I was thinking about some previous discussions about the Multiclass moves, and how there is potential for stealing spotlight from the single-classed companions. I came up with the following move/change to how it works, which I think would be potentially interesting in play.
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If you take the Multiclass Dabbler, Multiclass Initiate or Multiclass Master move and choose a starting move that is part of several interconnected moves (such as the Wizard’s Spellbook, Prepare Spells and Cast a Spell moves,) do not add those moves to your character sheet immediately. Instead, you will need to seek out a mentor who is willing to train you.
When you spend a significant amount of time studying with your mentor, ask your mentor what that looks like and then roll + the appropriate stat for the moves you are studying. On a 10+, you have mastered the next move; add it to your character sheet, and your mentor marks experience. On a 7-9, you’re making good progress; take 2 hold, which you can spend to perform the move or to gain +1 on your next attempt to learn this move. In either case, you will need to stop studying for now and do something else for a bit.
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I see a few things I like about this approach. For one thing, the gaining of the completely new abilities happens gradually and in the fiction, rather than suddenly happening on level-up (and suddenly getting two or three moves in one hit).
For another, if one player wants to take a multiclass move from a class that’s already in the party, it automatically promotes a conversation between the two players at the point the multiclass move is taken – “are you willing to train me?” It also means that rather than just having (say) a second wizard appear in the party, they have distinct roles – one is the mentor, the other is the learner.
I can also see it creating interesting action in game. You want to learn from the Druid how to shapeshift? Well, the Druid might decide that you’ll need to travel alone to the heart of the Forest, harm no natural creature and fast there for three days and nights to study the essence of that land. Alternatively, they might say that they will call the ur-spirit of each of their land’s animals to you and you must win their trust. The Cleric might require you to learn all the prayers to their god, or require you to travel to the temple and be anointed by the high priest.
Anyway, I’d love feedback on the idea in general and the move as written in specific.
I really like the hold part of the learning process. It’d almost be cool it it was a hold 3/2/1 thing where you can spend, say, 5 hold to learn one move…
That said, my hack also has a similar mechanism (you have to actually fictionally learn the skills for a new advancement path).
Aaron Griffin Interesting idea… so it could be something like the Labyrinth move?
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When you spend a significant amount of time studying with your mentor, ask your mentor what that looks like and then roll + the appropriate stat for the moves you are studying. On a 10+, gain 3 hold. On a 7-9, gain 2 hold, but choose one from the list below.
* You get into a disagreement with your mentor.
* Your studies draw unwanted attention.
* Your mentor attracts a rival student who you do not trust, or the situation with an existing rival student deteriorates.
On a 6-, gain 1 hold in addition to whatever the GM says.
After studying, you will need to do something else for a bit. You can spend 1 hold at any time to use one of the moves you are trying to learn, or when you next study with your mentor to gain +1 to the roll. You can spend 5 hold at any time to add one of the moves to your character sheet permanently, and your mentor marks experience when you do so.
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Definitely like that one. Copy pasting it into my notes 🙂
Glad you like it 🙂 I edited it a few times – in the first draft you chose which move you were trying to learn in advance before rolling, but I decided it would be better if you could choose which move(s) to activate or learn by spending hold in the moment. I’m not sure if you got the final version when you copy-pasted it.
One potential problem I can see with the Labyrinth-like version is that I could see the training process dragging on for several levels if the player keeps spending their hold (or even if not – to learn the three Wizard moves requires 15 hold, which is five results of 10+). It could get tiresome for everyone else at the table if a lot of session time is being spent on the training. Hopefully any other characters can get involved in helping along the learning process too.
There probably also needs to be a clarification about your level for the purposes of these cross-class moves being calculated from the level you first took the Mutliclass move as normal, no matter how long it takes you to actually master the moves.
This is starting to get quite complicated, but I had a further idea:
* You can spend 1 hold at any time to use one of the moves you are trying to learn. If the move involves a roll and you get 10+, gain 2 hold (the one you spent, and one more) in addition to the usual effects of the move.
That way, once the mentor has got you going with your initial hold, you might actually be able to teach yourself the rest of the way. It also addresses the problem the original Labyrinth-style one had that using the skills you’re learning in-the-field always makes it harder to master them (because you have less hold to buy them outright or to get +1 to your next training roll).
I generally require anyone multiclassing to a move that’s on someone else’s book to ask first, but the idea of having them give a condition or task to do first is cool.