a bunch, then skipping to some
expository dialogue, then rolling some more mass-combat rules, etc. It
felt, to me, like a Final Fantasy game where you have umpteen random battles
followed by a cutscene, then you have some more random battles and another
cutscene. Also, I thought that the Battle of Junkyard was a bit too
contrived. The stage was set for a cataclysmic battle between the two
largest military/industrial powers in the Wasted West, possibly the whole
WORLD, and it's reduced to a meaningless rout by means of the
electro-aetheric pulse, which I felt was an unnecessary deus ex machina that
undercuts all the tension that's been building over the span of the game.<<
Especially when one considers that gaining control over the missles from the "Ronald Reagan" was the big point of "Air Force One"
>>And this may also just be me, but I felt that the inclusion of a red chip
reward for killing two incapacitated red hats was gratuitous and
unnecessary. I don't care if they're "bad, bad people"; overly
black-and-white morality aside, murder is murder. No, I'm not going to get
on a high horse about killing, no I don't demand ethical treatment of NPC's
or any of that. I just can't figure out why someone would get a reward for
something like THAT, just shooting two unarmed, unmoving people in the back
of the head. If a red chip reward was just ABSOLUTELY in order, then it
could have been given to members of the posse simply for being present at
the largest battle the Wasted West has ever known. The message I get from
this is "gratuitous killing gets you bonus points". No thanks.<<
That's a bit debateable, but I'd just let it go. Or have them turn out to be shielded from the shield somehow and be up and ready to fight.
>>2). The pacing of the entire adventure leading up to the siege at Denver
felt very rushed to me. This kind of scenario just begs to be expanded,
with multiple missions and encounters. Taking out the Combine SAM site is a
good start, but it's really about the only "side quest" there is. Besides
that, it's pretty much just a straight shot from Junkyard to Denver
and...well, that's about it.<<
I wouldn't mind a few more of those encounters, but they're easily improviseable.
>>3). I agree with everyone else about the potential snags that one might
encounter with Hellstrome and the Box.
Maybe it's just me, but I just want to find a better way to make this work
than "But it's HEROIC!"
4). I also agree with the comments that the actual Unity ship itself felt
too small. You could easily base an entire separate campaign around the
Unity (ala System Shock 2). I'm also just a touch disappointed about the
discontinuity between Brainburners and its information concerning the
Unforgotten Fifteen and the Unity where it's revealed that, well, nobody
from the Unforgotten Fifteen really made it off after all.<<
What discontinuity? Brainburners indicates that none of the Unforgotten 15 made it off the ship. It just gives differing shades to some of their motives for staying.
>>So, after all is said and done, what of it? What would I do differently if
I ran the circus?<<
Well, as a GM, you DO "run the circus."
>>I think the Unity would be better served by being divided
into two 98-page adventures.<<
Which are expensive to produce and print. Let's get real here. Pure adventure modules are generally luxuries for game companies. Only a small fraction of their normal audience is going to buy them (ie, the GMs). As a result, there's a "cram in everything but the kitchen sink" attitude whenever one is released. As a GM, use the published adventures as starting points to tailor to your possies.
I'd say the Unity is a good primer on how to create and structure your own
campaign centered around Judgement Day, but falls short without a good deal
of tinkering.
--Kai Tave
To unsubscribe, send a message to esquire@gamerz.net with
unsubscribe hoe@gamerz.net
as the BODY of the message. The SUBJECT is ignored.