First time GM here wondering how you guys handle damage over time stuff.
I have an enemy designed called the Silk Sorceress. She attacks by magical manipulating sashes of silk, making them move on their own, become impossibly sharp, grow in size etc.
I have a move written where a sash wraps itself around a players neck and becomes impossibly heavy slowly choking them. I know how that works fictionally, they can’t move, their vision grows dim. I’m kind of confused how damage gets applied in that situation since there aren’t really turns like in traditional games. Is it just a matter of rolling a dice when you check in with them? or should I do it as a hard move on a -6. how much damage is appropriate. I want to give a sense of urgency while still giving my players so opportunity to react?
Maybe another custom move. “When you physically exert yourself while a silk sash is wrapped around your neck, take X damage.”
Or maybe something like “While you have a silk sash wrapped around your neck, you’re Defying Danger to do anything other than claw at your neck and gasp.” Then hit them with a “Deal damage” GM move if they roll a 6- on their DD move.
So an example would be that the player gets a sash around his neck. Player, what do you do? I stab at the sash with my dagger! Well, it is impervious to your slashes as it only cuts it into more pieces and they begin to wiggle at your sides (setting up for a fail roll). Ok then, I try to rip it apart from around my neck. Roll defy danger, strength! This is where the tug of war between player actions and your “damage over time occurs.”
It is not a DPS per se, but for any 6- or 7-9 at this point, you can inflict damage or other difficulty to the player, essentially allowing for it to choke the player eventually. Maybe the player eventually feels like he is going to pass out, not necessarily completely die. That is pretty urgent!
When you are bitten by a ghoul, take 1 damage each time you roll.
For faster damage: “each time the dice are rolled”
Tying stuff to die rolls will lead to weird results i think.
Ongoing damage = danger. Defy it!
Maybe have a look at how Fate handles these kinds of things
the easiest thing about that would be to just go with the story limitations first and don’T particular worry about the damage aspect.
When you are on fire you are hurting and the only thing you can htink of is how to put out that fire. You can’t just suck the fire up and go whack the Oarcaster. No. You are ON FIRE!
RIGHT NOW!
What do you do?
Go from there and follow the impliucations of what is happening to the character. Damage over time doesn’t work as good as “limitations and story over time”.
Damian Jankowski’s answer is how I’d do it. Make your move (scarves lash out at your throat, what do you do?). If their response triggers a harder move on your part (e.g. from a 7-9 on H&S), the scarves lash around the throat (and deal damage). Now make your move (choking, vision blurring, getting weak, what do you do?).
Also, remember that while deal damage is a GM move, it’s also something that happens as part of monster moves or other GM moves. So if it’s got a move like “choke them with silk scarves” and you use it, you should also be rolling the monster’s damage.