Ironsworn: Starforged | Co-op Combat w/Jenna Figgers

As promised in the Combat 101, here's an example of co-op combat using Ironsworn: Starforged, featuring the wonderful Jenna Figgers of @LadiesofDnD
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[@philippkowalski1105]

what an awesome video. Not only is Ironsworn: Starforged a fantastic solo - or better in this case co-op - RPG but Jenna and you seem to work together pretty well. Helps to understand how combat usually works plus seeing it in real life is great.

[@thebadspot]

I had a blast playing with Jenna. This was actually our second take, because in our first attempt we got so carried away having fun we forgot an awful lot of the rules. Not the best thing for a how-to combat example!

[@Kuldirongaze1]

In the Reference Guide p. 17 & 18, when you pay the price (and it's health) you get a chance to "Endure Harm". Roll +Iron or +Health (whichever is higher). If you get a strong hit, you are in control and you can either gain +1 Health or +1 Momentum. On a weak hit, you are still in a bad spot, but you may exchange -1 Momentum for +1 Health. On a miss you either lose an additional -1 Health or -2 Momentum. The "Endure Harm" roll is optional, in case you don't want to risk the "miss".

[@thebadspot]

Hi, thanks for this. We actually did do this Move when Jenna was grabbed by the trash bot, but we ended up cutting it for time because the move is optional. There's a director's cut out there somewhere which is about 2hrs long!

[@Kuldirongaze1]

@@thebadspot ah, cool :)

[@BrianHazardVideos]

24:40 "Armed with a stick and a +1, nothing can possibly go wrong." 😁

[@thebadspot]

Right?

[@johnmarcgreen]

Tip added for what to me was an episode from a show I could literally see in my minds eye… I would watch this! So cool… thanks for a great show!

[@thebadspot]

I'd jump at the chance to roll some dice with Jenna!

[@VyraLove]

Oh my god the ending to the scene was perfect XD

[@thebadspot]

Glad you liked it! Me & Jenna had a blast recording it!

[@gmjeremy3627]

Thanks for this! BTW, I was thinking they'd flashbang or stun grenade ya. Talk about unexpected...

[@thebadspot]

I'd have been boned if they were better equipped! Thanks for watching.

[@schemage2210]

Awesome scenario, as always things go from bad to worse and it is an epic laugh seeing it happen.

[@thebadspot]

It's why we play, right? To see things get out of hand in the funnest way possible. Thanks for watching!

[@johnmarcgreen]

Thanks!

[@thebadspot]

Wow, thank you!

[@adiosgringo8200]

Thank you for this video. I was not sure which path I should take for my next game purchase (Ironsworn vs Forbidden Lands vs 5 Parsecs). And now I know it is not a Ironsworn product.

[@thebadspot]

Glad I could help!

[@ronwisegamgee]

I'm glad to see that the Take Decisive Action move doesn't require a strong hit from a prior move to precede it, unlike Ironsworn's End the Fight move. That's probably my only pet peeve with Ironsworn and I'm glad to see that Starforged removed the strong hit requirement to Take Decisive Action. Question: for the bolded text that says "When you seize an objective in a fight...," what exactly determines the seizing of the objective within the game mechanics? Does this mean you have to fill out every box in the progress track? If not, I think it might make more sense to reword it as "When you want to seize an objective in a fight..."

[@StephenZipprich]

Seizing the objective is not a mechanical aspect, it's a narrative aspect.

[@thebadspot]

Thanks for watching! Yes, End the Fight could occasionally lead to some bad situations in the OG Ironsworn and I'm glad it got a revamp in Starforged. As stated below, seizing the objective is a narrative aspect rather than a mechanical one, so when it feels ready to do so, the move comes into play.

[@rs2excelsior]

Essentially, you make that move when you are making the final push for whatever your objective is - lining up a shot on your now-wounded enemy, making a dash against the last bit of open ground across the hangar separating you from your ship, setting the timer on the demolition charges in the shield generator facility and running for the exit, whatever. Basically, you’re making your final effort to accomplish the objective. It can be done at any point on the progress track, but of course, the more it’s filled on the better your odds are.

[@vitekvlcek9064]

That was really fun to watch! I'm just curious - is it better to take turns making moves, or do you think its sometimes better to make more moves one after another? (Jenna made a Strike move follwed by React Under Fire trying to avoid the robot's claws around 24:51) Being really used to the classic D&D combat, this is something quite interesting that needs me to think in a new way.

[@thebadspot]

The fun of this system and all PBTA systems is there are no turns, you just go with what make sense for the story. I did a Combat 101 video where I break down this approach if you're curious! It throws some people but I love it!

[@vitekvlcek9064]

@@thebadspot Thanks, I'll go check it out.

[@JohnMiller-te4ov]

Drop a link to the twitch stream for the curious?

[@thebadspot]

www.twitch.tv/ladiesofdnd and it’s now in the show notes too!

[@DemetriusNunes1976]

What's the nice 3D dice roller and stats tracking thing they're using?

[@thebadspot]

Hi there! The dice roller is an iOS app that I screen record and import into Keynote, where I track the stats. You can find a link to the dice roller in the description below. I also have a video called How I Make The Bad Spot, which breaks it all down in detail. Thanks for watching!

[@DemetriusNunes1976]

@@thebadspot Luckily there's also an Android version of it. Thanks!

[@bleutooth1000]

So each player takes two turns each?

[@thebadspot]

There are no turns! Just follow the fiction and do what feels right.

[@pawgarrett4201]

This was great, but it felt like a classic "players didn't have the same playstyle" situation. I wouldn't be surprised if both participants came away somewhat frustrated. One player was doing the "charge in with no prep, the game/GM won't let me die" "Daffy Duck looking down the barrel of shotgun because 'sooted face' is the worst possible result" cartoonish approach, the other trying to be more realistic.

[@thebadspot]

In the contrary, we both had a blast! I get what you’re saying, but I also think it can create some really fun narrative opportunities when you have contrasting play styles at the table. Thanks for watching!

[@birdiemcchicken1471]

Combat was my least favourite part of the original Ironsworn, and part of why I stopped playing. Because, despite the more narrative focus of the rest of the game, you were still just sitting there taking turns whacking the enemy until one of you stops moving; like you would in D&D, except without any of the tactical elements of D&D. With the shift from fighting distinct enemies to pursuing objectives; it seems from this example that Starforged is able to focus much more heavily on the narrative, and allow for cinematic battles, than Ironsworn could.

[@thebadspot]

Yeah, I found combat in the original could occasionally be pretty punishing so I tended to avoid it if I could. I love the changes Starforged brings to combat, making it dynamic and exciting and at the service of the story you're telling. I still think OG Ironsworn combat was good, but it could go very very wrong... Thanks for watching!