[Mortal Coil] Difference between editions?

Joli

(split from the game swap thread. I',m hoping to figure out if I want something from it.)

Say, can anyone tell me the differences between Mortal Coil 1st and 2nd ed?

I went and found the download listing the revisions, and it's like 37 pages. I'd love for someone to talk about the qualitative differences, and maybe clarify if those in the DL are additions or tweaks or what.

Peace,
-Joel

shreyas

i hear the new one has more cock.

or moorcock? it was loud in the club.

Joli

I always forget where the different editions stand regarding cock. I was actually thinking maybe MC2 had less.

For the record, I'm all about more cock.

IceCreamEmperor

I haven't read the new edition exhaustively, or done a side by side comparison or anything, but I would say the most important difference is that the resolution mechanic is explained more clearly and more thoroughly. It may have also been mildly tweaked, but nothing that leapt out at me. Of course, since I struggled to understand the system as described in the previous edition, I would hardly be in a position to notice changes.

Similarly I think there were some minor changes to the Magic Fact system that someone mentioned elsewhere, but again they weren't particularly noticeable to me on my read-through.

Joli

Ok. If it's mainly just clarification, then I could probably get by with the 1e book partnered with the DL document.

Destriarch

Posted By: MelinglorOk. If it's mainly just clarification, then I could probably get by with the 1e book partnered with the DL document.

I wouldn't bet on that.

Joli

Care to elaborate?

Destriarch

Posted By: MelinglorCare to elaborate?

There are some very odd anomolies in the system and it is rather confusingly written. For example, early on it tells us that action tokens can be committed to an action, and are retrieved only when it is complete, which sort of implies that a character can perform as many simultaneous actions as he has action tokens - the sample character has seven. However no less than four chapters later we are told about Conflict, which is the actual de facto means that the game deals with important actions. Once you understand conflict you might as well forget about the majority of the other rules because it works much better to use conflict for more or less everything. The chapter entitled 'Play' is more just about teaching terminology. In other words, the chapter that would seem to be about how to play the game is really more of a primer, but this isn't immediately apparent from the text.

I haven't seen the revised edition since it came out after I reviewed it, but it did really need to be reordered and rewritten to put the rules across better to the reader. Hopefully this has been done.

If you've not played Mortal Coil previously, I'd say these were the key things to know:

*Lovely illustrations
*Fiercely narrativistic system, very open
*Probably the biggest draw, world-building on the fly.
*Token based 'bidding' system
*No actual setting information (at least in the original) players have to invent it all

-Ash

Brennan_Taylor

My goal with the new edition was to clear up the problems with clarity and presentation that Ash mentions above. Hopefully, I succeeded.

Joli

Cool, Brennan. Any art differences between editions?

And thanks, Ashok. That was helpful.

Destriarch

You're both of you welcome. Incidentally Brennan, I hope the review I did for you in KODT was useful in terms of sales too?

-Ash

Brennan_Taylor

Ash, your review was very valuable. Thanks again for taking a look at the book!

Melinglor, there are two new pieces of art in the new edition.

Joli

ooOOoooh! Well that clinches it then. I'm holding out for 2E!