Move discussion: *Carouse*!
Special move discussion for all things Carouse: What’s your experience with Carouse in your game? How often is it used? Any fun stories from a miss result? Do players seek it out, or do you have to nudge them towards it? What do those parties look like? How have you entangled, ensorcelled or tricked your players (or how would you if you had the chance)?
Spend 100 coins and reply below.
Great question and I’m subbed, as I haven’t personally seen it used by my players.
Also subbing; never encountered this beast in the wild.
Well someone here must have used it…I didn’t but someone must have.
My players have always found the price to be too high and never bothered with it. This might mean I’m just too stingy with loot, though.
happened more than once, actually. Right now I can remember just two, but I’m sure there were others.
In one campaign, the PCs just helped a group of vikings defeat a good number of Imperial soldiers, so the Carouse took place in the Big House of the northern village, with a lot of big fires, mead, beer, singing and bousting and wrestling and vulgar pieces of poetry.
Another one I can remember was in the city of Dis, from the Planarch Codex. The group had just solved an elven diplomatic affair (sort of), so the party was elven-styled, with appropriate music and poetry, excellent wine and some fine costumes. Unfortunately for the good taste, it was in the middle of Ditchwater, a horrible horrible Parish in the planar city of Dis: all the elven stuff was completely wasted on hordes of cutthroats, slumdogs, loud laughing harlots and freebooters.
Both were fun and helped to define the atmosphere, and none of them ended up in failure, so I can’t help with that particular question.
Josh McGraw if they find the price too high, consider buying (or giving them) a keg of dwarven stout: 10 coins, 4 weight (but they can leave it at home or consume it right away), +1 to Carouse !
We have gotten some good use of Carouse (our group tends to like the imagery of adventures coming back and throwing a wild party).
Best miss?
The Bard threw a huge bash at a famous inn located in the heart of the city. He made fast friends with a member of city council that was in attendance and after closing the Inn (read: drinking far, far too much), went in looks for a different kind of party and some companionship ::nudge nudge wink wink::
I have the scene fade to black and both the Bard and the politician wake up, stripped of their clothes and belongings (including the bard’s heirloom instrument) and tied up to a flea-bitten bed in the “bad” part of town.
The Bard then had to figure out what happened to him and just how he was going to get his stuff back.
I had to take the opportunity to have our first Carouse miss turn into Hangover Part IV: Dungeon World.
These are great!
Nikitas Thlimmenos and Guy Sodin, I like that carouse seemed to help define the atmosphere of the town/game. And Hangover IV: Dungeon World is an excellent miss result!
I’ve only had one Carouse in all of my games. But I admit it took a little nudging.
The characters came to town after clearing out a villainous wizard’s tower and saving some refugees. The town mayor wanted to throw them a party, but couldn’t afford to feed all the refugees. I asked the players: if they wanted to include the refugees, they’d have to pay at least 100 coins for the extra food. They agreed and that triggered Carouse.
They rolled a 9 and chose to befriend the mayor. We played out the scene–revelry, lots of drunken shenanigans, a Defy Danger (Con) for one character who took extra servings of ale, and so on.
7-9 discussion next post:
The options on the Carouse move suggested to me that, on a 7-9, the characters can get “entangled, ensorcelled or tricked” if the don’t choose that option.
On my players’ 7-9, I had the gate guards join the party, leaving the gates unattended. My memory is a little hazy here, but I believe this allowed in some exiled rogues who proceeded to steal from the townspeople and generally run amok. Of course the mayor now wanted help kicking them out…
I felt like the 7-9 result could have been juicier, but I didn’t want to detract from the cool party!
What have you done or what would you do on a 7-9?
Guy Sodin : Awesome! You’ve gotten me thinking about something along the lines of: “You awake, completely naked. But this is the least of your troubles. You’re also cold — really cold. Exactly the kind of cold that one would feel if they awoke in a tub full of ice, since that’s precisely where you are. There’s also a dull, throbbing sore feeling on your side, right around the place where you see a freshly sewn up wound. What do you do?”
Al Gordon Organ thief?? Woah, your hard moves are hard!
Harder than you realize, since the assumption would be “organ thief”, and depending on the results of a DR roll to validate that assumption, I may swing it more in the direction of something added rather than removed…
But, I guess, going back to your original question, it seems to me that the value of a carouse is really to provide potential for future sessions, so that’s ultimately what I would try to use it for. And use it as hard as I want.
You make a good point. I think Carouse was designed to help jumpstart the next session. Useful NPC, Rumors of an opportunity, Useful information, and being entangled — all help push towards what’s next.
that, and colour. Don’t underestimate colour!
BARFIGHT!
When you get into a Barfight, yell “BARFIGHT!” then roll+STR or +CON if you are drunk
On a hit you win the fight and on a 10+ you choose 3, on a 7-9 choose 2
– You befriend a useful NPC
– You don’t have to pay the barkeep 50 coins the next day
– You don’t wake up with a d6 of bruises and scratches
– You don’t have an outstanding warrant on your head now
– Your victory impresses, dismays or frightens your opponents
– get 1 preparation
Pub World
TV Intro – Cheers (USA, 1982-1993)