"Pulp Alley at Hot Lead 2016" Topic

Pulp Alley at Hot Lead 2016

On Saturday March 19, I tested the limits of the rules with 3 games at the Hot Lead gaming convention in Stratford Ontario. I used the same terrain, same rules, for different genres. I started with an 8 player SpyFy, followed by a 12 player Zombie game, and ended with a 13 player Superhero game.

My terrain was a Plasticville town on a 6x4 mat. (I will post a picture when I can figure out how,) Other than the addition of vehicles, all games started with the same set up. Because of the larger area, I extended the games to 15 turns.

The leagues were pre-made. Most of them were one-character terrors. The first game also contained duos (2 characters) and company of heroes (3 characters). They seemed balanced.

Random cards were used for activation. I have found it confusing otherwise – to determine who has gone and who has not.

Players seem to pick up on the rules quickly. The matching of dice in combat can take a couple of tries to understand. I find that the most difficult thing for some to grasp is the strategy of using Fortune Cards.

Having all the paying aids helped – QRS, dice, measuring tapes and sticks, templates, character stat cards with pictures of the relevant figure.

The rules were able to handle the size of games played – they did not break. A GM is definitely required, and he almost broke. The room was louder and more crowded than I had anticipated.

Lessons learned:
1. A non war game at a convention with primarily war-games, will attract a higher proportion of "casual" players.
2. The GM should sit in the middle. I sat at an end and had great difficulty hearing and assisting players at the other end.
3. Have an assistant if running a large game. Some players will catch on quick and assist, but the beginning of the game is most critical.
4. Spend more time explaining the rules and show examples of play, combat and fortune cards. Time well invested.
5. Drink plenty of fluids – my voice was hoarse the next day.
6. Expect the unexpected. When in doubt, a random challenge is your friend.
7. Remember it is just a game and have fun.

Yes, I would do it again.

The next time someone asks--"Well, what is your definition of true heroism?" I can answer that I heard about this guy who ran a 13 character Pulp Alley game at a convention.

Mike,
Sounds like it must have been a great success, but also a great challenge.

Glad it went well for you!

Did you design your own QRS?

That's an impressive accomplishment: well done!

To remember who's activated, we use double sided character cards. One side is colour: as soon as you activate, flip the card over to its black and white side. All the stats are still there, but you can tell at a glance you've activated.

Sounds great Mike, I'm sorry I wasn't able to make Hotlead this year, I saw your games in the schedule and hoped to get back to Plasticville again.

Skeptic
Re: QRS

Pulp Alley does not require a typical QRS as there are really no tables to look up. I provided cards for each figure which elaborated on the standard ability descriptions. There were also cards for vehicles, weapons and loot.

There was a rules summary available for free download from the Pulp Alley Yahoo files called reference page. It provides one page summaries for game set up, the turn sequence, a flowchart for activation, and a glossary of terms.

My experience has been that new players can have challenges in 3 areas:

1. The interaction between movement, actions, and combat – the flowchart handled this nicely
2. Combat / dice mechanics – addressed in the summary but they really need practical for application after which it is easily understood
3. Use of the Fortune Cards – this is partially picking up on the strategy and also understanding the terms. I expanded on the glossary of terms. Next time I would spend more time explaining and illustrate with some of the more problematic cards.

In addition, I have developed my own rules cheat sheet which highlights rules I tend to forget, and summaries by theme, such as vehicles.

Wow! Do you have any photos to share?

THANKS so much for playing and sharing Pulp Alley. I'm so glad you had a good time. :D

Also, what sort of stuff did you add to your own cheat sheet?

Dave
Pulp Alley

Dave, I always carry the. Rules around on my iPad but I find there are some I forget and some, such as vehicles, that I like to have condensed on one sheet. The cheat sheets allow me to do this with my own style of highlighting and short-hand.

The Pulp Alley rules are well written and where there has been a problem it is usually because I didn't take the time to read.

I also do cheat sheets for any house rules or scenario specific rules – even though the GM has some discretion, I like to give the appearance of well-planned out consistency,