Adventuring Gear!
One of my absolute favorite things in DW is Adventuring Gear. It contains what you need and eliminates the tedium of purchasing and tracking mundane items like torch, bedroll, and tent, and also eliminates the frustration of NOT having that “rope that would be really helpful right now but I didn’t see it on the list”.
It is fun to see your players use it well, but last night was especially fun because my players roleplayed it really well. Here’s a paraphrase:
ME: There are no doors on this side of the building, but there is an open window on the second floor. What do you do?
THIEF: I open my Adventuring Gear and rummage through it. Dang, I don’t have a grappling hook, but I have some rope. Can anyone help me out?
RANGER: Let me look. I have these iron stakes that I’m probably not going to use, will they help?
FIGHTER: Let me see them. I bend them into rough hooks.
ME: Roll Bend Bars for me. (8) Choose 2.
FIGHTER: It doesn’t take very long and makes no noise.
ME: You make usable hooks and attach them to the rope. They are pretty much unusable for anything else though.
RANGER: That’s fine, we both lose a use from our Adventuring Gear, and he gains a grappling hook.
My Thief could have EASILY just pulled a grappling hook, but that was a lot more fun to play!
I have to mention that I’ve made one of my End of Session experience questions “Have we used fun yet appropriate examples of roleplaying to advance a situation?”
With the narrative focus of DW I feel that this question is appropriate to help add to the narrative experience.
That’s a good question and everyone should steal it !
I’m sure it doesn’t jive with what was intended but I allowed the following in my last session.
“Quick, please hide me. They will kill me for sure if I’m caught.”
Our druid reaches into her pack…
“In my hand I hold a hazelnut shell, and a magic one at that. If I tap it on your head you and all your belongings will shrink down and fit inside this shell. I can’t promise you’ll have all your faculties when you come out though. You might be a bit off and off permanently.”
I couldn’t argue that she wouldnt have that item in her bag and holy well-played Batman, so I went with it.
Bryan Alexander adventuring gear is useful mundane items as per the description in the book. How is a magical nutshell mundane?
Eric Lochstampfor You’re right. Someone better tell the guy in the shell now!
Yeah Bryan Alexander, Eric Lochstampfor’s right, it has to be mundane. Cool idea though.
Michael Llaneza go for it!
Nothing saying you couldnt take a nut shell out and bluff. May scare them into running away.
So I forgot, the druid had the item as the “token” of her homeland. She just put it in her pack. So crisis averted!
Awsome dialog and well worth an xp