Alas poor Doom Pool, I knew thee well!

[chaosnet]

Ok, goofy title I know but my question is this: Your Doom Pool has swollen up to a 3D6, 3D8, D10 and a D12 and is looking pretty fat. The heroes team up and capture the villain(s) and wrap everything up.

Does my Doom Pool just poof and I start my next Action Scene with the normal 2D6 (assuming there isnt anything to boost it)?

[Supplanter]

You reset your doom pool at the beginning of each Act. So if this action scene ends an Act, reset it. If it doesn't, carry it forward.


Jim

[chaosnet]

So when the action was going downhill, I should have hauled out as much Doom as I could narratively have gotten away with so as to not waste it?

GRRR! I hate waste!

[Spatula]

Yeah, pretty much. I think it's also a good idea to spend the doom pool down as the action is winding up in order to make the heroes' recovery actions easier. Recovery actions are usually being rolled with poor dice pools to begin with (just affiliation + distinction for some), so having to roll against a giant doom pool just makes failure all the more likely.

[EldritchFire]

So when the action was going downhill, I should have hauled out as much Doom as I could narratively have gotten away with so as to not waste it?

GRRR! I hate waste!

Don't forget the other uses of doom dice:

• Create a new Scene Distinction (d8or larger)
• Activate Scene or Event effects

OM16 sidebar.

-EF

[figurefour]

So when the action was going downhill, I should have hauled out as much Doom as I could narratively have gotten away with so as to not waste it?

GRRR! I hate waste!

Don't forget the other uses of doom dice:

• Create a new Scene Distinction (d8or larger)
• Activate Scene or Event effects

OM16 sidebar.

-EF

The other day on my current re-read of the Operations Manual I noticed a bit in the introduction to the Doom Pool (OM14) that says the Doom Pool is a resource for "... and, at the end of an Act, populating the Event with additional threats..."

Now, I don't recall seeing anything like that in Breakout (maybe Civil War will show us some examples?) but I think it's a nifty idea that should be explored more.

I don't think that the Doom Pool is intended to disappear at the end of an Act, so much as "be spent to determine how tense the next Act will be."

Maybe that Doom Pool isn't wasted at all . . .

[EldritchFire]

So when the action was going downhill, I should have hauled out as much Doom as I could narratively have gotten away with so as to not waste it?

GRRR! I hate waste!

Don't forget the other uses of doom dice:

• Create a new Scene Distinction (d8or larger)
• Activate Scene or Event effects

OM16 sidebar.

-EF

The other day on my current re-read of the Operations Manual I noticed a bit in the introduction to the Doom Pool (OM14) that says the Doom Pool is a resource for "... and, at the end of an Act, populating the Event with additional threats..."

Now, I don't recall seeing anything like that in Breakout (maybe Civil War will show us some examples?) but I think it's a nifty idea that should be explored more.

Being s how Breakout was a mini event and not a "full" event, that may be the case. I'm hoping for Civil War examples and some from DLC.

I don't think that the Doom Pool is intended to disappear at the end of an Act, so much as "be spent to determine how tense the next Act will be."

Maybe that Doom Pool isn't wasted at all . . .

OM14: "By default, the Watcher starts each Act with 2d6 in the doom pool, although some Acts may begin with larger or more dice." So it is supposed to disappear. However, since it does disappear, I think the intention is to have you spend dice before it goes away, so as to not "waste" the doom dice.

I guess, in a sense, I'm agreeing with you.

-EF

[Supplanter]

There's a provision in Breakout Act 2 to bring in additional mutates at various points if you spend doom dice. (I think D8 or greater.) Otherwise you're stuck with the listed four - or five, whatever. Which is still plenty.

Last night I kind of charged myself DDs on the fly to have villains enter at inopportune but fun times. It helped keep the pool population down somewhat while keeping the action moving while letting the players see that there was a little something in it for them.


Jim

[Spatula]

The other day on my current re-read of the Operations Manual I noticed a bit in the introduction to the Doom Pool (OM14) that says the Doom Pool is a resource for "... and, at the end of an Act, populating the Event with additional threats..."

Now, I don't recall seeing anything like that in Breakout (maybe Civil War will show us some examples?) but I think it's a nifty idea that should be explored more.

The jail breakout itself has the Watcher use the doom pool to introduce different villains with their full powers: a D6 to give a gear-based villain their equipment (BR14) and a D10 to remove the drugged/depowered complication on a powered villain (BR15).

The Savage Land, as noted, allows for spending the doom pool to add in named mutates.

[figurefour]

The jail breakout itself has the Watcher use the doom pool to introduce different villains with their full powers: a D6 to give a gear-based villain their equipment (BR14) and a D10 to remove the drugged/depowered complication on a powered villain (BR15).

The Savage Land, as noted, allows for spending the doom pool to add in named mutates.

I think those are all examples of using Doom during a scene to add threats to that scene. We still haven't seen an example of using Doom at the end of an Act to influence the NEXT Act.