Takeaways from running Mythic Bastionland
In the last weeks of 2023, I ran a threeshot of Chris McDowall's Mythic Bastionland, using the free quickstart. In three sessions of 2,5 hours duration each, we managed to resolve the River myth.
In general, we had a great time, apart from one player in one session who was not into tactical combat and lacking orientation. I probably didn't handle that well (see below). Her second session went much better though.
Some things I found out:
- When playing an NPC, especially a knight, always tell the group a thing this particular character wants done. It will help them orient in the sandbox and pick tasks. They can of course always refuse, or do nothing.
- When the cast of knights changes (which it always did at my table: 4 players were present 2 sessions each), always advance the season. Have them meet at a castle and set off for a new expedition – that will make it easier for everyone to adjust.
- Everyone thought the Barbed Knight's ability was a bit underpowered. He needs an opponent's blood to smear it on his weapon and only then gets an additional d12 damage die against that specific opponent.
- The twisted words of the Riddle Knight provided a lot of fun. The player brought it up in almost every social encounter. For example, they'd meet some monks who were about to sacrifice the stableboy from the nearby inn to the river. He'd say "well, we respect your customs" and then turn to the group and say "of course, what you hear between the lines is we've got to stop this". It was more comic relief and simplifying conversation than actually useful, though I believe in one instance, at a court where the local knight and her advisers were in disagreement, he made them understand different things. If we had played some more, I'm sure he would have managed to sow dissension this way or get someone to seemingly agree to something he wanted from them.
These takeaways will of course not apply to every group and GM, but the first two reflect how I would run the game next time. I hope I'll get another chance to put them into practice, running some more Mythic Bastionland.