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Message: <blockquote data-quote="chaochou" data-source="post: 8936697" data-attributes="member: 99817">We could follow up this example. Suppose instead there is some context and the player says 'Cool. Can I hear anyone snoring?'This takes us away from action resolution methodology and into other important areas - such as authority distribution and goal setting, amongst others.Can I hear anyone snoring?Firstly, whose job is it to answer? Traditionally, it's considered the GMs job to answer, but it needn't be and I've played games in which it isn't (or needn't be).If we look at the traditional method for answering, it's done roughly like this:Does the GM have a note of sounds of snoring at this place?If not;Does the GM imagine there is anyone / anything here?What time does the GM imagine it is?Does the GM imagine that the person / thing here might be asleep at this time?Might that sleeping thing be a thing which snores (in the GMs imagination)?At that point, with some conception in their own mind of the situation, the GM asks a player to roll a dice and uses that to make some decision about what parts of their conception of the situation they will reveal to the player, and in some instances what inaccurate parts they might include.Everything in this approach is about the GMs conception of the situation, and how close the GM permits the player to get to matching their own conception. It relies on very high levels of GM authority and reactive play.Some variation of this approach would make up the overwhelming number of cases in D&D, Runequest, Call of Cthulhu, Traveller and many other games.A shared conception approachApocalypse World would not handle the situation in the same way. Nor would Burning Wheel. Both games would force player and GM to drive towards the question 'Why does it matter?' and also towards the even more vital 'Who gets to say why it matters?'Neither of these are straightforward, but would in almost all cases involve some kind of ongoing conversation to reach a new understanding of why this now matters.For example, in Apocalypse World you can read a sitch but only if the situation is charged. So the MC would need to ask the player 'Are you thinking you're in danger right now, or getting ready for something awful to happen?' Or the MC might ask questions and build on the answers: "You know who sleeps here, right? Who is that? And what do you owe them?"These questions ask the player to define why their character is in this situation, what matters to them, what they want and what might be at risk. The MC doesn't assume the authority to answer the question - the player's question (about snoring) is a starting point for finding out more about the player character, their intent and goals.I could talk some about Burning Wheel, and how that might also be handled. But i think the differentiation here is sufficient for now.</blockquote>

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