Post by Bryan on Jul 21, 2015 17:46:57 GMT -8
Tips for Players
Here are a number of miscellaneous tips that we think
will help new players of Pokémon Tabletop United.
Choose Favorites!
Maybe this seems unintuitive, but you should choose
one or two Pokémon to focus on more in on-screen
roleplaying opportunities. This doesn’t have to mean
your character prefers those Pokémon over others. Offscreen,
they could be giving equal attention to their
whole team, but in a roleplaying game setting, it’s much
easier for a GM to flesh out the personalities of a small
handful of Pokémon and give them ample screentime
than a full six or more per player.
Use Pokémon You Like!
This isn’t the competitive battling scene, so you don’t
have to worry about a metagame or Pokémon tiers. Not
only do the mechanics of Pokémon Tabletop United
make the differences in stat totals between Pokémon
much less important compared to the video games,
but many strategies from the video games simply don’t
work, or must be adjusted. The fact ubiquitous and
powerful moves in the video games such as Earthquake,
Draco Meteor, and Overheat can only be used once a
Scene in PTU means you’ll often be seeking out other
staple Moves for your team and not simply relying on a
narrow set of the “best” Moves.
That aside, your GM is the one creating the challenges
you’ll face. Unless all of the players seek out hyperoptimized
teams, there’s little reason for a GM to go all
out with incredibly difficult to deal with strategies for
every encounter. Both you and the GM will have more
fun if you play loosely and choose Pokémon you like
rather than what you think will be the absolute best.
State Clear Intentions!
If you simply tell your GM you’re walking on to a route
outside of town without being clear on why, your GM
may not know if you simply want to move on or if you’re
looking for a wild Pokémon encounter to add to your
team. You don’t want to come up short when you’re
searching for wild Pokémon, and your GM doesn’t want
to spend time thinking of Pokémon they think you’d
want on your team when you aren’t looking to catch any.
Be Ready to Accept Losses!
One of the fantastic parts of roleplaying in a Pokémon
setting is that it’s easy for characters to face both soaring
triumphs and crushing defeats without the threat of
permanent loss like death. Unlike in the video games,
you won’t even automatically lose half your money
if you lose to a Gym Leader. GMs will naturally feel
much more comfortable creating challenges that won’t
guarantee a player victory when it comes to League
matches because a “party wipe” in that case doesn’t lead
to death and new characters being rolled or the end of
a campaign.
Talk to Your GM!
We don’t take a hard-line stance in the system about a
lot of things, from general Pokémon behavior to even
the genre of the game. The tabletop isn’t the video game,
and you should be careful about the assumptions you
might unconsciously bring in from your experiences
with the games. Be sure to talk to your GM about how
their world works and what you can expect.
More than likely, it doesn’t make sense to challenge
everyone you see on the road to a Pokémon battle or
to catch everything in sight just to leave it in a box
somewhere. Nor would your Pokémon appreciate
being treated as just tools or weapons (though if you’re
playing a Lasher this may be appropriate!). Your GM
probably has an idea of how the typical Trainer operates
and the rules and regulations surrounding them. The
video games leave a lot unsaid about how the world of
Pokémon works, and you should pay attention to how
your GM fills in the gaps.
Additionally, note that many of the guidelines we
give in this book are meant to be flexible and change
based on the campaign, such as Pokémon’s social and
knowledge Skills, the Mountable Capability, and how
Shiny Pokémon are handled. These aren’t hard and fast
rules, and you shouldn’t be afraid to discuss with the
GM how they’ll work in their campaign.
Here are a number of miscellaneous tips that we think
will help new players of Pokémon Tabletop United.
Choose Favorites!
Maybe this seems unintuitive, but you should choose
one or two Pokémon to focus on more in on-screen
roleplaying opportunities. This doesn’t have to mean
your character prefers those Pokémon over others. Offscreen,
they could be giving equal attention to their
whole team, but in a roleplaying game setting, it’s much
easier for a GM to flesh out the personalities of a small
handful of Pokémon and give them ample screentime
than a full six or more per player.
Use Pokémon You Like!
This isn’t the competitive battling scene, so you don’t
have to worry about a metagame or Pokémon tiers. Not
only do the mechanics of Pokémon Tabletop United
make the differences in stat totals between Pokémon
much less important compared to the video games,
but many strategies from the video games simply don’t
work, or must be adjusted. The fact ubiquitous and
powerful moves in the video games such as Earthquake,
Draco Meteor, and Overheat can only be used once a
Scene in PTU means you’ll often be seeking out other
staple Moves for your team and not simply relying on a
narrow set of the “best” Moves.
That aside, your GM is the one creating the challenges
you’ll face. Unless all of the players seek out hyperoptimized
teams, there’s little reason for a GM to go all
out with incredibly difficult to deal with strategies for
every encounter. Both you and the GM will have more
fun if you play loosely and choose Pokémon you like
rather than what you think will be the absolute best.
State Clear Intentions!
If you simply tell your GM you’re walking on to a route
outside of town without being clear on why, your GM
may not know if you simply want to move on or if you’re
looking for a wild Pokémon encounter to add to your
team. You don’t want to come up short when you’re
searching for wild Pokémon, and your GM doesn’t want
to spend time thinking of Pokémon they think you’d
want on your team when you aren’t looking to catch any.
Be Ready to Accept Losses!
One of the fantastic parts of roleplaying in a Pokémon
setting is that it’s easy for characters to face both soaring
triumphs and crushing defeats without the threat of
permanent loss like death. Unlike in the video games,
you won’t even automatically lose half your money
if you lose to a Gym Leader. GMs will naturally feel
much more comfortable creating challenges that won’t
guarantee a player victory when it comes to League
matches because a “party wipe” in that case doesn’t lead
to death and new characters being rolled or the end of
a campaign.
Talk to Your GM!
We don’t take a hard-line stance in the system about a
lot of things, from general Pokémon behavior to even
the genre of the game. The tabletop isn’t the video game,
and you should be careful about the assumptions you
might unconsciously bring in from your experiences
with the games. Be sure to talk to your GM about how
their world works and what you can expect.
More than likely, it doesn’t make sense to challenge
everyone you see on the road to a Pokémon battle or
to catch everything in sight just to leave it in a box
somewhere. Nor would your Pokémon appreciate
being treated as just tools or weapons (though if you’re
playing a Lasher this may be appropriate!). Your GM
probably has an idea of how the typical Trainer operates
and the rules and regulations surrounding them. The
video games leave a lot unsaid about how the world of
Pokémon works, and you should pay attention to how
your GM fills in the gaps.
Additionally, note that many of the guidelines we
give in this book are meant to be flexible and change
based on the campaign, such as Pokémon’s social and
knowledge Skills, the Mountable Capability, and how
Shiny Pokémon are handled. These aren’t hard and fast
rules, and you shouldn’t be afraid to discuss with the
GM how they’ll work in their campaign.