The (Updated) Satyr Ancestry in Draw Steel! (V. 1.02)

[steady pine]

For life of the party, I think there should probably be 3 or 4 moods. Just two doesn’t feel like enough

The quick build option references traits the Satyr doesn’t have

I think Harmony of Nature is fine balance wise, but edges on tests are a pretty boring effect IMO. Doesn’t change how you play the character, or open up approaches to take.

[olive tree]

i dont get goat legs. what is nonmagical difficult terrain?

[quaint bridge]

Any difficult terrain that is… nonmagical! Nonmagical means it’s not created or substantially changed by a supernatural effect. You can think of this as rough ground on a rocky mountain pass, thickets of dense brambles, or a sheet of slippery ice! There are plenty of examples of nonmagical difficult terrain for directors to use at the back of the monsters book, and I see it commonly used in games just to spice up a combat

@steady pine

1. I never even thought about that! I honestly think that making it more versatile ups the fun factor enough to justify the balance. That’s a good suggestion. Anything that you as a player think would make a fun addition?

2. Agh, right! My mistake, probably a holdover from my last homebrew project. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

3. I think you’re right, it is boring. It doesn’t really reflect what I think the fantasy needs. Initially, I wanted to have a “you can speak to animals” effect, but didn’t want to rip off green elementalist. Do you have any ideas for a better feature?

[steady pine]

I wouldn’t be too afraid of ripping off a single subclass. There are a lot of features that are a bit redundant when combined with the right subclass

I think the big questions to ask are “what behaviors do you want to incentivize?” and “what moments are you hoping to create?”

[quaint bridge]

This is good advice! Thanks!

[steady pine]

As for the party moods, I think it’s important none of them are too serious

[quaint bridge]

My fear is disincentivizing Satyr players from playing a green elementalist. If the ancestry ended up offering the feature, do you think it would be okay to say the player gets an equivalent elementalist ability? I don’t remember if there’s precedent here

[steady pine]

Could do something related to exploration/travel or projects?

[steady pine]

Could do “if you can already speak to them due to another feature, gain X instead”

[quaint bridge]

I’ll have to look at what lets players achieve this! It’ll definitely be different in the next version

[olive tree]

what defines magical terrain though?

seems like something highly variable based on how the director runs the game

[quaint bridge]

Well, nonmagical difficult terrain would be the inverse! Difficult terrain that is created by supernatural effects. Players and monsters commonly create magical difficult terrain with abilities that have the "magic" or "psionic" keywords. Same with monsters! There's precedence for a difference between nonmagical and magical difficult terrain in the Human ancestry from the Heroes manual. The human's 1-cost trait Can't Take Hold lets them ignore magical difficult terrain, which fits their lore-accurate magical resistance. Similarly, the Satyr's alpine physiology lets them ignore nonmagical difficult terrain.

[olive tree]

oh i see, i mustve missed that. my bad

[quaint bridge]

...yes. While this is technically true, it's also true for a lot of other things in this game, including things that MCDM has already put out. Sure, ignoring nonmagical difficult terrain will be more useful in an encounter where the director uses an Ankheg vs, say, a Demon Torlas. In an adventure where you're mostly in a cave with low ceilings, it doesn't make much use to give your devil character wings. In my opinion, features that have varying levels of use make the game more fun

[olive tree]

fair point!

[cerulean glade]

I completely agree there should be some more mood options! Maybe:
Playfulness (not sure what the effect would be but it feels satyr-like)
Melancholy (something introspective, I'm thinking a goth-satyr)
Proud (maybe a stability thing?)
Curious (research or projects?)
Embarrassed (something sneaky / hiding?)

[quaint bridge]

These are great ideas! I think instead of embarrassed I'm gonna go with mischievous 😈

[steady pine]

I think it’s better if none of the moods are direct combat stuff. Initiative is a nice small bonus, but keep it to that.

[quaint bridge]

The (Updated) Satyr Ancestry in Draw Steel! (V. 0.2)

The (Updated) Satyr Ancestry in Draw Steel! (V. 1.02)