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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Manbearcat" data-source="post: 8159731" data-attributes="member: 6696971">I want to clarify and expound on my post and hopefully it starts some functional conversation.As of right now, I think many of the people I typically agree with on these issues has at least SOME level of disagreement with me on this so it would be especially interesting if those folks who typically agree with me, but disagree with me here, would critique what I write below:AGENCY VECTOR AND TYPESo I wrote above about Character Agency, Situation Agency, Setting Agency.  These are vectors for player agency, not types (more on that below).  On any given Venn Diagram featuring these 3, there will be some overlap, but the majority of the space of each is discrete with no overlap.  To unpack that further:Character Agency - The PC is here.  The time is now.  The relationship of relevant objects (including the PC themselves) within the gamestate are thus.  Without changing any of here, now, and thus for any given action declaration, make a move where either/or/both here and thus are changed (now will fundamentally change because time will have moved forward after the action declaration).Situation Agency - The immediate conflict is x, the corresponding stakes are y, the relationships of relevant objects within the gamestate are z.  Make a move that affects either/or/both y or z, which will in turn impact certain qualities of x (the level of danger, the participants, the prospects of success).Setting Agency - The ability to make a move that interfaces with/leverages the offscreen whereby some new aspect of the shared imagined space (setting) becomes established/fleshed-out (in a way that doesn't violate what has been already established through play).  This could be something relevant and interesting...or it could just be interesting with the prospect of becoming relevant later.Now, onto AGENCY TYPE:Tactical Agency - The ability to make a move that affects, both in degree and in kind, the relationship of objects/goals/stakes within the immediate gamestate.Strategic Agency - The ability to make a move that affects, both in degree and in kind, the relationship of objects within the setting such that downstream decision-points and gamestates are likely significantly altered.Protagonist Agency - The ability to have resolving a PC's dramatic needs be either the outright premise of play or primarily propel the trajectory/arc of play.[HR][/HR]I don't see any other vectors or types.  If anyone sees a different one, critique away.  FYI - I don't see how "emotions, feelings, or immersion" are "agency" here.  All of those things will be the experience created by the unique characteristics of a person's cognitive landscape/framework connecting + the systematized aspects of games (what is the premise of play, what kind of conflicts, what kind of fallout and how is that actualized).I'm running long here so I need to wrap this up.One thing I find interesting in examining the matrix above is the Martial vs Spellcaster in D&D divide.  Look at how much of all of the above the classic D&D Spellcaster interfaces with vs the Martial character:* They have tons of agency through their Character because its impossible not too.  HOWEVER, they can subvert the ability of NPCs to express agency via their spells.* They have tons of ability to dramatically alter or reframe Situation via their spells.* They have a unique ability to express agency through Setting within their spells, which grows as levels accrue (becoming somewhat rote at 10+ in high level Spells/Rituals).* Their Tactical Agency is profound.  They can fundamentally alter or reframe any given combat or noncombat encounter with a singular spell (god help us if they deploy more than one).* Their Strategic Agency is without equal.  They can dictate when/where and even if/what...becoming a triviality as levels pile on.* Because of all of the above, they get to dictate (a) what the game is about and (b) the trajectory through which that "what is this about" manifests more than any other character.  The only way this doesn't turn out is f (c) they give up this capability of their own volition or (d) the GM assumes an adversarial arms race against the Spellcaster...leveraging the offscreen/secret backstory in order to block their ability to put into affect (a) and (b).(D) particularly becomes a thing when the GM is trying to impose their own metaplot or keep a game on the AP's rails.[HR][/HR]Thoughts?EDIT - One thing I've tried to examine often (and this dovetails precisely with "The Spellcaster Issue" cited above) is when one or more vectors/types of agency clash with a play priority and what gives way.  I find, far too often, that what gives way is Protagonist Agency (if it was even present to begin with).  THIS sort of agency loss is a non-starter for a lot of people expressing distaste with certain "GM moves" in this thread.</blockquote>

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