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A jam submission

The Warden of the Fragile HarmonyView project page

appx. N jam submission
Submitted by QuestExpressMedia — 10 hours, 22 minutes before the deadline
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The Warden of the Fragile Harmony's itch.io page

Results

CriteriaRankScore*Raw Score
Layout: how easy is it to find all the presented information?#1263.5793.579
Writing: how clear and/or interesting is the writing?#1593.4213.421
Art: how well does the art support the other content?#1693.0003.000
Overall#1783.1473.147
Playability: how easy would it be to run this module?#1862.7892.789
Theme: how well would the module have fit into the Appendix N?#2132.9472.947

Ranked from 19 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.

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Comments

Submitted (1 edit) (+1)

Excellent choice of cover image.  I heartily approve of the throwback typography.  Gratifying lists under the B or B categories.

Submitted(+1)

Fun examples for your BOOMs and BUSTs. I am a little unsure how the Warden should best be used at the table, but if I sense things have become a bit stale, that might be the time to pull this in! Fun idea and good work!

Submitted(+1)

Interesting mechanic. Simple yet powerful. I could see myself using it.

Good job.

Submitted (1 edit)

I think you need to be very careful at which tables/games you decide to utilize this concept with and how. It has strong storytelling potential and aligns suitably well with a setting framed around the traditional Law vs. Chaos setup; this is idea is prominent in Three Hearts and Three Lions and Moorcock's Elric series, both being prominently featured in Appendix N as part of the history of D&D. The warden's presence, in my opinion, should not be used to undercut the achievements of the party or make their victories feel hollow, but it should encourage them to think more deeply about their role in the setting's cosmology. However, because the warden is explicitly guarding a moral axis rather than an ethical one, the setting may have a natural tendency towards entropy until the warden is confronted.

If players pass through the world as questing heroes doing whatever they please in the moment, the warden will likely have little effect on their disparate, individual adventures, diluting the reason for including it as a mechanic. However, if players try to establish themselves as their power increases (i.e. domain-level play), they will be inherently opposed to the warden's will since they are now operating as a locus of law and stability. As long as there is a way to deal with the warden in a way where the party is able to make a meaningful choice, then there should be no issue. On the other hand, if booms and busts continue to occur regardless of their attempts at stabilization, they may become frustrated with what they perceive to be a lack of cosmological agency.

The presentation of this supplement is clean and easy to follow, no notes there.

Developer

I agree there is a strict line that should not be crossed with the Warden when it comes to players accomplishments. Also it should not be used to change the Party's overall standing in the world. I also agree that repeated usage undermines the intended effect. Thank you for the thoughtful feedback. 

Submitted(+1)

This fits perfectly into my DCC games, with the cosmic conflicts and the element of change. It gives me the idea of creating a faction or even a deity for the Wardem. 

It also reminds me of the I Ching, the book of mutation. Excellent proposal and recommendation.

Developer

Thank you so much for this feedback! 

Submitted

Neat idea. A touch of whimsy is always appreciated.

Developer(+1)

Every Campaign needs whimsy. Thanks.

Submitted(+1)

Original idea. I like the prompts in the boom / bust tables. The writing is clear and the choice of font and layout makes it very easy to read. I wish you utilised the available 4th page and fleshed it out more context and details. 

Developer

Thanks for the feedback.  It's true I did take a long time trying to figure out the fonts. 

Submitted(+1)

Interesting idea, both an agent for change during the game itself as well as a device for introducing twists for the GM.  If nothing else, using the warden should shake things up. Thanks for this
 

Developer

Exactly as intended. thank you! 

Submitted(+1)

Interesting idea! 

Developer

Thank you!

Submitted(+1)

Interesting. This feels less like a supplement and more like the main driver behind a campaign. My instinct is that the players would want to investigate if their plans keep getting undercut or expectations get subverted constantly by some mysterious force. And I think the Warden needs to be defined and slowly revealed as the PCs look into what is going on. Some caveats but still an interesting idea worth trying sometime.

Developer

Thanks for the feedback. you could have the warden by one force but i imagined almost like multiple forces pulling in different diections. it can also be a place holder for a BBEG or medium level adversary. 

Submitted(+1)

I like this. A nice thinkpiece. It does something that many worse things don't do: give many examples. If you only give three examples of something I'm probably gonna assume you can't think of any more than those.

Developer(+1)

Thank you! and I agree on the three samples thing.