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It’s a collaborative game, and it’s everybody’s responsibility to ensure that everybody is having fun. What you’re referring to are a number of lines dividing up exactly what responsibilities each participant has. In general these are divided along a DM/player line, but that doesn’t have to be...

That and the wonky climbing rules, plus the size issue. While I get the appeal of some players wanting to play different races, this highlights the challenges with things that make sense vs maintaining a strict adherence to “game balance.” I much prefer a risk/reward approach too, but the fact...

That and the wonky climbing rules, plus the size issue. While I get the appeal of some players wanting to play different races, this highlights the challenges with things that make sense vs maintaining a strict adherence to “game balance.” I much prefer a risk/reward approach too, but the fact...

I was never a big fan either, in part because most of the time when publishers try to be funny and clever, it doesn't really hold up. If you ignore what the folks at TSR thought was funny (and isn't) and take it in your own direction, I could see it being more interesting. Of course, now it...

Yes to all of the above, although I will say our actual combat system is different now too, to allow more of it. Essentially, the way I treat combat is that you are slicing it into sections of time (approx 6 seconds), and that the actions in that slice should work together to make sense. A...

This thread again... To start with, all the sorts of things that normal people spend coin on. Their first adventure is like winning the lottery, so they can buy property, homes for their family, horses, wagons or carts. They can be Oprah, “you get a cart! And you get a cart!” Of course...

That was exactly one of the things that we wanted to eliminate too. I just didn't see any reason to set an order for declarations. One of the main benefits of the approach is that the players can coordinate better, since turn order isn't a thing. By setting an order of declaration, those that...

Yeah, that's never really been a problem, even at a public table with 13 strangers (to me, and among most of them). It's not that it's entirely that chaos, and I'll ask if needed. Each table that I've run has had a slightly different dynamic, and it's never taken long for everybody to figure out...

I can understand the criticism, but I think it is different if the intent is different. If the GM's intent is to make it an interesting challenge along the way to whatever their goal is, then it is quite different than "you fail because I don't want you to succeed." If the force field is...

I’d say there’s a meaningful difference between agency (control) of your character and agency (control) of results. Both provide input into the fiction or narrative, but in a different way. The force placed against the players/characters is essentially the same when the GM arbitrarily decides...

We don’t use initiative at all, resolving things in what seems a logical order. I don’t “go around the table”, just tell me what you’re doing, and go ahead and start doing it. They can talk to each other, etc. I can listen to several people at once, and if I have questions I’ll ask. We like...

Well, we don't play every moment of every day. And in fact, we were just discussion how the passage of time is something that is often difficult to work into the game. Adventures in Middle Earth sets it up in a way that you typically have one large adventure, and then when the winter comes...

See, this is where you keep losing me. My assertion is that it should be at the player's/character's behest and actions that the skill come into play and have an impact, and you're telling me that not only is it the GM's job, but my approach in giving you the control is a burden on your player...

And I believe that to logically design a world, you have to account for such things. Regardless of how random many things seem, the staircases to nowhere were built for a reason. Logical doesn't mean ordered. But one of my pet peeves in books, movies, TV shows, etc. are the things that are done...

First, I don’t subscribe to the general approach that many adventure designers go about their business. I often disagree with their approach to placement of secret doors for the same logical reason I’m questioning the ability of a Story Now approach to take into account. Many adventures, etc...

First, I don’t subscribe to the general approach that many adventure designers go about their business. I often disagree with their approach to placement of secret doors for the same logical reason I’m questioning the ability of a Story Now approach to take into account. Many adventures, etc...

So the scene started when they discovered the old tomb while they were guided for a couple of out of town nobles on a hunting expedition. To tie into one of pemerton’s favorite subjects, there were some secret ulterior motives. However, those had no bearing here. Anyway, they opted to explore...

I agree with this, although ironically I also agree in the context of pre-authored content. In other words, whether I've written it before the session or not, until it enters play it doesn't exist. And I've stated that several times in the past. I might write it down ahead of time, and keep it...

So to answer the first part of your question: Notes can serve as many different things. The most basic is something like a "typical orc patrol" with stats, etc. that are ready to drop in whenever needed. This could be something like a map of a tomb, perhaps with some traps and areas of...

So I see the discussion on railroad/not has continued, but this post in particular had two points I wanted to make: First, in terms of the Story Now approach of searching for a secret door, that the check itself is (at least partially) responsible for determining whether a secret door is found...