Is there an (un)official rule on the maximum bonuses that can stack on a roll? I’ve been house-ruling it to +3, at least, until one of my players said that he’d been rolling +4 due to ongoing effects. So where does it end?
Hack and Slash
stat bonus +3
following a charging paladin: +1 forward
ally Defends: gain +1 forward against the attacker
after having Discerned Realities: take +1 forward
another ally Aids you: take +1
spending a Preparation: +1 to the roll
Bard performs Arcane Art: +2 instead of +1 for Aid
after the Cleric Blesses you: +1 ongoing
So that’s a +10 to the roll, and I could go on…
What would you consider to be a max bonus/penalty? My house rule is +3/-3, but it’s on shaky ground.
Honestly if they’ve done THAT much preparation, I feel like the fiction supports just letting them succeed. Goodness gracious!
Monsterhearts caps at +5. DW does not but 5 is very reasonable.
It should be +4, but if you stick to core classes it will seldom go over that because of careful game design.
Please note that, mathematically, anything above +4 isn’t changing your chances for success much, it’s already almost guaranteed.
Mattia Bulgarelli That’s kind of what I was saying. Once you get that well prepared, shouldn’t you just allow your player success?
Well, there’s no “GM fiat” in DW: if a Move happens, happens, you roll, and you get what you get.
Even if it’s a very easy one, you still may get a result where you have to make calls.
Some moves have decisions to make, even on a 10+ success, and a 7-9 success is very probable anyway.
So, nothing official in DW. Anyone know if there’s a cap in Apocalypse World, or anything else apart from Monsterhearts? +5 is an instant (partial) success. -5 is not quite an instant failure. Maybe I’ll cap it there. +/- 4 makes sense, too.
Not that I can remember.
If they invest that much into a roll, then let ’em have it. They’ll pay for it later, when they need all those resources.
If they have all those resources, you better push their limits.
When success is guaranteed there is no need to roll the dice.
Also what is going on in the fiction that so many people are supporting the second guy to attack after the paladin already went charging in ahead of him? My point is how can you support that scenario in any fictional sense?
also
Look at how many dice are actually hitting the table. The OP makes a lot of assumptions that everyone got 10+ on their rolls to aid/defend/bless/Arcane Art.
In all honesty if the attacker is simply to follow the paladin and use their own plus 1 from DR, success is all but guaranteeed. Odds are one of the other die rolls will lead to a chain of events that could have been avoided.
As a GM I would encourage this, simply because a) they are using lots of diverse moves and b) more dice rolling means more chances I get to make a move.
That is not a rule anywhere in DW and you know it Eric Lochstampfor or. Mattia Bulgarelli explained It above.
Seriously, skipping rolls and outcomes you’re skipping a key mechanic of the game (that creates parts of the fictional outcome)… you’re making the game poorer.
So, the answer to the original post id “No, nothing official.” Thank you all for your input. Thread closed. Cheers!
Not a rule but a good guideline.
Rolls aren’t really a key mechanic of the game, though. The key mechanic is the fiction. Rolls aren’t supposed to be the major focus. At least that’s always been my take on it.
And it’s not really skipping a roll. If they’ve done so much prep to get a +10 bonus or what have you, then it’s a success no matter what they roll. So why roll?
The whole point of DW is that, if it makes sense in the fiction (more often than not) then let it happen. Also FYI Arcane Art doesn’t add its own +2. It changes an existing +1 to a +2.
Also, how does following a charging paladin give a +1? You’d think the paladin would get a +1 from being assisted? o-o
The consensus seems to be right; If the players put that many resources into a roll, they’ll succeed. But what about all those other rolls to get to that +10? That’s a load of rolls, and a lot of option for GM moves.
Victoria Harlette you are inspired by the Paladin’s bravado. She is that good of a leader.
Precisely.
William Nichols
Exactly my point. Assuming the paladin succeeds his attack that’s seven 10+ rolls in a row to get those bonuses.
Tim Franzke
That makes sense. xD
I like to take that Move as a Bard actually.
Oh wait no. I was thinking of Charge!
…Wait. I just realized. For there to be like a +10 bonus, wouldn’t that mean there’s like 10 players in the session? Because with just 4 players, how would they stack up to +10? Some of those bonuses would be used in the rolls to get bonuses.. o-o;
I’m missing something here.. >.>
Attacker
Paladin
Ally Defending
Ally Aiding
Bard and Cleric could also have “cast in advance” and might be an aid/defender
4 ppl minimum for this scenario.
Mkay.
All of that might still not work in the fiction because there isn’t enough time/opportunity to set that up.
max bonus cap at +5/-2. Source: World of Wizards (search the big apocalypse world hacks list to get it)
Ah, Wizard World. That’s not quite DW, though. So not sure if it applies, but it’s an idea.
Apoc World can have you go to a -5 or +5 quite easily.