Technical question here; what happens if you use Empowered Magic with Contingency, and you choose to double the…

Technical question here; what happens if you use Empowered Magic with Contingency, and you choose to double the…

Technical question here; what happens if you use Empowered Magic with Contingency, and you choose to double the targets, what happens? Do you hold two spells, or what?

16 thoughts on “Technical question here; what happens if you use Empowered Magic with Contingency, and you choose to double the…”

  1. I ask as a hypothetical wizard – not high enough level to use Contingency yet. Just wondering if there was an official statement or even a debate on things like it.

  2. The official statement is: when in doubt, either because the rules are deliberately vague or you just don’t get it, the player decides, as long as what he says is ok for everyone at the table.

    Well at least I think this is it.

  3. The text says: “The GM has rules to follow, too. You’ll be refereeing, adjudicating, and describing the world as you go—Dungeon World provides a framework to guide you in doing so.”

    The guidelines for how to to referee and adjudicate are in the principles and agenda, which include being a fan (deciding things in the player’s favor) and making the world fantastic (not choosing the boring answer).

    Nowhere does it say that players adjudicate how the mechanics of their moves work; rather, the principles tells the GM to ask questions and incorporate the answers when the GM is unsure.

    So the GM adjudicates the rules, while being a fan and thinking fantastical, and can if she chooses or doesn’t know ask the player for their ideas. Its a principle, its a good idea, but they don’t have to do so always.

  4. I don’t know. Sorry if that came up rude; I’ll try to focus and give some actual play.

    In my main group, I’m the GM; two players had been with me on DW since the beginning, the other two are sort of newbies. When there are issues with the rules, we three act together as referees; we have our field of specialization (like I’m the expert about monsters, the paladin is the ultimate authority about, well, the paladin, since he knows everything about them, and so on). But we still decide things together.

    In my side group, I don’t GM but I know DW better than anyone else at the table, so I act as the ultimate authority for like everything. Should that GM be the only referee, it would be a recipe for disaster…!

    talking about that paragraph, I always read it as like “you have to follow your own rules, like the players follow theirs”, but I can see your point.

  5. And that’s all totally fine! I’m not trying to judge bad-wrong-fun or anything. I’m sorry if I sounded that way 🙂

    I was just responding to the idea that the players have automatic authorial control over their character’s slice of the setting. DW is a pretty traditional game, despite lots of its cool ideas, and the GM is still the GM, who runs everything that’s not the PCs.

    Obviously, any group can come handle rules stuff however they want, but it all really is at the discretion of the GM, I feel. Its a smart GM who works with the players for the best results, though. 🙂

  6. I’m still not convinced 😛 knowing where Sage, Adam and Vincent Baker come from, that doesn’t sound right to me. The paragraph refers specifically to the world, not the rules in general; I have the distinct feeling that should we ask Sage & Adam, they would answer something like: “whatever works for you”. That is, there’s no clear rule about it on purpose; if as a group you decide to give all authority to the gm, fine, otherwise just decide together. More often than not, the gm will be the one who knows the game better, but every table is different.

  7. I’m drawing my answer from a vague recollection of Vincent Baker explaining AW is a really traditional game, and the MC is responsible for that kind of stuff. I don’t have the text, but it’s what I remember.

    Obviously, mileage varies.

  8. Be a fan of the characters, yo.

    Alfred Rudzki is right, in that the players get utter control over what they say and do and think and feel and the GM gets everything else, but the magical doorway into GM country opens when they ask a question. Most GMs will either have a reason to invest in an answer and give it to you or they won’t and they’ll let you decide. Debating mechanisms is the least interesting part of DW. For me, it sounds like you’ve found a cool synergy that makes you a better Wizard. Go forth and rock!

  9. so WAIT! I need this answered then: I, as the GM, if the player asks me “what about doubling the targets of contingency?”, may simply reply “you double the chosen spell’s targets, period”, if for whatever reason I think it’s cool?

  10. To the original question:

    Choose one:

    A) double the contingency words allowed or allow a similar condition to be retconned — “Oh, in addition to activating invisibility if I am damaged, it also includes being poisoned”

    B) double the targets

    C) double the duration — you don’t need to recast it again after it triggers

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