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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Manbearcat" data-source="post: 9517268" data-attributes="member: 6696971">A story beat is an essential component of macro-story design.  It is a structural element that intentionally organizes dramatic and tonal elements with a mind toward an arc, an act, and the entire body of a story.There are some games that (a) are concerned with this at the agenda-level, (b) are specifically designed with this dramatic structure as the core of play, and (c) therefore the participants array their thoughts and prerogatives around this paradigm.  Fiasco, Ten Candles, certain iterations of Fate and Cortex+ among others come to mind.  In the Trad space, you're talking about a GM Storyteller style where either an AP or a GM organizes a metanarrative around such story conceits and structure.  Node-based design where essential story elements give default structure and shape to a narrative to be played through is absolutely this.If you're familiar with American Football, an (somewhat crude admittedly) approximation is the difference between:* Playcalling for this situation in front of you right nowvs* Gameplanning + Game Management EthosIt's virtually impossible for me to answer this because the GMing and the play of Torchbearer makes it impossible to play a character that avoids conflict.  Now you can create a character that tends to evade, misdirect, skulk, and deceive and has a Belief, Instinct, Creed, and Nature that demonstrates these tendencies (along with selected Class, Traits, Skills, Wises).  But this character is still a Torchbearer character.  Play is still about:* "Fighting for What you Believe" (your Belief, Instinct, Creed, Friends, Parents, Hometown) and dealing with your Enemy* It is still structured by the phases of Town, Adventure, Camp, Journey/Toll and all the dynamics therein (dealing with The Light and Grind clocks.* Players still have to make Tests with their PCs to deal with obstacles.* Players still have to engage with and resolve the Conflict mechanics/procedures via their PCs.* Players still have to stay on top of their PC's Conditions and recover them so they don't spiral into the Dead condition or retirement in some way.* Players still have to accrue Checks with their PCs to fuel Camp phase.* Players still have to manage the difficulties of their PC's Inventory.* Players still have to deal with Twists + Town Events + Camp Events via their PCs.* Players still have to deal with the structure of a Short or Medium or Long Adventure via their PCs.* Players still have to pay their PC's bills at the end of Town phase.* Players still have to make theme/premise-based plays with their PCs in order to fuel and gain currencies essential to gameplay and attendant survival and advancement.* Players still have to deploy their PC's Nature and deal with it's losses/gains and stay on top of it so it doesn't lead to retirement.* Players still have to make decisions around using PC Traits against themselves or failing tests to advance PCs.-----------So I don't know exactly what you have in mind, but (a) playing characters that want to bake muffins and avoid strife is not playing Torchbearer and (b) the gameplay engine itself makes it impossible to avoid strife, adventure, and danger.The game is all conflict, all the time, and designing and playing a Torchbearer character at all is to accept this and embrace it.</blockquote>

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