Blades in the Dark - Second Session Discussion

Last night's BitD game went well. I'm still experimenting with combat, and last night's episode ended on a huge one. Specifically what I'm unsure about is how the "spotlight" travels. I came up with the "thingus" that everyone could pass around to take their action, but there is no actual set "initiative order" in the ruleset of BitD. As a matter of fact, the bad guys specifically don't get to do *anything*. Instead, the rules say that they just do stuff and that the PCs are then welcome to come up with ways to either mitigate the damage or create narrative to counter it.

On the plus side, I believe that the group combat went well. The River Rats vs. the Red Sash cadre fight seemed "right" to me now that I'm getting more of a hang with the "effect" rules. Essentially the factors for effect include "quality/tier", "potency", and "scale", and the fact that there were more Red Sashes than PCs allowed them to gain effect because of scale. By adding the River Rats and basically commanding them as a turn you were more easily able to match their scale.

BTW, the River Rats were pretty cut up by the end. They will need a score rest, and another score before they are at full strength. Luckily, you have the cole slaw gang to "rely" on.

One last comment on HEAT. I believe I'm playing it wrong. If you get 8 heat as a group, you guys get a WANTED level, and your HEAT goes down, not unlike losing all your STRESS after taking TRAUMA. Speaking of which, I am also going to tweak some of the ENTANGLEMENTS to reflect the fact that the FSA is at war with the Red Sashes next game.

What were your favorite moments? Is this game fun? Does it make sense? What do you think about doing more "downtime scenes" where you indulge in your vice and deal with the fallout of the gang war you are a part of?