Magnus Archives is like Lovecraft-free eldritch horror. Other than being eldritch horror, it seems to have no Lovecraftian influences that I can see. It is very original.
If you do another video on the Magnus Archive, I’d appreciate it if you talked about and explain the stress mechanic please and thank you! Hope you continue to enjoy the podcast!!!
My friend invited me to join a Magnus Archives game, so this video was perfect timing for me to do my homework on how this game and the cypher system works before we start!
As someone who finished the podcast just in time for the rulebooks to release, some of the descriptors and moments in this video are kind of unintentionally funny. I haven't played very many TTRPGs, so usually I'm watching someone with all the knowledge of a game explain it to me, someone unaware of what horrors the game really hold, but it's great to be on the opposite end of that lol. TMA was also my introduction to the Cypher System, and since I'm planning a pretty extensive campaign around it, I'm glad to have found a channel that talks a lot about other MCG titles :) If you are considering reviewing/diving deeper into TMA and it's systems, I'd probably watch them almost immediately lmao
Would love to see you run this and delve into how you go about playing it! I ended up getting The Old Gods of Appalachia because of your videos ^^ It was a blast
I would really like to see the character creation at some more depth. For some it is the first contact with the cypher system and comming from a dnd system is a bit confusing.
As always, I listen to your video (thanks for them all btw), but don't always comment (I rarely see the use/need for it). Now, since you're asking for it, just as much as I want the rest of the Ptolus videos, I would absolutely love to have extra video on magnus acrhive (ex. about the 2 adventures, the extra pdf adventure I think they'll release according to the backekit strech goals they reached but couldn't/forgot/not sure as to why it wasn,t deliver but they are staying true to their words and delivering it later in spring of 2025, etc.). keep up the good work, mister "gargantuan reptile of a god sent apocalypse" (tarrasque).
you said the Cypher system is great for horror, but I did not get what it is that the cypher system does to make horror good. from what I know it is used for numenera I believe (heroic sci-fi) - as well as this book. are the rules the same or have they been adapted for horror. How does this system/setting compare to other horror games - when you say it is in the top of the list of horror games, what other horror games are up there and comparable?
Very good question, and something I actually wanna tackle in a video soon. There’s a lot of nuance here but generally I think the Cypher System is designed more open ended, making it perfect to play any genre. Fantasy works great, as do super heroes, horror, … Now that said, a lot of the system is also designed so that you can make it your own. For example not having a fixed skill list that mostly adheres to fantasy, or a more open-ended three attribute system, static damage, and much more focus on storytelling with the GM and Player Intrusions. There is much much more to it but yeah. Time to write a script I guess
@@MrTarrasque I think if you're trying to cater to everything you kinda end up catering to nothing. Look at PbtA - as a core system it is great but for every genre it is used for people change and augment it to make it fit the genre. IMHO system and dice mechanics inform the play style. "Vampire: the Masquerade" v5 - added hunger dice - changing managing blood as a resource to hunger as a risk that the beast will take over your body and do horrible things, and it changes the game a lot. "Kult: Divinity Lost" adds Keeping it together and Stability/Stress, disadvantages and successes with complications that drive a story to spiral into horror "Ten candles" - adds rituals and dice mechanics that inevitably lead to an end and gives the players hooks how to make it impactful. Dread - uses a jenga tower to tell a story that cannot do anything but fail at some point. Hunter the vigil has humans be overpowered by basically anything in universe - but adds tactics to level the playing field. All of those tell a different story with unique mechanics as a foundation for that story to be told
Please consider backing my new Backerkit campaign!
www.backerkit.com/c/projects/mr-tarrasque/the-quintessential-guide-to-urban-encounters?ref=mgns
Magnus Archives is like Lovecraft-free eldritch horror. Other than being eldritch horror, it seems to have no Lovecraftian influences that I can see. It is very original.
If you do another video on the Magnus Archive, I’d appreciate it if you talked about and explain the stress mechanic please and thank you! Hope you continue to enjoy the podcast!!!
For sure, always looking forward to Cypher System and in particular, The Magnis Archive.
My friend invited me to join a Magnus Archives game, so this video was perfect timing for me to do my homework on how this game and the cypher system works before we start!
Awesome! If you find the time, jump back in here to tell me how it went.
Getting to illustrate for these books is an amazing experience and it's so rad to see MC's horror offerings held in such high regard.
As someone who finished the podcast just in time for the rulebooks to release, some of the descriptors and moments in this video are kind of unintentionally funny. I haven't played very many TTRPGs, so usually I'm watching someone with all the knowledge of a game explain it to me, someone unaware of what horrors the game really hold, but it's great to be on the opposite end of that lol. TMA was also my introduction to the Cypher System, and since I'm planning a pretty extensive campaign around it, I'm glad to have found a channel that talks a lot about other MCG titles :) If you are considering reviewing/diving deeper into TMA and it's systems, I'd probably watch them almost immediately lmao
Would love to see you run this and delve into how you go about playing it! I ended up getting The Old Gods of Appalachia because of your videos ^^ It was a blast
I'd appreciate a dive into the section that lets you create your own avatars, artefacts, and monsters.
Thanks for the comment
Statement begins....
I would really like to see the character creation at some more depth. For some it is the first contact with the cypher system and comming from a dnd system is a bit confusing.
Coming!
I love Magnus Archives. It is a great Podcast.
I would love to see the powers, classes, etc. I can't subscribe because I already am subscribed. But I'd love to see it. :)
As always, I listen to your video (thanks for them all btw), but don't always comment (I rarely see the use/need for it). Now, since you're asking for it, just as much as I want the rest of the Ptolus videos, I would absolutely love to have extra video on magnus acrhive (ex. about the 2 adventures, the extra pdf adventure I think they'll release according to the backekit strech goals they reached but couldn't/forgot/not sure as to why it wasn,t deliver but they are staying true to their words and delivering it later in spring of 2025, etc.).
keep up the good work, mister "gargantuan reptile of a god sent apocalypse" (tarrasque).
Officially changing my middle name, thanks!
you said the Cypher system is great for horror, but I did not get what it is that the cypher system does to make horror good. from what I know it is used for numenera I believe (heroic sci-fi) - as well as this book. are the rules the same or have they been adapted for horror.
How does this system/setting compare to other horror games - when you say it is in the top of the list of horror games, what other horror games are up there and comparable?
Very good question, and something I actually wanna tackle in a video soon. There’s a lot of nuance here but generally I think the Cypher System is designed more open ended, making it perfect to play any genre. Fantasy works great, as do super heroes, horror, …
Now that said, a lot of the system is also designed so that you can make it your own. For example not having a fixed skill list that mostly adheres to fantasy, or a more open-ended three attribute system, static damage, and much more focus on storytelling with the GM and Player Intrusions.
There is much much more to it but yeah. Time to write a script I guess
@@MrTarrasque I think if you're trying to cater to everything you kinda end up catering to nothing. Look at PbtA - as a core system it is great but for every genre it is used for people change and augment it to make it fit the genre. IMHO system and dice mechanics inform the play style.
"Vampire: the Masquerade" v5 - added hunger dice - changing managing blood as a resource to hunger as a risk that the beast will take over your body and do horrible things, and it changes the game a lot.
"Kult: Divinity Lost" adds Keeping it together and Stability/Stress, disadvantages and successes with complications that drive a story to spiral into horror
"Ten candles" - adds rituals and dice mechanics that inevitably lead to an end and gives the players hooks how to make it impactful.
Dread - uses a jenga tower to tell a story that cannot do anything but fail at some point.
Hunter the vigil has humans be overpowered by basically anything in universe - but adds tactics to level the playing field.
All of those tell a different story with unique mechanics as a foundation for that story to be told
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