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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Neonchameleon" data-source="post: 8158911" data-attributes="member: 87792">There are, to me, a handful of things that enable and encourage agency in combat - and you're right that crescent kick vs spin kick isn't on the list however fun it is to decide. Off the top of my head they include:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Risk vs reward - do you take seemingly unnecessary risks in combat to get things done faster?</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Risk self vs risk allies - do you let allies get hurt to keep yourself safe and on the back line or do you even jump in the way of attacks for them?</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Environment, terrain, and situational factors - what makes this fight different from any other and how can you use it?</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">How does the fight end? Is there any other way than death? And what do you do after?</li> </ul>Apocalypse World has every attack hitting the risk vs reward point because there are two basic attacks, one much higher risk than the other but also more likely to kill than the other. And even when the attack is made you probably have another risk vs reward choice as part of the resolution. It also has quite a bit to say about the other three points. oD&D has a lot on point 2 thanks to the hireling rules - but many Apocalypse World playbooks also have gangs.To me this isn't actually great agency because the player can't really move with confidence without knowing the GM intimately. I want enough structure that I don't have to ask the odds of success - and knowing them means that I understand the world much better. There is however a difference between the common sandbox pattern of a character basically being Isikai'd into a strange world to explore the sandbox and someone who grew up there.Interestingly Apocalypse World is built on the rhythm of freeform RP. In freeform there are times you'd naturally hand over narration to either the GM or the other players because there's something that needs resolving - and the rules are designed to slot in at those moments so as to cause minimal disruption. (Vincent Baker's wife, Meguey Baker, is a freeform RPer by background and one of his goals in any design is to make her want to reach for the dice rather than have them imposed on her). It also has a lot of rulings (one for every failed roll) but very solid guidelines for them.</blockquote>

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