itch.io

Yes! I'm currently revising and clarifying the text, along with many other projects, which is why a lot of my work is currently available. There won't be any changes to the game, just (hopefully) better guidance for running it.

An expansive of classic PbtA combat into a suite of narrative(ly interesting) moves for games where combat is a focus and groups don’t want a hand waved, “simplified” scene!

No, the game is available for purchase. It was playtested extensively through 2019, so no more playtesting is needed. If purchasing is an obstacle, keep an eye out for a community copy to become available after a new purchase is made (by anyone).

Hey! Thanks for your questions. I’ll answer in order:

- You are correct that there is no quantitative harm mechanic and it should be handled narratively. You got it exactly that operations and fights with Imminent Threats are stressors to focus on Hilts, their relationships and those getting pushed to the edge (and delimiting). I’m working on a supplement right now, though, that will add a damage mechanic to make operations a bit crunchier—look out for that if it’s something you’re interested in!

- You for sure can look to other games for guidance with MCing. I basically had Monsterhearts 2 open the whole time I was writing. I’m working on a widescreen layout and plan to expand on a lot of the text (the primary version is the zine, so it’s necessarily limited), so there’ll be more MC/less guidance coming soon(ish).

- Yes, shifting Levels should make sense in context, but the Levels are quite broad and, in a way, arbitrary. They could also be adjusted sort of in reaction to: “Oh, this approach went bad for you, so we’re going to push in the other direction;” “Actually? I’m going to reinforce this because you’re pissed off, right? Maybe you need to be more reactionary!” Neither MCs nor players can shift more than two Levels and they have to be in the opposite direction. Shifting Levels means raising one and lowering another by one each, i.e. if the MC shifts their Levels, they could add 1 to any one Level and they would have to subtract 1 from one of the other two Levels.

Hope that helps! Feel free to ask more questions as you think of them.

There’s a discrepancy in hunter creation: in both the zine and the pamphlet, under equipment, the player is instructed to roll for their third item from the random item table. However, they are instructed to roll 3d6, but the table is 2d8. Easy enough to fix at the table, but jsyk!

Hey, thanks for your interest! I do not have an email list or a Twitter account -- I know it's not ideal for marketing a game, but HILT // BLADE is a passion project for me, so it's being developed in my free time (which I, unfortunately, do not have a lot of). That's all to say that, like these development journals I wanted to maintain, I just won't end up sending out any kind of updates. I know that is as opposite as a response as you could expect, so the best way to keep up with the game is just to occasionally check back here on Itch for the game's status. Sorry for opaqueness!