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<blockquote data-quote="clearstream" data-source="post: 8514641" data-attributes="member: 71699"><p>In campaigns I've run without, or with the barest mechanics, we still feel a scale from "<em>Oh dear! What I meant to say was... ouch!</em>", to "<em>Seems doubtful</em>", through "<em>Everyone nods</em>", up to "<em>What a play, wow! Everyone shouts and laughs excitedly.</em>" Same I guess in scenarios in games with an average or abundant level of crunch, where we move forward or reach resolution, without reaching for mechanics.</p><p></p><p>It's like we have a sense of the power of what's said, even without numbers to scale it by. I do acknowledge that mechanics will inform and even change what counts as skilled play, and great mechanics may elevate it! On the other hand, at some level of mechanical rigour, players can feel that it's a mistake to make any but the most effective moves. Maybe the game isn't telling them to be in that mindset, but sometimes they go there anyway.</p><p></p><p>This isn't to commit into a defence of fewer over more mechanics. Both ways have virtue. Only to say that in the set of legitimate choices, some are good or great and some are less good or horrible. Hence the switch to "valid" (which I'm not selling to anyone, it's my switch serving specific purposes I have in mind.)</p><p></p><p>Torchbearer sounds really interesting. I haven't had an opportunity to try it yet.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="clearstream, post: 8514641, member: 71699"] In campaigns I've run without, or with the barest mechanics, we still feel a scale from "[I]Oh dear! What I meant to say was... ouch![/I]", to "[I]Seems doubtful[/I]", through "[I]Everyone nods[/I]", up to "[I]What a play, wow! Everyone shouts and laughs excitedly.[/I]" Same I guess in scenarios in games with an average or abundant level of crunch, where we move forward or reach resolution, without reaching for mechanics. It's like we have a sense of the power of what's said, even without numbers to scale it by. I do acknowledge that mechanics will inform and even change what counts as skilled play, and great mechanics may elevate it! On the other hand, at some level of mechanical rigour, players can feel that it's a mistake to make any but the most effective moves. Maybe the game isn't telling them to be in that mindset, but sometimes they go there anyway. This isn't to commit into a defence of fewer over more mechanics. Both ways have virtue. Only to say that in the set of legitimate choices, some are good or great and some are less good or horrible. Hence the switch to "valid" (which I'm not selling to anyone, it's my switch serving specific purposes I have in mind.) Torchbearer sounds really interesting. I haven't had an opportunity to try it yet. [/QUOTE]
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