On Saturday we kicked-off a three-session series of The Woodlands by Andrew Medeiros. We’re playing in the Mouse Guard setting, and the first session was a real pleasure.
The Woodlands is a set of playbooks and move sheets that allow you to play Mouse Guard-like stories in a system that’s Powered by the Apocalypse. While there isn’t an accompanying text, the materials are more than sufficient if you have familiarity with PbtA games. I’m a fan because Drew has created a set of playbooks and moves that feels very comprehensive; elements from both the comics and the officially licensed game have been nicely translated into a PbtA context, and it feels great.
There were a lot of terrific moments in our session, but two stand out. The first involved our hapless Tenderpaw and her mentor. The Tenderpaw was basically screwing everything up; she forgot to pick up gabcroon bread for the patrol, and she failed to notice a very obvious predator they then had to deal with. One morning, before the whole patrol was awake, the Tenderpaw’s mentor woke her up and took her into the forest to go foraging. They managed to find a squirrel’s acorn stash and brought some acorn nut meat back to camp. The mentor made sure the Tenderpaw got the credit for finding the acorns, thereby defusing some of the tensions that had been building up in the group because of her mistakes.
The second scene that stuck out was during a stopover in Ivydale. We established that the Guard kept log books in each settlement so patrols could keep each other abreast of dangers and other happenings. The patrol leaders were also required to make an accounting of each member of their group so the heads of the Guard could review it later when determining promotions and commendations. So we had a fun, short scene in which our leader summarized the actions of each member of the patrol in turn, their various acts of bravery and quick-thinking noted with a number of glowing adjectives. When he got to the Tenderpaw, he said simply that her performance was “adequate,” which, under the circumstances, her player considered to be a great success.
Overall, a very enjoyable session. The Woodlands has given me precisely what I want each time I’ve played it, and I can’t wait to see where the next sessions go. Thanks to my players Fraser Simons David LaFreniere River Williamson and steven watkins!
Yeah it was really great and was packed full of a lot of character development, especially for the first session!
Yeah it was really great and was packed full of a lot of character development, especially for the first session!
Ahhhhhh! That’s so cool. I love those scenes you’ve described so much; feels right out of the comic books for me!
Ahhhhhh! That’s so cool. I love those scenes you’ve described so much; feels right out of the comic books for me!
Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for sharing.
Did you record any of those sessions?
Did you record any of those sessions?
Tommy Rayburn We’ve only done the first one, but yes, it’s recorded. Currently set to Private. I’m still very leery about making my YT videos public.
Tommy Rayburn We’ve only done the first one, but yes, it’s recorded. Currently set to Private. I’m still very leery about making my YT videos public.
That’s so cool. I played one or two sessions of the Mouse Guard RPG years ago but it never really clicked for us. Great to hear there’s another way that might work 😀
That’s so cool. I played one or two sessions of the Mouse Guard RPG years ago but it never really clicked for us. Great to hear there’s another way that might work 😀
neko cam If you like Mouse Guard fiction, but the official game is too crunchy for you, definitely take a look at The Woodlands.
neko cam If you like Mouse Guard fiction, but the official game is too crunchy for you, definitely take a look at The Woodlands.
My character has serious delusions of adequacy.
My character has serious delusions of adequacy.