The ‘Greed is Good’ Triumph and Treachery narrative event took place in Hickory NC, USA, on the 23rd of July 2022.
This narrative event was all about multiplayer battles with small armies, collecting rewards and setting bounties on enemy Heroes… who then had to deal with lingering injuries. Armies had to play it smart, because only the one with the biggest paychest could be the winner.
You can find the event rules ‘Plunders & Profits’ Battlepack below.
We chatted with the NEO (Narrative Event Organizer) for the event, Cory Bragg, about the experience.
Q: Please summarize the event for us, Cory.
A: The event was focused on the game that is played between players in the real world, not just the interaction of rules and models. Players were able to make deals and bribes with other players, using a currency of gold coins issued out at the beginning of the event. Though, that wasn’t the only thing to barter. Anything went, from offering to target a specific opponent to buying the other player a beer after the event, however the players wanted to work their deals, I made it to be up to them.
Each round the players found themselves in unique missions that are a long way away from the Matched Play mission found in the General’s Handbook. From Two vs Two games where your teammate MAY be a traitor, to free for all games where you’re bidding for an advantage from a 5th army, players were rewarded for thinking creatively.
Q: Age of Sigmar 3.0 lends itself much better to smaller points games. Tell us more about your reasoning with using low points armies, and what adjustments you made for the game, in this event’s battlepack.
A: I think that players of AoS tend to get bogged down by thinking of the game in “2k points” format. By limiting points you limit options and players have to rely on simple rules interactions to find victory. Also, it’s less mentally taxing. I’m already throwing my players through a loop with objectives that they have never seen before. By keeping games at lower points, it should help to prevent mental drain.
Q: How did you implement the multiplayer rules? Many have done it in Triumph and Treachery games, in several different ways in the past, what’s your spin?
A: The multi-player games went amazingly. People changing sides constantly, leading to some good ol’ fashioned salt. Triumph and Treachery format is great for traditional multiplayer games, and I’ve been very inspired by those rules. Because this was an event with only one winner, I wanted to make the “team” elements still have a sense of selfishness, for lack of a better term. Rules changed from round to round. In one mission, a player could switch sides from battle round to battle round. In other missions, players could find themselves woefully outnumbered.
This was a narrative event, there’s a chance you’re going to be outnumbered, out gunned, and out muscled all in one go. And that’s the fun of it.
Q: How did the bounties work? How dangerous would an enemy hero need to be to terrorize everyone so much, that players parted with their hard earned coin?
A: Bounties are a way for players to hurt other opponents, even from a different table. It also encourages interaction. I started as many “fights” as possible to up the hype. Also, it acts as an equalizer. You’re able to bring those powerhouse heroes to this game, but doing so will put a pretty big target on your back. Are you confident in your ability to overcome with everyone out to get you?
Overall for the three rounds, 6 bounties were issued. All the bounties were personal vendettas, and unrelated to the rules. People would throw a bounty just to piss off a friend, which is what i wanted! I do wish I had added more incentive to place bounties. Players decided to be very cagey with their gold at first, so players didn’t throw bounties as it wasn’t the “tactical” move. There were some high moments though. I had a player bribe others with beer, and I offered to paint models instead of paying gold.
Q: What kind of dynamics and strategic actions did players engage in? How many players faced each other at the same time, and how much did they actually team up during the event?
A: This was an experience where players had to pay just as much attention to the social interactions of the game as much as the mechanical ones. Victory could only go to those who were able to take on the most gold from fellow players, rather than just rewards for winning games. Playing this like a normal set of three AoS games just hurt a player more than help.
We had up to 5 players on a table at a time, but still, never more than 3000 points of models at a time. I wanted games to run quick, and lower points helped accomplish that. Making alliances and truces was pivotal in this event. You go in and try to swing at everyone in the room, they ALL swing back. Now, there was always the chance you’ll be stabbed in the back down the road, but that’s the gamble you take.
Unfortunately something that I was worried would happen is people choosing to not play to the system. For instance, during the last match a player just went to everyone who was not likely to win and just asked for all their gold. They gave it, so one player won the event by just being given gold. Winning isn’t terribly important and it was more an excuse to play silly AoS games but was still annoying to see. All in all it was a good time and everyone seemed to have fun, though if I do it again I’ll create stricter guidelines.
Q: What would you like to say to players out there, to motivate them to join your gaming group in Hickory, North Carolina?
A: If anyone ever finds themselves in western North Carolina, I really hope you take a trip to visit Hickory Cards, Comics, and Games. The community has put a lot of work into building a game space we are proud of. It’s mostly been players who bring in terrain for the store to use, players building and painting store items, players getting the mats and teaching newcomers. I couldn’t be prouder to be a part of this community, and am honored they keep letting me throw these dumb events that are probably going to end with people arguing. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
————————
Thank you, Cory!
What do you think about this event?
Do you have any questions for the NEO, and how to adjust an event for small points armies?
Leave your comments below!
Narrative Event Organizer Network 