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To evaluate whether skilled play is being rewarded fairly, you have to look at what the player can do in the campaign and the context in which those decisions are made. To be clear, I’m using “player” deliberately, not just in the sense of roleplaying as their character, but in terms of...

Yup, I should have realized it earlier, but people are starting to get more specific about what they do at the table, and it occurred to me today that might be an important issue to air out. Additional note, I don't think the solution is to define player agency. Just make sure to supply the...

As a general note I think it is important when referring to player agency to indicate what kind of agency is being discussed. There is the agency that the players has while roleplaying as a character in the campaign. Then there is the agency the player has while using the system. The two are...

Thanks for the review of Bandits & Brigands. This is an good opportunity to discuss how expectations and design context influence both how a resource is written and how it is meant to be used. The document wasn’t intended as a closed-loop faction simulator or an exhaustive procedural guide to...

What you said about the referee controlling information and their capabilities is correct, but it needs to be explained why the structures and techniques I’ve described are inadequate to prevent railroading in practice. Why does @pemerton's post mischaracterize my points? Using your question...

Your post clearly lays out your approach using Burning Wheel and Torchbearer and clarifies your preferred style of play. This helps me understand your position more clearly. However, the core issue I've repeatedly raised remains: your persistent mischaracterization of sandbox techniques as...

That's what the Initial Context is for. The group as a whole has some information; each player has their own set of information. Together, this forms the Initial Context, which allows the group to figure out what they want to do at the start of Session 1. A general principle of my campaign is...

It is a description of people who are members of Bandit and Brigand gangs and how they interact with each other. Here is how to read it. First a description of what bandits are. How they are organized and how frequently they are found in the rural landscape. Next is a list of people...

Computational Theory encompasses elements of complexity theory, automata theory, and game theory. All things relevant to a system of game mechanics. So it is applicable to Burning Wheel as it is a game with a system of mechanics. The moment a resolution mechanic exists, especially one that...

Throughout this thread, multiple individuals, including myself, @Bedrockgames, and others, have offered detailed, well-reasoned accounts of our respective approaches to sandbox campaigns. In turn, you have persistently criticized and dismissed those views, often without acknowledging the...

Or Basket weaving, @hawkeyefan may get the reference from our previous discussion. This is why I use the phrase "trashing the setting" a lot. A major part of how I run sandbox campaigns is letting any expectations that things ought to go in a particular way. I will roleplay out anything (within...

It has nothing to do with the 1977 Monster Manual.

Yes, I can confirm that given the same Initial Context set in the same situation that there are a LOT of different ways it will play out. I have done extensive playtesting of various Sandbox Adventures, most involving what would be considered a mystery. The oldest of these is Scourge of the...

@mamba is correct. In computational theory, it is well established that any simulation is necessarily a simplification; it cannot fully capture the complexity of the system it represents. This principle applies equally to games, tabletop roleplaying., and specific systems like Burning Wheel...

I would appreciate it if you leave the accusations of the one true wayism out of the discussion. @Bedrockgames has been extraordinarily patient with many posters here explaining what he does with sandbox campaigns and how he views them. I took the time to ask the questions that were needed to...