TOPIC: Thoughts on Changes to the New Player Experience

Background
The current new player experience in True Dungeon is a 4-room sealed pack run. All players receive a 10-pack of tokens in Coaching. Here is the current schedule in a 12-room dungeon:
• 24 minutes of coaching – character choice and building
• 12 minutes of training – adventure prologue, sliding and skill test practice
• 48 minutes of adventure – typically 2 puzzle and 2 combat rooms
• Epilogue – everyone love treasure

Purpose of Proposal
Coming from the CCG world, I never recommend sealed deck or draft tournaments to brand-new players unless they’ve first had a dedicated Learn to Play experience. Building a deck when you don’t know how to play is a recipe for disaster in that arena. However, this is the exact experience True Dungeon offers its new players in the current sealed pack environment. In 24 minutes, new players must open the pack, read the tokens, study 12 different character cards, decide on a character to play based on their tokens, build out their character by deciphering the circles on the character mat, and then have a coach help build out the stats of their character. They do all this before they get to learn about sliding and skill tests in the training room. Coaching is a very stressful experience for new players and the coaches.

Proposal for an Update to the New Player Experience
The new player dungeon would only have Normal difficulty. To take some of the pressure off the coaching experience, I propose the following change to the schedule:
• 12 minutes of character introduction – one coach introduces the players to the different classes, including their major strengths and weaknesses. This could be a script written by TD. Players do not receive tokens in this room. Players choose character cards at the end of the introduction and receive a common weapon suitable for their class. This could include a 2-handed weapon for Barbs, Mystic Staves for Wizards, a Trinket for Druids, a Mace for Clerics, etc.
• 12 minutes of training – players are shown the sliders and the skill tests. They view a story prologue video.
• 12-minute combat – easy normal-level monster
• 12-minute puzzle – Standard puzzle room. At the completion of this room, they would be given 10-packs of tokens. This would be part of the story, as if they’re looting the room and opening a treasure chest.
• 12 minutes of token time in a new room – players open packs, trade tokens and update their characters. I know that’s a lot in 12 minutes, so I have some ideas to simplify this process (see below). Coaches in the room are costumed to not pull people too far out of the story.
• 12-minute puzzle – if players successfully complete the puzzle, they get a rare-level treasure enhancer.
• 12-minute combat – harder big bad
• Epilogue – watch a video advertising full sized dungeons, including differences in coaching. Everyone loves treasure.

What about the token experience in the middle of the run? The token packs in these runs should be a specific set of evergreen tokens for the new player dungeon experience. They would be used every year (reprinted as needed), since they wouldn’t have a specific theme to them. The new player dungeon each year could be a standard D&D style run, rather than going along with whatever the theme for the year is.
• The tokens should be limited to just a few possible slots; head, neck, torso, back, hands, 1 ring, belt, boots, melee mainhand, melee offhand and ranged mainhand. The rare-level TE mentioned above would be in a slot such as bead, charm or ioun stone.
• Instead of a mat, players sit down at a tablet. A simple app allows them to select class and then add the tokens they want. The tablets talk to a master computer that receives everyone’s character data, then a coach prints a party card. (Yes, I am aware there are tech questions to be answered here.)
• Common level tokens should do simple things like increase hp, AC, or a single save. They should not have any specialized effects like “+3 damage vs Accursed.” There could be a cool set bonus that’s well-advertised in the room. Token packs should contain very few common weapons, since players would already have gotten one of those in the introduction.
• Uncommon level tokens should give better basic boosts to hp, melee and ranged hit, or damage. Basic damage reduction is also an option here. They can also do specific class boosts, like the 2026 uncommon rings .
• Rare level tokens should be weapons, shields, armor or robes. They could also be tokens that are usable by everyone such as healing potions.

I hope this generates some good ideas for how the new player’s experience can be improved.

I agree with some of these, or at least the idea behind some of these.

1. I really like the idea of a "starter" pack. I know a lot of the years common tokens sort of fill this need, so either use those or print a starter pack that can be reused every year. Very basic items like "Sword", "Helm", "Shield" etc. Then since they are looking at reprinting the new character mat, they could just have 10 basic spots to be filled out.
2. I think TD needs an area outside the dungeon that shows more of what its like.
3. I don't think opening 10 packs in the middle of the dungeon will work, but who knows.

Really like most of this for "Sealed" new player runs. Instead of opening packs in the dungeon however, I would recommend keeping the 24 minutes of coaching and using that time to explain the characters and how Tokens work.

Please stop giving 10 packs to players at the beginning, it's so chaotic and they have no idea what's going on. Rather, have a starter pack for each character with the Tokens already laid out on the matts and the party card already pre-printed when players enter. Then let the coach give broad descriptions of the different types of character classes (casters, fighters, etc.), players can pick their class and then the coach can fine tune discussions of each class and how Tokens work, tell players to keep out the weapon Tokens (and maybe consumables, give each player a potion or scroll or dust or something in the starter pack) put the others away, and then off they go to training. Then give each player a random 10 pack at the end of the run and a few treasure draws.

The mid-dungeon token packs is definitely the biggest question mark on this proposal. I would propose some internal testing (local SIUC students paid in pizza???) before rolling that out at GC.

And I just realized I broke the rules by posting in this forum. Moderators, please feel free to punt this to a more appropriate location. Thanks!

Corey Pressler wrote: 2. I think TD needs an area outside the dungeon that shows more of what it’s like.

IIRC, TD has done this at a few cons (Origins and MomoCon?). Costumed NPCs stood out front with a combat board, pucks, and maybe a TV showing a promo video. The NPCs were there to answer questions and demonstrate sliding. I think it’s generally a good idea, it just depends on space and volunteer availability.

jadziadax8 wrote:
Proposal for an Update to the New Player Experience
The new player dungeon would only have Normal difficulty. To take some of the pressure off the coaching experience, I propose the following change to the schedule:

• 12 minutes of character introduction – one coach introduces the players to the different classes, including their major strengths and weaknesses. This could be a script written by TD. Players do not receive tokens in this room. Players choose character cards at the end of the introduction and receive a common weapon suitable for their class. This could include a 2-handed weapon for Barbs, Mystic Staves for Wizards, a Trinket for Druids, a Mace for Clerics, etc.

I love everything about this!

Logistical note: TD could preprint an entire intro party card with full stats, so players still learn about carrying a party card through the adventure, but all the coach has to do for it is write down the date and time and cross out whichever classes aren't chosen by the players.

• 12 minutes of training – players are shown the sliders and the skill tests. They view a story prologue video.

Perhaps even 24 minutes of training, to allow lots of time for questions and practice.

Logistical note: a regular dungeon shift needs 2 party card coaches and 1 training coach; this would swap that to 1 party card coach and 2 training coaches.

• 12-minute combat – easy normal-level monster
• 12-minute puzzle – Standard puzzle room.

Perfect!

At the completion of this room, they would be given 10-packs of tokens. This would be part of the story, as if they’re looting the room and opening a treasure chest.
• 12 minutes of token time in a new room – players open packs, trade tokens and update their characters. I know that’s a lot in 12 minutes, so I have some ideas to simplify this process (see below). Coaches in the room are costumed to not pull people too far out of the story.

Personally I would omit this part entirely; focus on the actual game right now, and save the wider variety of tokens for their subsequent full-dungeon experience.

• 12-minute puzzle – if players successfully complete the puzzle, they get a rare-level treasure enhancer.
• 12-minute combat – harder big bad
• Epilogue – watch a video advertising full sized dungeons, including differences in coaching. Everyone loves treasure.

I love the idea of the epilogue video introducing how character building will work next time! I think handing out 10-packs in epilogue would dovetail nicely with this.

The only problem with 24 minutes of training is you need two training rooms for each dungeon because you can't otherwise keep the 12 minute start schedule.

Now, doing training first for 24 minutes and having a 12 minute room for people to pick classes might work there.

I would also be cool with handing out tokens in epilogue.

Unrelated additional suggestion: don't have unique XP or a unique participation token for each year's intro event. This way there's no incentive for experienced players to buy tickets to it, so all the tickets are for actual new players.

(a single "new player XP" which is the same every year could be okay. Come to think of it, the actual rooms could also be the same every year.)

Also, an important suggestion.

If opening the token pack in the middle stays, I'd still like to play even as an experienced player. I like sealed deck tournaments in TCGs.

jadziadax8 wrote: If opening the token pack in the middle stays, I'd still like to play even as an experienced player. I like sealed deck tournaments in TCGs.

As an experienced player, buy out a run and organize a forum group to run the full length dungeon as sealed! (or rather, "greedy sealed" with TEs but no other outside tokens)

It's super fun! I would love to organize one at GHC again, but not sure if I can fit it into my schedule given that I'll have a young Wizard with me who is already A. playing two runs and B. hanging out patiently with Grammy while I do three grown-up-only runs.

As a coach I would hate the mid game coaching. We often rely on players getting to the run early and working though tokens before we get there. 24 minutes would be a constant and major time crunch.
Honestly I would love it if the schedule put players in the room 12 minutes ahead of me, might cut down on late shows and give me a full 24 to work on the party card.