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[Paradim]

As another question... What does the Resources Merit mean, in regards to a Cult having it?

[Paradim]

Looking over the Merits again and there's one... Observance... that says "Cultists participating in these rites gain the Inspired Condition, and add 1 to a cult action attempted within a number of days equal to the Cult's Dominance." I'm not sure what that "1" being added is.... +1 die, basically? That's my guess.

[Paradim]

Honestly, that's irrelevant to me. Having a useful mechanic that is flavorful for it's purpose is what I'm concerned about. I'm not specifically looking for a mechanic that makes it more likely you'll succeed, versus other mechanics that will make it more likely you'll succeed (say adding dice, adding 8-again or 9-again, etc).

So, from where it was originally as a mechanic designed to represent something specific in the setting.... It's now a mechanic that's available with other games, but also a mechanic that is very similar with Dungeons and Dragons, so it doesn't seem particularly...

[Paradim]

I'll admit, I'm kind of amused as to how counting a number as a success is somehow a terrible thing, but doubling how many times you roll dice is... better?

I don't get it, but whatever. I don't really think it matters in the long run....

[Paradim]

So, seeing the latest update.... It's looking like the shifting target numbers thing to represent Fate is being removed from the game, and they're going to be using Advanced Actions and something new called Blighted Actions to serve the place shifting target numbers were used. Advanced Actions show up in W:tF 2nd Edition, and it lets you roll for an action twice and to take the better result. I presume a Blighted Action will be to roll for the action twice and take the worse result....

I'm fine with that, honestly. I don't really see how this actually changes anything, how it...

[Paradim]

Looks like we hit the Stretch Goal for the additional Utterances! And that means we're just nearly $3,000 away from the Book of Lasting Death Stretch Goal! ^.^

[Paradim]

What are qualities or strengths that you think Mummy: The Curse brings to the table that the other games don't?

[Paradim]

It's also an entirely separate experience pool that builds....

[Paradim]

How I view it... Is that the Arisen are the star of this show. Now, every star needs a strong supporting cast, and because of that, I'm happy to see new inclusions. But if the star of the show isn't actualized because of cut space for new material? Then everything falls apart. If the Arisen aren't awesome (original meaning of the word, inspiring of awe, that is admiration, reverence and fear), then what is the point of making Mummy: The Curse?

Consider that there is an entire major Guild that has a theme of being necromancers. The contrast as to how much support the material provides...

[Paradim]

Note to self: Have an Arisen expecting to go into battle become fascinated with a staple gun and bring it with them.

Cultist: "My lord! Do you need aid?!"
*chunkchunkchunk*
Arisen: "This tool serves me well."...

[Paradim]

That's true, but I'm talking of support through Affinities. Like... I'm kinda on the fence about Radiant Lifeforce's changes.

Edit: Oh, Sadikh could borrow Affinities or Utterances in 1st Edition as well......

[Paradim]

I think I would've really appreciated more powers that focus on empowering their Cultists, honestly......

[Paradim]

Utterances puzzle me a bit... The Cosmic keyword is terribly under utilized.... and confusingly used. Cosmic only shows up for the Tier 3 Awaken The Dead utterance which lets you temporarily bring a person back to life. And it doesn't show up on either the Utterance that lets you hit an area with an Earthquake, a Meteor Shower, or Storm.

When it's meant to be used to denote an Utterance that can change the chronicle.... I feel like I'm not understanding what the criteria for that is.

...Anyone else finding that weird?

Edit: ...Actually, why is this a Keyword...

[Paradim]

I've been looking at the Affinities from 1st Edition and comparing them to the preview Affinities and... I think I'm noticing some things. First, I'm noticing that there doesn't seem to be any... entirely new Affinities. Same names, same general ideas involved, less evocative text. Second, I think I'm noticing that the Affinities that granted Merits have had that feature stripped out of them. For example, Enlightened Senses in 1st Edition gave you the Common Sense and Meditative Mind Merits. The Preview removes that and instead says you're immune to surprise attacks.

Now... I'm just...

[Paradim]

Yeah... This is kind of how I'm feeling. The change of the powers section from 1st Edition Werewolf the Forsaken to 2nd Edition Werewolf the Forsaken were... mind blowing to me. Not only did W:tF give the Uratha an effective range of powers, but the text slammed home how these powers are thematic through predator/prey and hunter themes, hitting several times ideas of horror movie monsters from the perspective of the monster. I loved it.

And I'm not a Vampire: The Requiem fan... It's not that I hate it, it just doesn't grab me. But I can see the change from 1st Edition to 2nd...

[Paradim]

Same here, though I can agree another term might be better if "target number" is used for something else....

[Paradim]

Interesting effects...

Guardian Statue Affinity allows you to create a small statuette of someone that becomes enchanted so that the next time that person would take damage, the statuette breaks instead.

The statuette is not required to be kept on the person. This means an Arisen can keep a shelf full of statuettes dedicated to the cultists he seeks to protect, and if one breaks, he'll know that they're in immediate danger. Even if across the world.

Handy!

Edit: Admittedly, Nest of Dolls would probably be better for that kind of information.

[Paradim]

The Secretive Merit kind of puzzles me....

If Cult members can only know other Cult members that are equal to their rank or lower... ...Who's giving them orders? How do they not know the person that is saying they can be ordered about has the authority to do so?

Edit: Oooh wait a second. They have masks or badges or stuff.... It's not that the lower Cultists don't recognize a higher ranked Cultist... they just don't know who exactly that person is...

Sorry! Having a little sake while reading and that's slowing my reading comprehension a little! ^.^...

[Paradim]

Chapter two of the preview does talk of vampires joining a mummy's cult and it being something beneficial for both parties......

[Paradim]

Thank you for that!

Honestly, something I've come to appreciate from these previews of non-finalized manuscripts through the various manuscripts I've seen from Kickstarters that Onyx Path has done, is that there is a LOT of work that goes into one of these books. Not just from the writers, but also from tying the different chapters together from different writers, working the manuscript to read as one single piece, and then there's all the work involved with editing, layout and geez, then there's the entire artwork thing! I could see how it could be kind of painful to see people...