2019.03.04b The Bat Hack: All-American Girls (2 of 2)

WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.359 Hey everybody, and we'll do another episode of just played. Today. I'm 2 00:00:03.359 --> 00:00:07.679 going to talk about a game I played called all American girls. This is 3 00:00:07.759 --> 00:00:13.480 a game of the bat hack, which is a drift of the black hack, 4 00:00:13.640 --> 00:00:20.199 OHS, our system by rich rodgers for playing Minor League Baseball Games, 5 00:00:20.239 --> 00:00:24.199 and if that sounds kind of cool and interesting, it certainly was. So 6 00:00:24.320 --> 00:00:28.480 what I wanted to do was take that context that we had for the bad 7 00:00:28.519 --> 00:00:33.119 hack of being kind of Minor League Bull Durham sort of games, and basically 8 00:00:33.159 --> 00:00:36.280 do a League of our own with it. So I ran it set one 9 00:00:36.320 --> 00:00:41.320 thousand nine hundred and forty eight in the all American Girls Professional Baseball League and 10 00:00:41.359 --> 00:00:44.600 we had a great time with it. So this particular game in that we 11 00:00:44.600 --> 00:00:48.320 talked about today was the second in a series of two. We originally had 12 00:00:48.320 --> 00:00:51.679 planned up kind of a three game series, but one of those games got 13 00:00:51.679 --> 00:00:54.520 canceled, so we ended up playing two games. The previous game that we 14 00:00:54.560 --> 00:00:56.759 played, we did all of our set up, we created the team, 15 00:00:56.799 --> 00:00:59.960 we created the players and we kind of did a lot of session zero stuff, 16 00:01:00.000 --> 00:01:02.799 but we did actually get a game in, but this time we got 17 00:01:02.840 --> 00:01:07.400 the benefit of a full three hour session where we did nothing but play bad 18 00:01:07.439 --> 00:01:10.920 hack all the way through. We did introduce one new character, so there 19 00:01:10.959 --> 00:01:14.159 was a little bit of background stuff, but it was mostly set up and 20 00:01:14.280 --> 00:01:15.840 play in the actual game itself, playing a game of baseball. So it 21 00:01:15.879 --> 00:01:19.680 was really neat. So this was a gauntlet hangouts game. We played it 22 00:01:19.760 --> 00:01:23.400 on the galt online via Google hangouts. I was the facilitator, I was 23 00:01:23.439 --> 00:01:26.239 the umpire run in the game and we had four players for this. In 24 00:01:26.239 --> 00:01:29.640 Our last session we had three, but this time we're lucky enough to fill 25 00:01:29.640 --> 00:01:33.319 it up with for we had Bethany as, Wendy McDowell at second base, 26 00:01:33.799 --> 00:01:38.680 cat as Julie Dutchy gats are Catcher, Barry as Val Sullivan at first base 27 00:01:38.840 --> 00:01:45.000 and Jesse as. Colleen billings, our new player at third just acquired from 28 00:01:45.040 --> 00:01:48.879 the Detroit team, the Detroit debs, so she was our new Gal on 29 00:01:48.959 --> 00:01:52.000 the team. When we started the game, the Gauntlet City Gals, our 30 00:01:52.040 --> 00:01:56.439 team were coming off a tough loss to the Detroit debs. They got pretty 31 00:01:56.480 --> 00:02:00.319 badly. She'll lacked last game. Colleen was new to the team and rusty, 32 00:02:00.439 --> 00:02:06.920 the manager had tasked Wendy with befriending the cantankerous Duchy to try him and 33 00:02:06.920 --> 00:02:09.879 get her to be a little less agro on the ball field during the game. 34 00:02:09.919 --> 00:02:15.240 Our Plot Synopsis was that the Gals started by prepping for the trip to 35 00:02:15.280 --> 00:02:17.759 Detroit. They were mostly well behaved when they got there to Detroit. Everybody 36 00:02:17.800 --> 00:02:21.560 was kind of on good behavior because they wanted to make sure they were. 37 00:02:21.599 --> 00:02:24.280 They didn't get any two merits. Before the game, Dutchy pressed for changes 38 00:02:24.319 --> 00:02:30.000 to the lineup now that they had colleen's hot bat and kind of cornered rusty 39 00:02:30.039 --> 00:02:35.159 in the motel bar, and rusty, under duress, agreed to try the 40 00:02:35.159 --> 00:02:39.439 new lineup and see how it did. So Dutchy and Wendy, after that 41 00:02:39.560 --> 00:02:44.639 kind of pride, Sylvia, the backup Catcher, out from under the thumb 42 00:02:44.680 --> 00:02:49.879 of the conniving picture Vivian that Duchy had a run in last game after Vivian 43 00:02:49.960 --> 00:02:53.639 didn't like the calls that Duchy was making and blamed Duchy for the pounding that 44 00:02:53.680 --> 00:02:59.520 she took against the Detroit debs in the last game. The gals arrived then 45 00:02:59.560 --> 00:03:04.240 at the swanky Detroit debbs field, one of the nicest in the League, 46 00:03:04.240 --> 00:03:08.520 and proceeded to get sweet, sweet revenge for their drubbing back in Galtlet city. 47 00:03:08.560 --> 00:03:14.400 They pounded poor Dorothy Authmar for five runs in the seventh and eighth innings 48 00:03:14.439 --> 00:03:17.800 after going scoreless up till that point. No score game and the final score 49 00:03:17.919 --> 00:03:23.039 was a decisive five to one for the DEBS, with a pile of hits 50 00:03:23.080 --> 00:03:29.039 and the debs actually batting around the order in the seventh at a hell of 51 00:03:29.039 --> 00:03:31.039 a seventh inning. It was pretty amazing. So at the end of the 52 00:03:31.039 --> 00:03:37.280 game are ending fictional state was that Kaleen got an interview with Hack Reynolds, 53 00:03:37.319 --> 00:03:39.960 the sports writer, who is finally take notice of her she had. After 54 00:03:40.000 --> 00:03:44.520 that great game she had as the new Gal on the team, Val was 55 00:03:44.599 --> 00:03:49.080 invited to Brunch with deb's owner, Veronica Lodge, where. Who knows what's 56 00:03:49.080 --> 00:03:52.360 going to happen. Perhaps an offer might get made and maybe next game we 57 00:03:52.439 --> 00:03:57.280 might see val playing in a Detroit deb's uniform as opposed to with the GALS. 58 00:03:57.360 --> 00:04:00.479 And Wendy was thinking about writing a story, writing a story for one 59 00:04:00.520 --> 00:04:04.800 of her pulp magazines that she's a fan of, and Dutchy and rusty had 60 00:04:04.800 --> 00:04:10.680 come to something of an understanding at day Taunt About Dutchy doing some coaching, 61 00:04:10.759 --> 00:04:14.680 kind of learning to be a coach and maybe taking that when her player days 62 00:04:14.680 --> 00:04:17.759 were over, perhaps to coach some softball at one of the Big California colleges 63 00:04:17.839 --> 00:04:20.800 or something like that, because Dutchy kind of seems to think the writings on 64 00:04:20.839 --> 00:04:24.480 the wall that the League is not going to be around forever. So that 65 00:04:24.519 --> 00:04:27.399 was kind of where things ended up at the end of our session. My 66 00:04:27.480 --> 00:04:32.759 favorite player moment was honestly Wendy's wide eyed incredulity when she found out that some 67 00:04:32.800 --> 00:04:39.000 of those detective and Sci fi stories that she liked were actually written by girls. 68 00:04:39.040 --> 00:04:45.360 Bethany's playing of that just her like dumbfounded astonishment at learning that amazing fact 69 00:04:45.439 --> 00:04:49.160 that there were male pen names but women writers, was really neat and kind 70 00:04:49.199 --> 00:04:54.319 of just pointed at the wide eyed rookie that she is playing in that game 71 00:04:54.439 --> 00:04:58.160 and just did so wonderfully. So I really enjoyed that moment. My favorite 72 00:04:58.160 --> 00:05:01.319 thing I got to do as the GM, as the umpire in this case, 73 00:05:01.680 --> 00:05:06.040 was I came up with the idea to use a speed roll, which 74 00:05:06.079 --> 00:05:09.800 is, you know, speeds a staff that you would normally use to leg 75 00:05:09.839 --> 00:05:12.160 it out on the base pass, but to use a speed roll to see 76 00:05:12.199 --> 00:05:17.319 if pepper, the bat girl managed to make off with Val's whiskey flask before 77 00:05:17.399 --> 00:05:21.240 val came back from the bathroom. Val botch that speed roll. She did 78 00:05:21.319 --> 00:05:25.360 not make it. So a pepper the background managed to sneak out the hotel 79 00:05:25.439 --> 00:05:30.800 room door with her flask tucked away under her skirt. So pepper showed up 80 00:05:30.839 --> 00:05:33.439 noticeably hung over to the game the next day and all might have Cotson flak 81 00:05:33.519 --> 00:05:35.959 for that. So that was kind of a neat way to use some of 82 00:05:35.959 --> 00:05:42.839 those on field stats in a moment of uncertainty during the role play part kind 83 00:05:42.839 --> 00:05:46.319 of as we led into the game. Those narrative use of on field stats 84 00:05:46.319 --> 00:05:49.600 are where you can really do some fun stuff as a game master using this 85 00:05:49.639 --> 00:05:54.240 batack system. Missed opportunity, to the extent that there was one in this 86 00:05:54.279 --> 00:05:59.000 really wonderful game session, was that we pushed the game right up to the 87 00:05:59.120 --> 00:06:02.319 end of our session and so we didn't get to do as much aftermath kind 88 00:06:02.319 --> 00:06:06.519 of lead into the next game as I would have liked. In particular, 89 00:06:06.680 --> 00:06:13.120 the plot thread of VAL's son, her a strange son that she had left 90 00:06:13.160 --> 00:06:15.600 behind in Detroit when she moved to Gauntlet City. Him showing up at the 91 00:06:15.600 --> 00:06:19.040 game never really got addressed. It was sort of an oh my gosh moment 92 00:06:19.120 --> 00:06:23.680 during the game, but then the fact that val had that meeting with fornic 93 00:06:23.720 --> 00:06:26.720 a lodge that sort of kind of overshadowed it and we didn't really get a 94 00:06:26.800 --> 00:06:30.720 chance to go back to it and see what that meant her son showing up 95 00:06:30.759 --> 00:06:32.480 the game. So that was kind of a missed opportunity of that little bit 96 00:06:32.480 --> 00:06:36.639 of role playing moment, kind of post game action happening. A thing I 97 00:06:36.680 --> 00:06:42.399 noticed now this is we are playtesting this system. It's by rich Rogers, 98 00:06:42.399 --> 00:06:45.759 who's a kind of a long time gauntleteer or one of my pals online that 99 00:06:45.759 --> 00:06:47.839 I play a lot of games with. He's one of the CO GM's of 100 00:06:47.879 --> 00:06:53.600 the Gauntlet City Comics Shared Universe that we've got going on gauntlet. We're we're 101 00:06:53.600 --> 00:06:57.279 doing a lot of kind of superhero and comic book flavored stuff in a shared 102 00:06:57.360 --> 00:07:00.120 universe. Has Things happened in one game, the other jams are using it 103 00:07:00.120 --> 00:07:02.959 and stuff like that. That I'm in with him and a little Francis that 104 00:07:03.000 --> 00:07:06.279 we've got that kind of set up and we're working on sort of running and 105 00:07:06.279 --> 00:07:11.759 expanding right now. So rich has written this game to kind of express his 106 00:07:11.839 --> 00:07:15.879 love of baseball, but not just the game but kind of the lifestyle around 107 00:07:15.879 --> 00:07:18.120 the game and, in particular, minor league ball. So these are people 108 00:07:18.120 --> 00:07:21.639 that are playing, you know, with the hope that someday they can get 109 00:07:21.680 --> 00:07:28.439 to be a millionaire employed by billionaires, but in this minor league setting that 110 00:07:28.519 --> 00:07:32.399 we adapted for the women's Baseball League, it really is about the game and 111 00:07:32.519 --> 00:07:38.600 roughing it and trying to, you know, make your life work as you're 112 00:07:38.639 --> 00:07:42.519 doing this thing that you love and really not getting paid for it on the 113 00:07:42.560 --> 00:07:46.519 off chance that maybe you make it into the big leagues. And rich has 114 00:07:46.560 --> 00:07:49.959 come up with something that he has termed the diamond crawl system, and the 115 00:07:49.959 --> 00:07:57.040 thing that I really noticed is that it turns nine innings that could otherwise be 116 00:07:57.240 --> 00:08:00.720 stratamatic, and if any of you are familiar with stratamatic baseball, it puts 117 00:08:00.720 --> 00:08:03.600 all the players stats on cards and you kind of roll it out like you're 118 00:08:03.639 --> 00:08:07.519 playing almost like a game of magic using baseball players, and if you didn't 119 00:08:07.639 --> 00:08:11.120 do it exactly right, the ball game could feel like that. But rich 120 00:08:11.160 --> 00:08:16.759 has done this amazing thing that turns those nine innings into what really feels like 121 00:08:16.839 --> 00:08:22.360 a tense arepg fight scene that's contained within a larger narrative. Now the game 122 00:08:22.560 --> 00:08:28.000 is kind of like a quick trip down into a dungeon and those descriptions of 123 00:08:28.040 --> 00:08:31.600 trying to turn a double play or you're at bat is like a combat round 124 00:08:31.720 --> 00:08:37.720 and it's really does an amazing job of taking those snapshots, breaking down those 125 00:08:37.720 --> 00:08:41.480 moments that are important and then placing them within the context of a whole bunch 126 00:08:41.519 --> 00:08:45.679 of role playing that happens before and after. That is where the meat of 127 00:08:45.679 --> 00:08:48.799 the interpersonal stuff happens. You may have noticed that when I discussed my highlight 128 00:08:48.840 --> 00:08:54.600 moments, they were from the fiction that we generated kind of around the game 129 00:08:54.720 --> 00:08:58.440 and not the play byplay of the game itself, and that is the real 130 00:08:58.519 --> 00:09:03.200 kind of hidden strength of this game that you don't see necessarily reading through the 131 00:09:03.279 --> 00:09:05.240 rules, but that really comes out strongly when you play it, and that's 132 00:09:05.320 --> 00:09:09.320 the baseball action is important, but it's important in the same way that a 133 00:09:09.399 --> 00:09:15.159 really good monster flight in a fantasy story game is important. It's fun because 134 00:09:15.200 --> 00:09:18.440 it's an expression of how the characters we meet and get to know during the 135 00:09:18.480 --> 00:09:24.159 downtime respond to pressure. It puts them in a it's not a life for 136 00:09:24.279 --> 00:09:28.440 distances situation, but it's a simulation of a life or death situation and we 137 00:09:28.519 --> 00:09:31.519 kind of see character get revealed and learned stuff about them in exactly the same 138 00:09:31.519 --> 00:09:37.240 way we do in a really well run URPG fight in like a good dungeon 139 00:09:37.240 --> 00:09:39.320 world combat scene or something like that, and that is such a great thing 140 00:09:39.399 --> 00:09:43.600 about that game, such a strength. I am really thrilled with how this 141 00:09:43.679 --> 00:09:48.960 run panned out and I'm definitely going to do more with this game and especially 142 00:09:48.960 --> 00:09:52.759 in this setting, because the stakes for the gals are are kind of the 143 00:09:52.759 --> 00:09:58.960 same as they were for those minor leaguers, but without the prospect of a 144 00:10:00.039 --> 00:10:03.200 huge success. It's maybe this thing in the future is going to pan out 145 00:10:03.200 --> 00:10:07.759 and turn into something big, but even in kind of at the height of 146 00:10:07.799 --> 00:10:11.519 the League's success, it seems like a thing where their plan kind of knowing 147 00:10:11.519 --> 00:10:15.360 where this is going to go, but they're going to ring every moment out 148 00:10:15.360 --> 00:10:16.679 of it. In the PATHOS and the drama that we got out of it 149 00:10:16.759 --> 00:10:22.120 was really, really wonderful. So I'm absolutely looking forward to playing more of 150 00:10:22.360 --> 00:10:24.480 the bat hack. This is right now. It's in play test. I 151 00:10:24.519 --> 00:10:28.519 know riches planning on honing it and hopefully we are going to see a release 152 00:10:28.559 --> 00:10:31.919 with that in a is certainly something I will mention in my blogging on twitter 153 00:10:31.960 --> 00:10:35.960 and we'll be following along with it, so do keep an eye out for 154 00:10:35.039 --> 00:10:39.039 it. Thanks a lot for listening. If you enjoyed this, you can 155 00:10:39.120 --> 00:10:43.120 check out random stuff I say about games on twitter. I'm at Jim Likes 156 00:10:43.200 --> 00:10:46.320 Games, just like it sounds, and if you wanted to buy games from 157 00:10:46.320 --> 00:10:48.240 me, you can do that either at any of the many conventions I attend, 158 00:10:48.320 --> 00:10:54.759 it'll be packed east next, or at Jim Likes Gamescom Online, where 159 00:10:54.759 --> 00:10:58.559 I sell games and also occasionally do a little bit of blogging about role playing 160 00:10:58.559 --> 00:11:01.399 in story games. So thanks a lot for listening and I am going to 161 00:11:01.480 --> 00:11:03.559 go play some more games.