Steve Jackson Games Forums - View Single Post - So I read through Dungeon World and had some questions about it's popularity and use

patchwork · 11-24-2017, 11:51 PM

I use the engine a whole lot - I love Powered By The Apocalypse - but Dungeon World is the bastard child of the set and the one I don't play. If I felt the need to do something like it I'd tweak Monster of the Week (the modern monster hunters one) or even Blades in the Dark (a sort of gothic steampunk one) and use them instead. That said, there are plenty of DW players, second only to the original, Apocalypse World.

You won't see an in-depth discussion of the system because there simply isn't that deep to go. What you'll find tends to be discussion of MC technique and table management. The system is extremely hostile to the player who simply waits their turn and then declares "I hit it with my axe." And nearly every troupe has one of those. And of course it's not on a list ranked by sales - it's almost entirely pdf and resistant to supplement creep. Which I think is what people like about it.

I'm not a fan of DW because it makes a lot of unnecessary nods to the original, Dungeons and Dragons. The six ability scores can be tightened and cleaned up - most Apocalypse games have 5 or even 4, and they aren't any of those - moves can be better described and made more specific when they don't work around those six attributes. But the Pokemon Syndrome of players creating their own classes (as deliberately unbalanced as they think they can get away with) and trying to sell them for $2 or $3 is the real turn-off. You can find plenty of player-made classes for Monster of the Week or Apocalypse World too, but no one would dream of charging money for them. And while I like very few of them, they aren't generally deliberate attempts to break the game either. I tend to think of DW as the PbtA game that caters to munchkins. I don't care to cater to munchkins.

But hey, play, enjoy. And if you find you like it, consider trying the many other PbtA games.

11-24-2017, 11:51 PM	#3
patchwork Join Date: Oct 2011	Re: So I read through Dungeon World and had some questions about it's popularity and I use the engine a whole lot - I love Powered By The Apocalypse - but Dungeon World is the bastard child of the set and the one I don't play. If I felt the need to do something like it I'd tweak Monster of the Week (the modern monster hunters one) or even Blades in the Dark (a sort of gothic steampunk one) and use them instead. That said, there are plenty of DW players, second only to the original, Apocalypse World. You won't see an in-depth discussion of the system because there simply isn't that deep to go. What you'll find tends to be discussion of MC technique and table management. The system is extremely hostile to the player who simply waits their turn and then declares "I hit it with my axe." And nearly every troupe has one of those. And of course it's not on a list ranked by sales - it's almost entirely pdf and resistant to supplement creep. Which I think is what people like about it. I'm not a fan of DW because it makes a lot of unnecessary nods to the original, Dungeons and Dragons. The six ability scores can be tightened and cleaned up - most Apocalypse games have 5 or even 4, and they aren't any of those - moves can be better described and made more specific when they don't work around those six attributes. But the Pokemon Syndrome of players creating their own classes (as deliberately unbalanced as they think they can get away with) and trying to sell them for $2 or $3 is the real turn-off. You can find plenty of player-made classes for Monster of the Week or Apocalypse World too, but no one would dream of charging money for them. And while I like very few of them, they aren't generally deliberate attempts to break the game either. I tend to think of DW as the PbtA game that caters to munchkins. I don't care to cater to munchkins. But hey, play, enjoy. And if you find you like it, consider trying the many other PbtA games.